When we were having the kitchen done I asked Al Taddeo, who was the carpenter on that job, if he knew any deck builders. He said two important things: 1) "I don't have time" and 2) "Make sure that's pretty much all it says on their truck....make sure it does not say kitchens, baths, and decks...or windows and decks." As for #1 I wasn't asking him if he was interested in the job so that didn't matter. I took #2 to heart and started looking online for deck builders.
I found 4 companies that got my attention but after looking into them all further I narrowed it down to just two companies. I had them both come out and give us quotes and some design ideas. We decided that although the quotes were quite similar Leisure Spaces out of Mentor/Chardon were more local than the other company and that seemed like a good deciding factor. Another plus was that Kevin the owner, and not a salesman, made the first pitch.
Once we were pretty certain about who we would hire we called Kevin Powell back and asked him to come out and firm things up. On February 28, 2018 we made our material selection, approved the plan, and made a down payment. Kevin told us that work could start in 3 -5 weeks depending on the weather. Well, the weather was far from cooperative for this project so the start was somewhat delayed.
Cheri was leaving for California on April 3rd and on April 5th she sent me a text that said..."call Kevin." (insert eye roll here)
Believe it or not Kevin called me first...on the very afternoon of April 5th!!! He said I could expect Marvin and some helpers bright and early the very next day, Friday the 6th, and that they would get started.
Marvin's ride arrived at 7:15 Friday morning pulling an enclosed trailer. Marvin, and his helpers, are Amish so they have to depend on someone to get them to and from jobs. Marvin was very nice and very quiet. He had two boys with him who looked younger than 18 but they all got down to business with no waiting around. I found out later that these boys are Marvin's sons. Mathew is 20 and the other...Evan maybe..is 16. They only stay in school through 7th grade so they have been working with Dad for awhile.
On that first day they had a 2 wheeled posthole digger with them and although the ground was wet and muddy they bored a series of holes for the deck posts. The boys cleaned the holes with a clamshell style posthole digger and then they mixed and poured a bag of concrete in each hole. They also took delivery of some treated lumber for the deck frame but since the concrete needed to set up building would have to wait until Monday. Kevin stopped in to check on things and he asked if I could extend the downspout that will run under the deck. I also wanted to change out the drier vent since it was old and generally funky so I had until Monday to get those things done.
On Sunday I went on a run with the NEO Mini group and then I stopped at Home Depot in Macedonia on the way back home. I had worked on the drier vent the day before but I still needed to pick up something to extend the downspout. I bought a 25 foot roll of 4" flexible plastic tubing and a downspout connector. That did the trick...and as Lou Manfredini would say, "I fixed it in 15 minutes." Total cost was less than twenty bucks.
On Monday the 9th Marvin and the boys showed up just about 7:00am and the sawing and hammering commenced. The outside temperature was in the mid 20s as the day stated. By the time the day wrapped up they had spread heavy plastic and gravel under the area where the deck will sit. This will keep weeds and other plant invaders to a minimum. They also completed the frame, installed the stringers for the stairs, and started laying the decking. They accomplished in one day what it would have taken me days...if not a couple of weeks to do on my own. I was having a really good feeling about this decision!
Tuesday brought yet another freezing cold day and the crew showed up early once again. These guys were a wonderful crew to have working. They were on task, quiet, polite, and tidy. Marvin knocked on the door just before noon to say they were done! WHAT?? I could not believe it. They finished the decking, put up the railing, finished the stairs, and trimmed and capped the railing posts. Done! Counting Friday when they worked about half a day because of the concrete cure time they did this entire project start to finish in what amounted to 2 full days. Wow! I am very impressed. I'd still be digging the first hole.
Cheri is still in California but she will be home on Friday. She asked me to send her some pictures of the finished deck and I told her no way! But wait until she gets home!!
The next phase of this project will be the patio and that could start as soon as tomorrow. That will be another blog once that project is done.
In the meantime you can enjoy these photos:
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| This is the back of the house from the original real estate listing. The deck will go between the garage and the house with access via the breezeway. |
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| This is Kevin's original plan for the deck. We had the option of either treated lumber for the decking or composite. We chose composite, TREX, since it is low/no maintenance. We also chose the colors and the railing style. |
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| I forgot to take a bunch of before pictures so I ran out and grabbed one in a hurry. |
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| This is the view from the breezeway. |
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| These guys are bundled up and getting right to work. |
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| Moving some equipment. |
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| Helping Dad drill some post holes. |
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| That's a fine looking bunch of holes. |
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| Marvin is out waiting for a lumber delivery. |
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| Here they come! |
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| The framing is going up in a hurry. |
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| Some decking going down. |
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| The view down to the basement stairs. |
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| Decking is running right up to the side of the garage. No gap is good. |
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| They also worked on the stairs. |
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| Here you see the elevation is the same as the breezeway. |
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| Gravel base under the deck and the downspout extension. |
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| This ended day one of the build. |
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| By noon of the second day they job was done. This is the finished deck through the breezeway door. |
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| Looking towards the stairs. I love the railing style that we chose. |
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| The only SNAFU is this area near the garage corner. The gap is a little larger than code but Kevin says it should not be a problem. That board is just resting there.... |
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| The view from the yard. |
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| This is what it looks like from the breezeway catwalk. If I was a kid I would be getting water balloons ready for summer! |
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| Here is what it looks like in a shot similar to that original real estate posting photo. |
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| Just so you can compare here it is again. |
Now we just need some good weather so we can put out the outdoor furniture and doll this thing up. We are very anxious to wrap it up with the patio build.
