Over the course of two afternoons, I built a deck for my wife. Originally I was going to build it next year. But the “janky” deck I had put down a couple months ago was more of a hazard than a help for my wife. Plywood just wouldn’t cut it.

As I mentioned, this is the fourth wooden deck I have built on my own in my lifetime. The first one I made about 17 years ago for my mother. She had all the supplies delivered to her home and I built it over the course of about three days. First day was cementing the posts and leveling the frame. After that it was pretty straightforward. I started a tradition of building decks and listening to classical music really loud. Specifically the Fantasia 2000 soundtrack. I listen to it every time I build a deck. Something about classical music helps me to problem solve and get creative when building.

The next deck I built was in the trees at our last home. That deck was made 14 years ago. It was a 20’ x 14’ and sat on two 12” boards between four trees. I used branches from around the yard as railing spindles. It was built very solid and is still standing.

The next deck I did was built 2 years ago. Again, I built it in our last home in the front yard. This time around I was teaching our son how to use power tools. Read about it here: Part 1 and the conclusion: Part 2. We always wanted a front porch and used it all the time. I was a bit sad that I took so long to get that one built. But it added curb appeal when we sold.

This last deck was built on a small outcrop of boulders. What was essentially useless space with a couple plants in pots has now become a full gardener’s paradise. This deck is 22’ by 5’ so I decided to run the boards lengthwise to give it a larger look. My wife is happy and we put the plants back immediately so they could start to get the best sun.

Next year I will be building another deck. This time it will be in the lower part of the garden. I left a space open at the end of our newest deck in order to build some stairs to get there. We will be able to grow more vegetables down there than we currently have. Plus it will be safer to get down to the lower garden.

Need a deck built? Give me a shout. I’m pretty darn good at it if I do say so myself.