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It'll be ok!

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Colm Roe
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It'll be ok!

Post by Colm Roe » Mon Oct 19, 2020 7:32 pm

A cedar deck, more deep pile carpet now
rots in pockets, a spreading, viral sponge, where
even friendly fingers could open the sky
to the darkness below.

Built with care, to outlast...
careful to choose the right supports
and fixings, and when built
their feet, eyes and pride
caressed it.

An small error in the build,
a limit pushed; they knew!
Aesthetics numbed an
'It'll be ok'

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Tracy Mitchell
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Re: It'll be ok!

Post by Tracy Mitchell » Thu Oct 22, 2020 3:55 pm

I like this Colm -- have we seen it before?

Well told. Suggestive of the structurally defecting Frank Lloyd Wright house.

Still - we do what we must do, and we do it well.

T

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Colm Roe
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Re: It'll be ok!

Post by Colm Roe » Sat Oct 24, 2020 8:16 pm

Thanks for the link; never heard of him, but his houses are fab.
I wrote another poem about my deck about to collapse, one of the large supporting beams had failed and a large part of the deck had dropped in a dramatic bow. There's a staircase built through it, leading to an 8' high storage area beneath.
It's a big deck, about 700 square feet, with a 16' high RSJ reinforced fence. I built the whole thing on my own 20 years ago even though I'd never worked with wood before. I was concerned about my safety, but decided to try to fix it myself. So instead of paying a contractor I put in a foundation, built a block pier and with a car jack on top of the pier I gingerly raised it back to its proper level then secured it. I have to admit to a certain amount of fear as I jacked it up...but the sense of satisfaction (not to mention the money saved) in fixing it myself was wonderful.
I still have to replace all of the deck boards :(
The error I made initially was making the spaces between the deck boards smaller than they should have been. An aesthetic decision (smaller gaps look better) that meant the spaces got clogged with debris from the three trees that grow up through the deck. It retained moisture and rotted everything much quicker. So yes, I feel like a bit of a Frank :lol:
On a brighter note, when it's finished (and considering my age etc.) it won't have to be done again :D

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Tracy Mitchell
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Re: It'll be ok!

Post by Tracy Mitchell » Mon Oct 26, 2020 6:20 pm

Great descriptions. Sounds like a project. I admire your adventurousness in tackling the project. I recall 40 years ago when my [then] new bride and I purchased and moved into a dilapidated farm house. Part of my grand scheme was to remove the wall between the kitchen and living room to open the main floor up. I braced the ceiling joists, then removed the plaster and lathe from the studs. When the time came to cut and remove the studs, my bride was a hundred and fifty yards away, waiting to see the whole house crash down. Of course it didn't fall, the remodeling concluded satisfactorily and we lived then for ten years. A month ago I built a deck at my new place. First time I heard of joist tape. It goes on the joists before the decking goes on -- it keeps dry the contact areas between the decking and joists. Great idea, right? I searched high and low, finally found it at a box store. Waaaay to expensive, so I bought some cheap waterproof paint for the tops of the joists. I am not sure it matters, as it is a pretty good bet the deck will outlast me no matter how I did it.

Still like the poem, Colm -- you bring a lot of this into it.

T

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Colm Roe
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Re: It'll be ok!

Post by Colm Roe » Mon Oct 26, 2020 8:54 pm

Can't beat the satisfaction of doing it yourself.
I'll send you a photo of mine if you show me yours :lol:
Not sure if I'll use Western Red Cedar again...if I don't I will miss the beautiful aroma that erupts with every cut.
Still building decks at your age...I'm impressed T :)

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Tracy Mitchell
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Re: It'll be ok!

Post by Tracy Mitchell » Tue Oct 27, 2020 8:23 am

Sure -- we'll swap pics if you want. Building materials are a different matter here these days. The most recent previous deck I built was 1997, and I used cedar. The alternative then was the pressure treated lumber, or standard fir. This time the old-style pressure-treated was not available. For cedar -- I would have had to drive 150 miles to haul it back at an exorbitant price. The composite factory made was, regrettably, the logical choice. I was not excited, but it came out fine. The big selling point is the time and money saved on maintenance.

Yes, there is a major satisfaction of DIY. And while you may think it an accomplishment at my age, I am much more impressed by your tackling it with your cane and walker. :D :D :D

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Colm Roe
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Re: It'll be ok!

Post by Colm Roe » Tue Oct 27, 2020 7:10 pm

:lol: :lol: :lol:
FYI in Ireland cedar is cheaper than composite!

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