How To Build A Floating Deck For Your Yard
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Since long, decking has been a popular addition for gardens and yards. A standard deck or raised deck is built on a frame near the house with safety railings at the edges. This can be difficult to construct.
You can also make a floating deck. This decking is usually easier to construct, does not need to be attached or secured to your home and doesn’t require traditional footings. This makes it much easier to build, especially if your budget doesn’t allow for a professional. So, it could save you money compared to standard decking prices. You will still need to have some skills, tools and plenty of time.
Here’s how you can build your floating deck.
How To Make A Floating Deck: 6 Steps
Step 1: Get Your Tools Together
First, youll need to make sure youve got the tools you need to complete this project successfully. A tape measure, level and square, a circular saw, drill, and square are all necessary. And youll need bits for drilling and driving.
You may also need a shovel and something to tamper the ground with. Although, you could use your feet or a heavy block if you dont want to buy or hire a tamper tool or machine.
Step 2: Choose The Right Materials
Next, choose your materials. Wood treated for ground contact is better than pressure-treated lumber. This will help your decking survive the damp conditions, especially if youplan to do a floating swimming pool deck. Frame can be estimated at 26 or 28 inches. The length of your deck will vary depending on its size. For the top, you will also need decking boards. They are typically made of wood but you can also buy composite decking boards.
Deck screws are required, and should resist corrosion. And you may choose to use metal ties to strength the corners of your base. If youre unsure of what fixings you need, your local hardware store should be able to advise you.
Concrete blocks are needed to support your frame. This can be done by purchasing ready-made deck blocks at a low price.
To keep the weeds from growing up underneath your decking, you may like to buy some landscape fabric and gravel.
Step 3: Level The Ground
The first big job youll need to do, is level the ground where youre going to construct your floating deck. Then youll need to tamper the ground. This basically means to compact the ground and flatten it as much as you can. This is so you have a good base for your floating deck.
Lay out your landscaping fabric, and then top it with gravel if you want to keep it simple.
Step 4: Make Your Base
Next, make the base of your decking. If possible, you will need a flat surface for your decking. Your circular saw will be used to cut the lumber to your desired size. Measure twice just to be sure, before you start cutting. And mark where you need to cut clearly and accurately.
If youre making the deck yourself, youre most likely going to choose a square or rectangular frame for ease. To make your base stronger, you will need to add length to the joists. These will be placed across your square base. This can be reinforced further by attaching battens between your joists. You can use the Kreg K4 drill guide or K5 drill guide to drill pilot holes for screws. Screwing the wood together on a flat surface will help you create a straight frame.
You will now need a solid base structure. This will need to stand on your concrete blocks. Before you move your frame onto the blocks, its worth using your level to make sure they are all sat at the same height on the ground. If you dont get them level, your base structure isnt going to sit properly on top and it will be unstable.
Step 5: Construct Your Decking
Once youve got your base in place, its time to add your decking boards. Again, youll need to cut these to size, so they neatly fit on top of your frame. Then you can start by lining the first board up with the edge of the frame. Remember, you want to lay your boards going across your joists. And youll need to leave a small gap between each decking board. You could create your own spacer for this task. This will ensure that your deck is evenly spaced. This can be done with a thin piece of wood.
Step 6: Finishing Your Deck
Your decking boards, even though you have made your base out of treated wood, will still need to be oiled or stained. However, if youve usedcomposite or trex decking boards, you wont need to worry about this step.
Now youre ready to use your deck, whether youre planning to use it as an outdoor dining or lounging space.
Dont forget, it will need a bit of maintenance to help it last for years to come. It is necessary to clean and reoil decking every now and again.
(Looking to refinish wood on a budget? You can make your own DIY drum sander by following our guide.
And A Few Final Tips
It may be helpful to draw a plan on paper before you start measuring the lengths of your lumber. If you are having trouble determining the area of decking you want to build, you can use chalk spray to mark a rough shape in your garden or yard.
You can find many video guides online to help you build your deck. But you should note that professionals and amateurs may use slightly different techniques to create their floating decks.
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