How hard is it to build a decking frame?

Skidder

Skidder

Skidder

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I'm pretty skint at the moment having recently had a large extension built. As such considering doing something myself. I want to put a deck at the bottom of my garden but have no experience of it and I don't normally bother much with DIY.

How hard is it to build a decking frame? That is the bit that concerns me in terms of getting it right. I have cut and put down some decking before on an existing frame.

It will be an irregular shape due to an existing path and tiered shape to the garden, so not a nice easy rectangle.

Should I get a real man? Any tips?
 
I don't think it's difficult. Just a little daunting at first. Buy some postcrete, a string line. A good saw, an impact driver, a set of spirit levels and some drill bits and fixings and away you go.

Measure up and draw out the area on a notepad or sketchup or something. Once you have the area drawn you can start to locate the support positions. Get an augur or post shovel and get digging your desired areas and get your posts in.

Once they are in place you will have a good visual starting point. Lay down some membrane to stop weeds etc and then start on your next step of building the framework.

It will take you a lot longer than someone experienced but if you plan it correctly you will be perfectly capable. Remember to treat ends of wood to protect from ingress.

YouTube is your friend here.
 
Its easy, just plan plan plan
When you say irregular shape, is it going to be easy to still use full widths and straight 90 degree cuts or are you going to have to cut the width or funny angles.

As far as making the frame, getting square cuts will help. Use decent large nails (you want it to be able to flex a bit which nails allow, screws wont, and will either snap or the wood will split if the deck wants to move enough eg due to water expansion.

You don't have to use supports, but you want to get the timber off direct contact with the ground if possible.

One thing to remember, decking will rot eventually, one of the weak points is between the boards on the support beams, you cant treat them there and they are in effect exposed to the rain, once as is inevitable the treatment fails and rot starts to get a hold the clock is ticking.

Mine is supported in paving bricks sunk into the ground, so only about 3cm above ground level, when I pulled some boards up recently it was dry as hell under there. To give the beams a little more water insulation I put some DPC on top of each brick so no rising damp would get to the beams only water from above (rain basically)
 
There are plenty of online guides as well, B&Q, wickes etc

You will realise after watching a few that they disagree at times, and then you conclude there is no right way, just wrong ways, and you will adapt to what suits you

Just take your time, measure twice, cut once.
A mitre type saw will improve your accuracy and save you some effort as well

Ive got a good source for decking, thing is they charge quite a high amount for transport so if its a small deck they aren't cost effective but above about 6sqM or so they are really good and the timber is much better than wickes etc
https://www.deckingsupplies.co.uk/

Only other thing I would mention is to use either ground control fabric or old plastic bags (sort gravel etc come in) rather than weed control fabric, as weed control is so thin its rubbish
 
I've done two of these - the first was effectively a "floating" deck over an old uneven patio, which had no membranes and used glazing packers to level it out. All drilled and screwed together. The second was a more substantial deck over what used to be a pond, for that one it was still "floating" because it isn't secured to the floor but I used a heavy duty membrane. No movement issues with either, decking is pretty heavy when it's all laid out.

A mitre saw makes all this MUCH easier.
 
That hot tub is something like 1000 litres of water, and the decking didn't deflect or move at all, nothing fixed to the floor.

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1) Tools - Sliding Mitre Saw, Drill (for deck screws), Impact driver (for frame TimbaScrews)
2) Design Top/Finish first - Your layout inc shape, direction of planks, and any edging or lights you want to include
3) Design frame - Making sure the ends of all planks have something to screw down onto
4) Clear area, lay membrane
5) Build as much of the frame you can first before adding/connecting to supports
6) Add supporting legs etc
7) Ensure frame is treated in whatever protection you choose
8) Add decking planks (treating as you go if you don't have access afterwards

Simples!

This was my effort last year:- https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/posts/30020797
 
Get a tin of end grain treatment for treating any cut ends as you go. I guess you could use normal preservative, but the proper end grain treatments use the same Tanalith treatment used on the timber, so it should in theory give the same protection. The downside is its pretty expensive, but worth it when you consider how much the decking is costing.
 
Mark A said:
Get a tin of end grain treatment for treating any cut ends as you go. I guess you could use normal preservative, but the proper end grain treatments use the same Tanalith treatment used on the timber, so it should in theory give the same protection. The downside is its pretty expensive, but worth it when you consider how much the decking is costing.
Click to expand...

Noted, thanks

GSXRMovistar said:
1) Tools - Sliding Mitre Saw, Drill (for deck screws), Impact driver (for frame TimbaScrews)
2) Design Top/Finish first - Your layout inc shape, direction of planks, and any edging or lights you want to include
3) Design frame - Making sure the ends of all planks have something to screw down onto
4) Clear area, lay membrane
5) Build as much of the frame you can first before adding/connecting to supports
6) Add supporting legs etc
7) Ensure frame is treated in whatever protection you choose
8) Add decking planks (treating as you go if you don't have access afterwards

Simples!

This was my effort last year:- https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/posts/30020797
Click to expand...

Excellent, thanks. Yours looks great.

I made good progress yesterday and turned this into two jobs rather than one. I had very mixed levels in the area to be decked. There was an old brick built drain structure (not in use) and archway which I have bashed in (not the archway it was too well built!). I then have about 70% removed two defunct rockery / flower beds that I've always wanted to get rid of and used the soli to level up the areas for the decking. I live on the river so getting materials into my garden is a challenge so not having to get rid of that soil later or bring in materials now is a godsend. A really hard day of work with a mate but progress. He is going to help me do the frame and decking too.
 
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