Landscaping and decks - anything you love about yours or wish you

[one l michele]

would have done differently? We have people coming out to give us estimates. I'm trying to brainstorm how we would use the area, but would love advice from those who have been there done that. What do you get a lot of comments on? Right now we are thinking a railing-free "deck", sometype of storage for the boys sports stuff, and trying to decide between a fence (kids are 7, 6, and 4) or going with a natural tree line. Would you do a fence? The max height here is 4'. Where our house is we look down a series of joining backyards from our family dining area.

[Claire]

Whether or not you need railings will depend on the height of your deck from the ground and local regulations. If you aren't required to have a railing, I would not put one up. In that case, I would consider having seating built into the deck to help define the edges.

If you can afford it, think outside the box in terms of deck shape and the way the decking runs. That is, see if you can get something other than a rectangle with the boards running the least expensive way. I like octagonal decks, and decks that have the wood not necessarily running straight-on with the house. Have you checked your library for deck design books? Places like Home Depot and Menards sell these books too.

Also, I would highly recommend insisting that the builders screw the decking into place rather than using nails. Screws are much more secure, last much longer, and don't pop out the way nails can. (I have seen nailheads that rust too. Have never seen screw heads rust.)

Especially with a 4yo, I would prefer having a fence (perhaps with a gate in it). You can always plant trees and shrubs to camouflage the fence. Fencing would prevent stray dogs from wandering in and just in general keep your yard more under your control. Also, if you ever have a dog, it's nice to be able to let it out into the yard without having to keep constant watch.

[Kelli in TN]

Also, I would highly recommend insisting that the builders screw the decking into place rather than using nails. Screws are much more secure, last much longer, and don't pop out the way nails can. (I have seen nailheads that rust too. Have never seen screw heads rust.)

Especially with a 4yo, I would prefer having a fence (perhaps with a gate in it). You can always plant trees and shrubs to camouflage the fence. Fencing would prevent stray dogs from wandering in and just in general keep your yard more under your control. Also, if you ever have a dog, it's nice to be able to let it out into the yard without having to keep constant watch.

I agree with both of these paragraphs. My husband redid our deck last year and he used screws rather than the nails the builders had used on the original. Big difference!!

I like fences. I wish everyone in our neighborhood who owns a dog liked fences as much as I do. :glare:

[one l michele]

Whether or not you need railings will depend on the height of your deck from the ground and local regulations. If you aren't required to have a railing, I would not put one up. In that case, I would consider having seating built into the deck to help define the edges.

If you can afford it, think outside the box in terms of deck shape and the way the decking runs. That is, see if you can get something other than a rectangle with the boards running the least expensive way. I like octagonal decks, and decks that have the wood not necessarily running straight-on with the house. Have you checked your library for deck design books? Places like Home Depot and Menards sell these books too.

Also, I would highly recommend insisting that the builders screw the decking into place rather than using nails. Screws are much more secure, last much longer, and don't pop out the way nails can. (I have seen nailheads that rust too. Have never seen screw heads rust.)

Especially with a 4yo, I would prefer having a fence (perhaps with a gate in it). You can always plant trees and shrubs to camouflage the fence. Fencing would prevent stray dogs from wandering in and just in general keep your yard more under your control. Also, if you ever have a dog, it's nice to be able to let it out into the yard without having to keep constant watch.

I'm leaning toward the fence too.

[Shelly in IL]

It holds its beauty and you have low maintenance! We are going to go with it, as soon as we can afford it (we have a 1400 sq. ft. deck all around our house)