Houston Deck Builders

What is a deck?
A deck is an elevated, flat surface that is normally connected to a house and provides a special surface for outdoor gatherings, seating, and transition into the rest of the landscape.

What can a deck do for my yard?
It can serve as a transition from your home to a manicured landscaped design. Houston deck builders create platforms of vantage point and opportunity by positioning seating areas and stairways in such a manner as to lead guests to various points of interest in the yard.

What is a deck made of?
Houston deck builders typically use wood. This has been the mainstay material used for decades and shows no signs of going away. Wood has to be specially treated in order to support the weight of human activity and the many decorations that are used to adorn its surface. Common wood that are used are pressure treated pine, cedar, redwood, and a number of exotic woods.

There are also well over 100 manmade decking materials we can build your structure with, provided it compliments your home and landscape design theme. Contemporary and modern style designs, for example, do better with composite decking, vinyl, aluminum, etc.

The deck frame provides support and structure for the horizontal decking. Houston deck builders are very careful in calculating the strength and material build of the frame based upon the type of deck they are constructing and the number of people the homeowner plans to entertain on its surface.
How can you blend my deck into my landscape?
We can line the edges of the deck with some type of softscape to blend its perimeter into the yard. This can be done in several different ways. One way is to build the sides of the deck as terraces that work as planters. Another way is to line the sides with hedges that grow even up to its surface. Our Houston deck builders can also plant different types of vegetation at varying heights in order to create a sense of descending entryway into a garden or courtyard below.

What are some of the different types of decks you build?
Platform Decks
These are the simplest types of decks and are built low to the ground. They are actually perfect for the flat Houston landscape and work very well as transitional areas between single-level homes and level back yards.

Raised Decks
Incorporate Safety Precautions like railings and stairs. Houston deck builders frequently recommend this style for families with small children.

Two-Story Decks
These decks give you access to upper levels of your home if you have a two story house with a balcony.

Houston deck builders have to build these structures with extra supports that must be disguised or camouflaged in order to maintain the structure’s aesthetic. One way to do this is to cover the pillars with flat rocks or skirting to ornament their appearance.

How can you decorate a deck?
Planters and benches can line the perimeter to create a garden-like or courtyard-like effect. A screened-in gazebo can be built to one side of the surface to provide a shaded area that blocks out summer mosquitoes. Angles, curves, and decorative railings can create a sense of overlook onto the backyard landscape beyond.

Wooden Decking Construction in Houston

We want to work a wood deck into our landscape. What does Exterior Worlds think about this idea?
By its nature, wood has a warm texture to it and brings natural beauty to your landscape design. Wood decks invite friends and family out-of-doors, thus expanding your living space.

Wood decks enhance any landscapes, but work particularly well with these garden themes:

• English garden design. The English garden design is the essence of an informal garden and a wooden deck complements that informality. In an English garden, colors and textures in wild profusion draw you in to create a feast for the mind’s eye. Because plants are chosen for a strong mix of color, wood decks make a pleasing backdrop.
• Urban landscaping. An urban yard or garden usually presents difficult challenges, like unsightly utility easements or pint-size spaces that are all straight lines and right angles. The goal with urban landscaping, as with all landscape architecture, is to create spaces in which the home and architectural elements harmoniously integrate with their natural setting. Wooden decks fit neatly into this relationship.

• Japanese garden design. In this tradition, the garden is a microcosm of nature, therefore a deck design using wood fits in perfectly. You can create a conversation between it, the fences and gates, other elements important to a Japanese garden with its underlying philosophy of enclosure. The fence protects us from the outside world, the gate provides the threshold, and the wood decking connects us to our natural selves.

• Modern landscape design. This style, known for it fluid point of view, uses geometric shapes such as those found in the wood planks of a deck. Horizontal and vertical planes create a modern sensibility while colors and plantings evoke a warm, welcoming feel. To enhance the visual feast, water and light are often used, as in artfully-lit outdoor water fountains. It is the juxtaposition of linear and non-linear, soft and hard, free-flowing and restrained that defines modern landscape design.

What are the different woods we should consider?
Pressure-treated pine is the most popular choice for wooden decking in this region. It stands up well to our weather and damp soil.

However, cedar and redwood have natural resins that protect them from weathering and rotting, too. Cedar works well for decks because it possesses dimensional stability and a natural resistance to decay. These woods provide a firm base for many types of stains and paints.

Can Exterior Worlds help us with maintenance and ongoing care?
Moisture and the ultraviolet rays of the sun, something we have in abundance here in the Houston area, are the two biggest enemies of wooden decks. We help our clients address these issues with services included in our landscape maintenance contracts.

For regular cleaning, wood can be cleaned with a special cleaner and, for especially stubborn mildew stains, a small amount of household bleach diluted with water will work.

We suggest that wooden decks be protected every two years or so with a penetrating, clear wood finish or stain. We also check for protruding nail heads and any rotten areas, especially on stairs and railings.