Having a deck can improve the enjoyment of your outdoor living space. It can become a treasured area to spend time with friends or watch the stars. Here are a few things to consider when building a deck.
Plan Your Space
The first step is deciding what you want the deck to do. Is this going to be an intimate area outside your bedroom door or a large place to party? Here are some questions to answer to clarify your vision.
How many people will be using the deck at a time? A deck for two is very different from a place to entertain friends, family, or even potential clients.
What room or rooms will have doors onto the deck? Decks coming off living rooms or dens are more likely to be used by more people than a deck coming off a bedroom or garage area.
What furniture will be on the deck? A few chairs and a grill have a different footprint and vibe than a large table and chairs for dining.
How do you entertain? This helps determine how large the deck needs to be.
Do you need steps or a ramp from the deck to the rest of the yard? If you need a ramp, it needs to slope no more than one inch a foot, or it will be too steep for wheelchair access. Stairs need to be 7 ¾” rise or less to be to code and be easily accessible.
Do you need railings on the steps, ramp, or sides of the deck? Having a railing will enclose the space more than a deck with no railings. Decks above 30” require a railing, but if it is lower you can avoid railings all together. If a railing is required and you want a more open look, there are cable rails and even glass rails that can open up the views to the backyard, lake, or swimming pool.
How much privacy do you want when you are enjoying your deck? Decks can be less private when they are high than when they are ground level with trees around. Privacy screens can also be added to screen between your neighbors.
Do you want the whole deck to be one level, or do you want different levels for different functions? There could be an intimate deck off the bedroom with a lower deck that is expansive and ready for a party. If there are different levels you can also have more shade and possibly waterproof below.
Laying Out Your Design
Now that you have some idea of the size and shape of the deck, it is time to work out a design. The easiest way to do this is to get some graph paper and draw your deck out to scale. It is best to use graph paper as it is big enough to see what you are drawing. Make each square a foot and draw what you want. For smaller projects, 10 squares per inch may work, but for larger decks, with more detail, you may need 4 squares per inch.
To make sure the design will accomplish your goals, draw furniture to scale on another page and cut it out. Lay the furniture on the draft of the deck until you are satisfied you have enough room for it. We recommend a minimum width of 14 feet if you are going to have a dining table for six or more people. Sixteen feet is even better. Make sure you leave pathways that are at least 36 inches wide to get around all the furniture and people.
Materials For Your Deck
Next, decide what materials you want to use to build the deck. There are several choices here, each with some tradeoffs.
Wood is the classic deck material. It comes as pressure-treated or rot-resistant, such as cedar. Right now, lumber is expensive and can be hard to obtain. Wood needs a lot of maintenance to stay nice. It will have to be sanded down once every few years and stained for a dark-colored appearance. If wood is left to weather it will turn a grey color like tree bark.
Composite decking is more expensive than wood but requires less maintenance. It is not as strong as wood. Some composites can weaken and warp, mold can grow on it in shady areas, the color can fade in the sun, and if it is scratched it cannot be easily fixed. Of course, these things can happen with wood also.
PVC decking is all plastic, although it can be made to mimic wood. It does not grow mold, weather, mildew, and resists moisture. It is more expensive than composite decking. PVC decks can shrink and swell with extreme temperature changes.
Pavers are very durable and look very nice when made into a deck. The effect is partly because they are an un-common deck material. We can custom build a paver deck and it will outlast wood and most other materials.
Wooden frames are often used, regardless of the decking material. They are cheaper than steel, but even pressure-treated wood eventually fails. Wood also fades and can look bad without frequent maintenance. Wooden frames are also vulnerable to termites.
Steel frames are more resistant to weather damage than wooden frames are. They are sleek and modern-looking. They are stronger than wood frames. They also keep wood out of contact with the dirt, which makes it less likely to get termites. Of course, they are also more expensive, but they are usually worth it.
Railings come in steel, cable, and wood. Wood railings look good with wooden or composite decking. However, they fade, are negatively affected by the weather, and have to be replaced more often than cable and steal. Cable railings look sleek and modern, however, if the cables run horizontally they can sag over time if users put their feet on them constantly. Steel lasts the longest and can be a good choice for a deck with a steel frame. Glass can also be used to keep open views to the surrounding landscape.
Roofs or Pagodas Both roofs and pagodas provide shade in the summer. A roof can also be used to keep the deck and the stuff on the deck dry. This means you can have some nice extras installed on your deck.
Neat Extras For Your Deck
If you have a roof, you can have things that will ruin in the rain. These include:
Fire features can be nice to sit around at night. They can be used to grill food and marshmallows, to keep warm with, or just to watch.
Built-in heaters can also keep you warm and toasty during the winter. They can extend the seasons for your deck into late fall. Electric infra-red heaters are pretty common in our area.
Television A large screen television can be installed into a covered deck. Think sports-watching parties during the season.
Fans With fans you can be outside and cool at the same time. You can get fans to fit any decorating scheme.
Kitchens Homes in the South used to have summer kitchens in the back of the house so that the heat of the oven and stove would not heat the whole house. You can do the cooking on the deck and keep the house cool.
Lights can keep the party going after dark or start it early in the morning. There are lots of styles to fit a variety of decorating styles.
Electrical outlets Electricity and rain do not mix. A deck with a roof makes it possible to have outlets in a variety of locations. Everyone can charge their devices while enjoying the day on the deck.
Screens A screened-in deck can keep the bugs out of your hair while you enjoy being outdoors. With all the mosquitoes it will be nice to watch the sunset without getting bitten.
Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping has lots of experience working with property owners to help them envision the deck of their dreams. We can walk you through the choices at each stage and, when you are ready, we can have our Blue Crew install it for you. Schedule a consultation with Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping today to get things started.
Great outdoor living spaces should be enjoyed by the whole family. During the last year many of you have started using your outdoor living spaces more often. You may have run out of fun ideas for spending time outside. Here are some suggestions for fun family activities to try.
Cornhole
This is a game where two people alternate tossing corn bags into a hole in the board across from where they are standing. Cornhole has its own standards and tournaments. I will summarize the rules but for the minutia check out the rules on the American Cornhole Association website.
Take two cornhole boards and place them 27 feet apart on a level surface
Stand no closer than the front edge of your board when you toss
Toss the corn bag into the hole
Alternate tosses between the competitors
Each player must pitch all four bags to close an inning
Players then swap boards and score themselves
A bag in the hole is 3 points
A bag on top of the board gets 1 point
The first player or team that receives 21 points by the bottom of a given inning wins
You can buy cornhole boards from the American Cornhole Association or from someone near you. Another option is a family project to make the boards and the corn bags. You will have to go to the American Cornhole Association website for the exact dimensions of everything. You can paint the boards any way you want after sanding the tops very smooth.
Bocce Ball
You will need a set of eight large balls and a smaller target ball called the pallina. Each set of four balls has a different pattern or color from the other set of four balls so you can distinguish them by team. You can play on any surface provided there are no obstructions on the court in any direction. Variations in grade or terrain features are considered okay. Competition courts are 91 feet long and 13 feet long. Backyard courts can be any size. A good size is 60 feet by 12 feet. The foul line is 10 feet from each end line and the center court is 30 feet from the end line.
Each team has one, two, or four people and four balls
A coin toss picks the first team up
They can choose either their team’s color or pattern or to toss the pallina
Balls are thrown, rolled, or bounced underhanded
One team rolls or tosses the pallina into play
The toss must cross the center line and stay on the court to count
If it fails to stay on the court, the other team gets to toss it
The team that tosses the pallina gets the first throw of the balls
The goal is to get as close to the pallina as possible
The ball must stay on the court
After the first ball is thrown, the other team throws their ball to get their first ball toward the pallina
Their first ball must stay on court
If a team fails to get their first ball on court, they must continue to try until they get it or run out of balls
Each team gets one throw and then the other team throws
Once both teams have gotten their first ball, the team with the ball closest to the pallina is the “in” team
The other team is the “out” team
The “in” team steps aside and lets the “out” team throw until they get to be the “in” team or run out of balls
This continues until all balls are thrown
That concludes a “frame” and points are awarded
The teams switch sides and do it again
The person throwing the ball must stay behind the foul line for their team
Balls that land off the court are dead until the next frame
If the pallina is thrown or hit out of bounds, the frame ends with no points awarded
One point is awarded to the team for each ball closer to the pallina than the other team’s closest ball
Only one team scores per frame
First team to reach 16 points wins
It is a good idea to read the complete rules at Backyardbocce.com for the subtle nuances that we may not have inadvertently left out.
Scavenger Hunt
This is a fun activity for any age. Basically, you give each team a list of things to find in the outdoor space and the team that finds the most items in the time limit wins. Try this at a local park for more space to spread out.
Teams can be any number from one to about five.
Designate a time limit from an hour for a relatively easy list for younger kids to a longer time for a tough list for adults.
Include some easy-to-find items even if the participants are adults to build confidence.
Once an item is located, it should be photographed for proof it has been found.
Make sure you do not award the prize until you have verified each item was found by looking at the photographs.
Decide if the winning team gets a prize that all members can share or individual prizes for each member of the team, or simply bragging rights.
Make Some Food
After all that running around, your family is going to be hungry. Let each person cook their own hot dog around the firepit. Then for dessert, make some smore’s. Most people know how to make this desert –graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows grilled on a stick. There are some “fancy” ways to make smore’s that are a bit different.
Use another candy bar in place of the plain chocolate bar. It is easier to cut the candy bar into individual pieces if you freeze it then slice it cold.
You can add fruit to the sandwich, especially sliced strawberries or berries.
Add caramel sauce or chocolate sauce to the smore’s
Replace the graham cracker with a cookie or flat ice cream cone wafers
Use Nutella instead of chocolate
You can make Elvis S’mores – graham cracker with peanut butter, banana, bacon, and marshmallow
Put candied bacon on top of the marshmallow for a salty-tangy taste
Host a Sports Watching Party
If you have an outdoor television, you can host outside sports watching parties. The Royals will look great on a large television this spring. Every seat will be a good seat at your house. With an outdoor audio system, the game will sound great, too.
Set Your Outdoor Living Space Up for Success
Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping can install a large screen television and outdoor audio system so you can enjoy your outdoor living space while you enjoy the game. Our trained Blue Crew knows how to install and tune the audio system for the television as well as listening to music outdoors. We can design a customized system to fit your outdoor living space and enhance your outdoor experience.
Need your outdoor living space fluffed up before a big event? We can come out and make sure everything is as close to perfect as is humanly possible. We typically come out the day before the event, so it still looks stunning at showtime.
Don’t have an outdoor living space? We can design one with your landscape and wishes in mind. Once we have worked through the design, our Blue Crew will install it for you, and can even maintain it if you like.
Contact Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping today to help you get your landscape and outdoor living space just the way you want it so your family can get the most out of your outdoor experience.
Enhance your outdoor living space with outdoor audio. Eliminate the need to try to play your indoor system loudly enough to be heard outside, with the tinny sound that entails. With the right equipment, not only will it sound wonderful, but you can play your music on the patio while the kids can play their music by the pool. That keeps everyone happier.
If you have decided to install an outdoor audio system, there are several steps. Skipping a step can mean you are just never quite happy with the install. With the amount of money you can spend, and the amount of labor involved, you want to get it right the first time.
Make A Plan
Before you buy any equipment, you need to assess your space. Figure out how big the space is, what architectural features it has, and how many speakers it will take to cover it. A pair of speakers can cover 200-400 square feet in most cases. Too few speakers lead to overworking the ones you purchase, which will have poor sound quality and can blow the speakers. Too many speakers can waste money.
The acoustics outside are very different than the acoustics inside. Outside there are no walls to contain and reflect the sound. Unless you distribute the speakers properly, and use the correct speaker for each area, you will have loud spots and quiet spots. If you do not position the speakers right, you may flood your neighbors with sound. That would be a bad thing.
Speaker Considerations
The first rule when buying speakers is do not ruin your outdoor system by scrimping on your speakers. The second rule is buy outdoor speakers. Indoor speakers are just not built to last in the face of rain, snow, wind, sun, heat, and cold. The first time they get wet they will stop working. Even if you could somehow put the speakers in little houses to protect them, indoor speakers cannot handle the volume needed for the outdoors. They are designed for small, enclosed areas and are set to use the walls and ceiling to contain and reflect the sound.
Types Of Outdoor Speakers
Outdoor speakers come in wireless and hard-wired versions. The advantage of wireless speakers is that you can easily add them to your indoor receiver and control the whole thing on your smartphone. The disadvantage is that if you do not have a fast and stable internet connection in your home, the wireless speakers will not be able to deliver consistent sound. If your receiver does not have enough slots for the speakers you are using, you may have to get a new receiver that does.
Hard wired speakers deliver the best sound. They also work best for permanently mounted systems. One caution is that you must use heavy-duty, outdoor wire. Using internal speaker wire will cause static and the wires do not last long buried.
An example of an outdoor speaker installed in a flower bed.
When spacing speakers, be careful about putting them too close together. You will need to space them at least ten feet apart or they will interfere with one another. When placing the speakers, alternate right and left speakers so you have stereo wherever you are in the yard. You can purchase speakers that are disguised as garden rocks or bury more modern speakers partially for a sleek look. Place your speakers under natural cover such as trees and bushes to protect them so they will last longer.
Receivers And Amplifiers
You will need a receiver and an amplifier. The receiver gets the signals from the radio station and amplifies it before sending it to the speakers. However, it can only amplify the signal so much. You will need a multichannel amplifier to boost the signal so that it will reach each speaker with the strength necessary to have even sound around your space. Buy one that is compatible with your speakers.
Even if you have an indoor receiver, it is a good idea to buy a multi-channel receiver for your outdoor system. This allows each speaker to get a dedicated receiver channel. You can then segment your audio into zones just as your sprinklers have zones. One of the zones can be your indoor speakers so you can control your indoor and outdoor system from your smart phone. The zones can balance out soft and loud volume in your space. You can even use different zones to play separate channels. Make sure your receiver is compatible with the amplifier and speakers. Do not under power your speakers. You will need at least 40 watts per channel.
Now you have all components for your outdoor audio system. Be sure to test your speakers before final installation to make sure they are working as you expect before filling in the trenches that hold your wires.
Get A Professional To Design and Install Your Outdoor Audio System
Installing an outdoor audio system has a lot of moving parts. It also requires a lot of work. If you get it wrong, you will have to dig up the wires and move the speakers around until it sounds right. This can be very time consuming and incredibly frustrating. Consider how much your time is worth before tackling a big job like this.
Royal Creations Architectural Landscaping has experience installing outdoor audio systems. Our Blue Crew includes trained audio/visual experts that can install an outdoor audio system that will serve your needs, the first time.
We use Coastal Source speakers. They are durable, reliable, and have the many shapes and sizes of speakers it requires to really fill your outdoor living room with the sounds you love. As always, our goal is to bring you the ultimate outdoor experience. Contact us today to request an outdoor audio system consult.
