june - aug 2007 082.jpg

Planning a deck, patio, wall or any other permanent feature is one of the most important decisions you will make. This merits much thought, planning and consideration as this is likely the place you will be spending the most time.  Some things to consider:

• Placement.  Where you put your patio or deck is absolutely critical. Our experience has been that it should be as close to the kitchen as possible if you want to get the most use out of your outdoor living space. If you entertain a lot, you may need to plan it further away from the house to make the structure is big enough to accomodate your guests.
• Size. The biggest mistake a lot of people make.  Too small.  You should make the deck or patio as big as you can possibly afford. Make sure you draw a plan to scale. Then draw patio furniture to scale on the deck or patio. Even a 4' round table and chairs takes up a substantial amount of room and don't forget, you need to be able to comfortably walk around all the furniture, BBQ, pots, chaise lounges and whatever else you may want.  This all depends on your lifestyle and how many people are regularly involved in it.  You may think it's big enough, until you put furniture on it. So plan first.

• What materials?  There are pros and cons to every material there is on the market. Here's our personal opinion:

Concrete - You get the most bang for your buck. There are acid stains/etching that are incredibly beautiful and it's limitless what you can do in color combinations.  Once it's formed and graded, it happens fast.  Usually in a day or two at most.  The down side is that it can get hot in the sun, it's going to crack no matter what you do to try to prevent it. You do have to seal an acid etch/stain periodically to keep from fading.  Just plain concrete is very harsh and industrial looking and can produce glare in the bright sunlight.  If you don't know how to work with concrete and you're trying to pour it yourself, it can be a nightmare if you let it get away from you.  Small projects you should be able to handle if you do your homework.  Anything larger than 100 square feet should be handled one of two ways.  Get someone who really knows what they're doing to help you and get a lot of additional help as well.  Find a professional.  If it goes awry, it's one of the worst experiences you'll have.  You'll be so unhappy with concrete that dried faster than you could handle, that you'll likely end up having to either resurface it, or tear it out and start all over.

Wood.  Natural wood decks are without a doubt most people's favorite.  It's the natural look and feel that makes people drawn to  it.  It's cooler on the bare feet in the sun than concrete. If you have a slope, there is no retaining walls that there would be if you were to pour concrete. More expensive that concrete because of material cost and it usually takes much more time to install.  Everyone is aware that wood will grey with exposure to the sun and elements.  Some, including myself, actually prefer the grey look, however, most people like to keep the wood looking new or with some type of stain on it.  This requires regular maintenance. There are a lot of choices of products on the market that you may choose from to treat your deck.

Composite decking.  Much more expensive that wood. People want the look of wood without the work. The old Trex decking really lacked in aesthetics, but the new products are looking better and better. The composite decks we have put in have faded in color with time.  It expands and contracts much like wood which is a big factor when installing it.  Depending on what the temperature it is when you install it will depend on how big you make the spacing between deck boards.  Every product is different, so make sure you thoroughly read the manufacturers specifications and instructions before you buy.  The framing underneath your composite decking will still need to be made of wood.  Composite decking is not structural.  With this in mind, you will likely want to cover the wood structure that ends up showing with composite material so that everything matches.  This isn't true of a wood deck. If the sub-structure shows, it usually doesn't matter so much.  But with a composite deck, there is going to be an obvious difference in appearance.  This adds to the cost of materials and the time it takes to finish the deck.

Modular Concrete Pavers, Brick. There are many different styles and types of pavers and bricks. Generally speaking, the most important aspect of have a suitable patio out of this material is the prep work before you actually install the pavers or brick.  You will need to allow for 6-8 inches of depth including the thickness of the paver or brick itself, along with 4" of road base and 1" of sand beneath.  If you have room enough to build your patio on top of the existing grade and can retain these materials, that would be ideal.  But if you don't, be prepared for some digging.  If you don't feel like digging down between 6-8 inches to allow for the road base and sand it takes to give the proper foundation for your hardscape, this isn't for you.  If you want a rustic patio and you don't mind uneven or bumpy edges that could potentially be a trip hazard, then you don't need to dig down too far, but expect an uneven surface that gets worse with time, especially here in Utah.  It's a lot of work, but as long as you know what you're in for, what isn't?  This style is much more conducive to a traditional look and has that European feel so many people like.  The modular concrete pavers are meant to look stone-like.  It's beautiful and there are manufacturers that have matching retaining wall components.  If you want to keep the installation as simple as possible, avoid curves.  Curves means you'll have to cut the pieces on a radius to look decent.  This means renting a brick saw or cutting the pieces with an angle grinder.  Again, do your homework.  Brands and types differ in thickness and dimension.  Try to plan your patio so that there is a little cutting as possible.

Flagstone.  This is the ultimate patio.  You have two choices of how to install it.  It takes the same preparation as described for the pavers above if you are going to dry-set it.  That is, without mortar.  But expect the same surface irregularities with time.  The big difference between flagstone and pavers is that it's a natural material.  That means that it's like fitting a jigsaw puzzle together and all the different pieces are varying thicknesses and have irregularities.  This is by far, the most time consuming and difficult types of patios to install and do it right.  You can install one in a hurry and it will do, but it won't be what I would consider something that you will be happy with if you are going to spend any amount of time on it.  The reason being, if you put a table and chairs on it, and it isn't carefully pieced together and leveled, you're going to have edges of the pieces of flagstone catching when you move furniture around on it.  Weeds will grow through the joints, the sand will disappear between the joints, and it will heave with the freeze and thaw.  If you take the time and trouble of preparing it with a proper foundation, ensuring to compact the road base with preferably a vibratory plate compactor, you will have a decent product.  The biggest variable in the appearance of the patio is consistency in the joints and making sure you use a carpenter's level to make an even plane.  This means you'll need to either cut or chip away the edges of the great majority of each piece of flagstone to 'jigsaw puzzle' it together.  This is an extremely labor intensive job and it is not for the faint of heart, but it can be done if you have the moxie to do your homework and don't mind a lot of work.

The absolute ultimate of patios is of flagstone mortared over a concrete pad, which is what you see in 95% of our portfolio pictures.  Myself, Rita and my crew have personally, with our own hands, installed every single patio you see in those pictures.  Pouring a concrete pad underneath is the only way to make sure you have a properly installed, substantial and long-lasting patio that is in my opinion, the most beautiful form of patio there is with the least amount of maintenance.  This is, however also the most expensive patio simply because you are setting a patio on top of a patio.  Your patio ends up being a solid 7-8" thick by the time you mortar the flagstone into place.  Because of the thickness, there is much less chance of it cracking and to date, we haven't had one of these crack yet and some have been in for more than 10 years.  If you decide you want to tackle one of these, you have to follow all of the common sense rules about pouring a concrete patio for drainage and layout.  The difference is, you don't have to finish the concrete like you would normally.  It can be very rough because it's going to be covered anyway.  Personally, I've figured out how to install the flagstone with a minal amount of cutting and it looks very natural and finished.  There are many techniques of setting flagstone and the style with which you choose to set it.  For us, it all comes down to details and the joint spacing, making sure there aren't any irregularities in the surface to trip on.  This is a job that takes some skill and stamina to say the least, but again, more than worth the effort.