# Two Tier Deck



## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

Here are some shots of the deck I am building for a friend. The upper deck is 12' x 10'. I used 2x10's for the joist on 16" o/c. The beam is made using 2x10 lag screwed into a 6x6. I have taken a photo to show how I did this. The piles are 12" in diameter and 10' deep with two pieces of 15mm rebar in them. I like to box my footings with 2x6 so the bottom of the 6x6 is not in any water. This also makes it easy to pour and set because the height is dictated by the 6x6 and not the piling itself. You can also be a little of on your footings since you can move the 6x6 around a little bit. 

Went over this morning and work for 2.5 hours and managed to get the upper deck boards screwed down. I notched the 4x4' post so they sit flush to the outside of the deck. They are easily fastened to the 2x10 using 3" screws (5). It is important to ensure they are perfectly plum so when you put in the railing it all lines up nicely. 

Once the lower deck is done I will make a railing for the upper deck using 2x4's top and bottom with 2x2's on 3" o/c. A 2x6 will be used to cap the railing and clamped and screwed in from the underside of the 2x4 so there will be no screw marks on the top side of the 2x6 rail cap. 

Once the rails are in place I will rip small pieces of wood to brad nail into place to stop the 2x2 spindles from spinning. This also gives an added profile that adds a touch of class to the deck.

The lumber is all pressure treated. No stain will be applied to the deck because over time the UV rays from the sun will bleach this deck and look like old Cedar. I have done this many times and people are amazed how good it holds up and looks given they are not taxed with having to apply stain to the deck every few years.

On Monday I will put the deck boards on the lower deck and then have to wait for the sidewalk to be completed before I can make the stairs that will span the entire length of the lower deck (16').


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## levon (Sep 14, 2008)

hi Dan

is there a ledger board lagged into the sill? if not it wouldnt meet code here. the code may be more lenient there? also remember to remove the form boards from the footings. they can cause big problems in the future! the 2 x 6 form boards you show even though pt are not meant for ground contact.


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## xplorx4 (Dec 1, 2008)

Looking good man. How long to finish that project?


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

Yes there are 3/8" Lag screws into the house that screw into the floor joist. The upper deck had a 2x10 ledger board attached already so I just had to mount the joist hangers with 2" screws.

The lower deck required a ledger board to be installed. It is a 2x8 ledger board attach as described above.

Levon why do you say the form boards will cause problems? If they rot what is left but a 5.5" concrete slab? I suppose we could remove them but the owner said to leave them be. I do not see a problem with them because they are off the ground and not exposed to the elements.

The deck took 4 hrs the first day to pour the footings and attach the 2x8 ledger board.
The upper deck was joisted in 3 hrs along with the 4x4 posts. The bottom deck was done in 4 in four hours. . Today we spent 3 hrs on the upper deck with the deck boards themselves.

So all in I figure we have around 20 hrs.


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

levon said:


> hi Dan
> 
> is there a ledger board lagged into the sill? if not it wouldnt meet code here. the code may be more lenient there? also remember to remove the form boards from the footings. they can cause big problems in the future! the 2 x 6 form boards you show even though pt are not meant for ground contact.


Levon here in Canada we have two types of Pressure Treated (PT) lumber. One is not rated for the ground and the other is rated for ground contact in fact you can bury them into the ground and they have tiny slits cut in the boards and injected with the sealer.


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## levon (Sep 14, 2008)

we have 2 grades of pt here also, but you will never see the pt for ground contact in a 2x here, all ground contact is 4x and up. regular pt will leach out and termites come right up it. but i keep forgetting you dont have subterraneon termites there i dont believe. form boards are our worst enemy in termite control and control of ants also.

sorry i wasnt able to see the ledger, these old eyes arent what they use to be ,lol


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

levon said:


> we have 2 grades of pt here also, but you will never see the pt for ground contact in a 2x here, all ground contact is 4x and up. regular pt will leach out and termites come right up it. but i keep forgetting you dont have subterraneon termites there i dont believe. form boards are our worst enemy in termite control and control of ants also.
> 
> sorry i wasnt able to see the ledger, these old eyes arent what they use to be ,lol


No worries Levon I know your just trying to help me and I appreciate it. I will keep the termites in mind in case I move out of this deep freezer 6 years from now.

Got the cabinets sprayed whoa do they look nice. I have to clean my sprayer I better run.


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## levon (Sep 14, 2008)

Dan, from the looks of your work, you dont need any help from this oldtimer. i guess the reason im so overcautious is all the heartbreaking damage ive seen in 34 years of pest control. even when pt was used. its such a tropical climate here, the bugs thrive.


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

*Lower Deck Almost Done*

Today in the morning I went over and installed the blocking to stiffen up the deck. The lower section is 12 feet out from the house and 16 feet long. The 3 ply 2x8 PT Beam is set at 10 feet out form the house. The block split the span between the beam and the house at 58".

We had some really ugly boards and were not able to complete the lower deck this morning. It was starting to heat up buy 12:30 noon so we packed up for the day.

We will need to get some lumber for the railing and 4 more 2x6 deck boards at16 feet.

I decided to cap the deck with a 2x6 all the way around top and bottom for a different look. I also spilt the decking down the middle so when you look at it from the end it really in my honest humble opinion looks sort of neat.

Four more hours and we should have it done and I will return to build the stairs once they have the sidewalk done so you can set the stair stringer onto the sidewalk when you walk off the 12' x 16" lower deck.


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## Hamlin (Dec 25, 2005)

Hi Dan,

You're doing a fine job there.:sold:

I know what you mean by having some ugly boards. I helped my brother-n-law earlier this yr build a closed in deck. Home Depot had some really crappy looking boards. Sopping wet, knots, major warpage, and the PT, just didn't look right.


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## xplorx4 (Dec 1, 2008)

Great job Dan, your friend should have many years of enjoyment from that. I trust your friend is going to treat you to a nice dinner on the deck, or maybe already has!!


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

xplorx4 said:


> Great job Dan, your friend should have many years of enjoyment from that. I trust your friend is going to treat you to a nice dinner on the deck, or maybe already has!!


I still have to go back and get the railing done and 4 more deck boards. I also have to build a set of stairs once the sidewalk is done but....

They want to pay me something and here is what I think would fit the bill:


Busy Bee Tools Product Detail

:blink:


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## Noob (Apr 18, 2009)

Lookin' good, but how did that bright-pink house pass the home owners association specifications? (jk)


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

Bad photo I build decks not take photos


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

*Deck c/w Railing*

Today I went out and got the rest of the deck done.

I first had to get some PT 2x2 and some 2x6 and rip it into 5/8" x 5/8" strips. Here are the steps I took to do this:

1) Ripped the 2x2's into two equal half's. 

2) Off to the thickness planer to mill off the saw marks and make sure the boards were all the same thickness.

3) Set up the router table with my new 1/4 round-over bit and profiled the tops on both sides. Left the bottom square to butt up against the existing 2x2rails.

4) Ripped into two equal widths leaving me roughly a square strip measuring 5/8" x 5/8".

5) Applied some sealer and then cut to fit in between the 4x4 post.

Will have to wait till they get the sidewalk done and then I can return to do the stairs for the bottom portion of the deck.

Sorry about the color of the pics it was a very bright day and it seems to distort the colouring. No the siding is not PINK! lol


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## xplorx4 (Dec 1, 2008)

Dan you have again done a masterful job. It is fun to build deck and such. I have built one from scratch and rebuilt one to sell a house. The boards were very warn so I pulled them up and turned them over and screwed them down put on a coat of stain and looked great. I think it cost 100.00-150.00 vs. over 500.00 just for the 5quarter. That was how I got the DeWalt compound slider. A few boards had to be replaced but only about 5 or 6.

Your deck looks great job well done.


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## Hamlin (Dec 25, 2005)

Hi Dan,

Job well done my friend.


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

Thanks Jerry and Hamlin I am happy with it but more importantly the owner is as well. In fact the surrounding neighbours popped in as they have a strange new pile of PT lumber stacked on their own driveway and asked if I gave estimates.


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

TRN_Diesel said:


> I still have to go back and get the railing done and 4 more deck boards. I also have to build a set of stairs once the sidewalk is done but....
> 
> They want to pay me something and here is what I think would fit the bill:
> 
> ...


 
Tools.. sounds like a great form of payment to me! Tell your buddy he may want to tell his wife he needs to get two sets... one for himself so he can practice what he's learned. <g>

Can't have too many tools!


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

TRN_Diesel said:


> Thanks Jerry and Hamlin I am happy with it but more importantly the owner is as well. In fact the surrounding neighbours popped in as they have a strange new pile of PT lumber stacked on their own driveway and asked if I gave estimates.


What other tools do you need for your shop? <g>


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

BigJimAK said:


> What other tools do you need for your shop? <g>


8" Jointer
Mortiser
Bandsaw 16"
Router table built into Tablesaw
Portable 10" tablesaw Bosch or Ridgid


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## JoelWilliams (Aug 7, 2009)

Nice deck. We expect to build the balcony deck on the house we are building this week. Similar style to yours.


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

Well Dan, you need 5 tools.. sounds like time for 5 deck quotes! 

Imagining Dan thinking: "Hmm.. is this a bandsaw deck or a jointer deck?" <g>


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

JoelWilliams said:


> Nice deck. We expect to build the balcony deck on the house we are building this week. Similar style to yours.


Thanks for the compliment I appreciate it. If your deck has a nice view from it and you can also see out of a window you may want to consider making it two tier in the direction of the view. This way you will not have a railing impeeding your view because it will be lower down out of your view.


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

BigJimAK said:


> Well Dan, you need 5 tools.. sounds like time for 5 deck quotes!
> 
> Imagining Dan thinking: "Hmm.. is this a bandsaw deck or a jointer deck?" <g>


I actually have a a finish carpentery job for a guy who wants me out at his house while he is awa on holidays. The standard window trim detail and door. Except there is a lot of custom trim work . 

If I do that I will take away from the garage overall and winter is fast approaching and the kids are back which means less time in the garage.


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

*Stairs complete with flower planters*

I went out in the last month and finish the deck I built in the fall last year for a buddy.

I talked him into letting me build flower planters so it encloses the stairs and makes them more appealing and easier to build 

Here are a few pictures of the deck party showing the completed deck..

NOTE:
Flower planters do not make empty beer cans into full ones! But they do make a good place to store your empties prior to the flowers going into them.


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## TRN_Diesel (Feb 24, 2009)

Pictures failed too upload lets try this again.


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

Looks great, Dan!


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## Dr.Zook (Sep 10, 2004)

Flower planters, oh yeah!!!!!!!
Looks like built-in recycle bins to me. LOL!!!!!!!
Nice work Dan.


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