Decks
New Deck Construction
A deck is the cheapest room you will ever add to your house, and the one you use most between April and October. We build new decks across Philadelphia, South Jersey and northern Delaware: pressure-treated when the budget leads, composite when you would rather never sand or stain again. Either way the frame underneath is built the same careful way, because the boards are what you see and the frame is what holds you up.
In pictures
Decks · New Deck Construction
What this work looks like
We come to the house, walk the yard with you, and talk through size, height, stairs and where the grill goes before anything is priced. You get a written scope, one crew from the first post hole to the last screw, and most simple decks are done in a few days.
Stock photography for illustration. Our own project photos are on the way.
Spec sheet
Decks · New Deck Construction
Time, permit, material, lifespan
The questions we get on every call, answered before the call.
| On site | 3 to 7 days for most decks |
|---|---|
| Permit | Usually needed over 30 inches off the ground. We tell you up front. |
| Materials | Pressure-treated pine, or capped composite (Trex and similar) |
| Lifespan | 10 to 15 years treated, 25 years and up composite, with the same frame under both |
| Upkeep | Treated: stain every 2 to 3 years. Composite: soap and water. |
| Best for | Homes with a back door a step or more above the yard |
What is included
- On-site visit, layout marked in the yard and a written scope
- Footings dug and poured to frost depth, posts set on hardware
- Pressure-treated frame with joist tape and hot-dipped hardware
- Ledger flashed to the house, never just screwed to it
- Decking, stairs and railing as specified in the scope
- Permit paperwork handled where your township requires it
Signs
Decks · New Deck Construction
How you know this is the chapter you need
- 01
The back door opens onto nothing
A step down to dirt or a slab that is too small to put a table on. A deck turns that door into a room.
- 02
The yard slopes away from the house
A raised deck gives you a flat place to sit without moving a single yard of soil.
- 03
You are pricing a patio too
On a sloped or wet lot a deck often costs less than the grading a patio would need. We will tell you which one the lot wants.
- 04
The old deck is past saving
Soft posts, rusted hangers and boards that flex mean a rebuild, not another repair. See the replacement chapter.
Not sure what it needs?
Text a photo. We tell you what it needs.
How it goes
Decks · New Deck Construction
From the first visit to the walkthrough
- 01
We walk the yard with you
Size, height, stairs, where the sun hits at dinner time. This is where you get ideas you may not have thought of.
- 02
You get it in writing
Material, dimensions, railing type and the schedule, on paper, before anything starts.
- 03
Footings and frame
The part nobody photographs and the part that decides whether the deck is still level in ten years.
- 04
Boards, rail, walkthrough
We finish, sweep, and walk it with you before we leave. If something is not right, we come back and fix it.
Questions
Decks · New Deck Construction
New Deck Construction, answered
-
How long does it take to build a deck?
Most simple decks take three to five days on site once the materials are on the ground. Bigger decks, multi-level layouts and covered decks run longer. If a permit is needed, the approval wait comes before that, and it varies a lot by township.
-
Pressure-treated or composite: which should I choose?
Treated wood costs less up front and needs staining every two or three years. Composite costs more on day one and then asks for almost nothing. If you plan to stay in the house ten years or more, composite usually wins on total cost. We will lay both numbers side by side in the estimate.
-
Do I need a permit for a deck?
Usually yes for anything over 30 inches off the ground or attached to the house, and the rules differ between Philadelphia, each New Jersey township and Delaware counties. We tell you what applies to your address at the estimate and build the wait into the schedule.
-
How big a deck do I need?
A table for six with room to walk around it wants roughly 12 by 16 feet. A grill zone adds a few feet. Bring us the furniture you want out there and we will size it to that instead of to a round number.
See also
Decks · New Deck Construction
Chapters that usually go with this one
-
Deck Railings & StairsWood, aluminum or cable rail, and stairs that land where you actually walk. -
Covered Decks & PorchesA roof over the deck, or a porch built from the ground up, so rain does not end the evening. -
Concrete Patios & SlabsPatios, shed and pool slabs, and footings and block for additions.
Order form
Free on-site estimate · No obligation
Tell us what you are picturing. We come and measure it.
Nothing is priced from a website. We come to the house, walk the yard with you, and you get a written scope with the material, the size and the dates. Most simple decks are a few days of work; most concrete is two to four.
- Measured on site, written down before anything starts
- If something we built is not right, we come back and fix it.
- The people who quote the job are the people who build it
Rather talk now?
