Rebuild North Deck & shore up foundation
9/4/14 - The deck is beautiful! It is absolutely solid and at 1/3 again as big as it was, it feels so spacious. We went from 112 to 150 square feet. The pony wall (see diagram) will lock in the entire cabin to stop its slow slide towards the lake. A few details remain, which we agreed upon with Duane during our Labor Day visit. Susan suggested half log fascia (which we had planned) but we'll hold off until someone else feels like stepping up. The redwood dimension is beautiful as is and Keith & I need to focus on more urgent issues.
Update 9/11/14 am - Duane is just starting to finish up the deck details. He has completed the west wall skirt between the fireplace & deck including mortar and has prepped the shiplap for under the deck. We found the shiplap under the cabin - it's beautiful old vg all heart (with some planer skip) so we cleaned it up & Duane sanded & treated it. Too bad it won't show more! Today he will cut down the railing posts to a finish height of 32" and he will install the shiplap.
Update 9/11/14 pm - The finishing details are done: railing height adjusted, shiplap under deck, trimmed deck to cabin gap, skirting installed next to chimney. Deck project is finished & beautiful!
Before
During Construction
As of August 1, 2014: The deck project is underway! Yay! Duane did the tear-off & dug up roots on Thursday. On Friday, BCL Atwater delivered the lumber and Duane installed the cribbing. Thank you, Janet, for rounding up the redwood!
Aug 4 - Forms go in. Note that it wraps under the short kitchen wall.
August 7 - Duane called this am because his internet is down so he can't send pictures. The pour is complete and he won't put a load on it until Monday. He said the wall under the LR window was supported by only 2-12"x12"x4" pads - now there will be a full footing about 20" deep. He suggested wrapping the foundation wall around the west side to the fireplace - for which I gave him the go-ahead. See Diagram below. He said it would be very wise to go under the kitchen as well but I didn't think now was the time.
August 11 - Duane sent some more pics. Piers are in, pony wall up, deck boards treated. He's starting the ledger & posts today.
August 12 - ledger, beams & posts installed
August 15 - Deck is done! Look at the beautiful Big Creek redwood! Duane said it was a dream to work with. Some details are still to be determined: railing height, railing balusters, skirting on cabin or outside posts or inside posts, should we paint post anchors, etc. We'll decide these details during our Labor Day visit & would welcome input before then - you can use the comment form below. As always, all your comments are welcome!
Click once on any pic below to start clickable slideshow.
Deck Design and Project Plans
Deck Design considerations:
Per USFS rules, the deck can only be rebuilt as is or returned to an historic, documented original look or sort of a hybrid of the two. We do not need to build to code – archeology trumps code!!!
Balancing structural integrity, usability, authenticity and cost effectiveness, we propose and have USFS authorization for:
The plan as of 5/6/2014:
- Finished deck 8 x 16 feet – current is 7 x 16 (push to 9x16 only if it looks ok)
- One step down from cabin floor level – (not visible from road but reduces height) – 2x8 trim will run the length of the deck below bottom log
- 6x6 posts extended to support railing but not above rail cap – for strong railing & classic look
- Railing 30” high, 2 - (2x3 or 2x4 or 4x4) balusters per section (about 19” oc) – we'll make final baluster decision after deck is completed
- 2x6 S4S decking parallel to cabin - using full length 16' deck boards & hidden fasteners
- 2x8 or 2x10 fascia or belly band (could tack on half log veneer to satisfy FS)
- 2x8 rail cap, champhered to shed water
- 8-10” diameter sonotube footings extend 4” above grade, stirrup-type post anchors
- No deck skirting ie still open under deck
- Deck to be framed separately from cabin
Except framing, decking and rail cap, all exposed wood should be rough select & better all heart (if poss) redwood – rail cap same grade but S4S – decking 2x6 x16' redwood S4S as nice as we can afford...
Removable railing – doable but likely not necessary with improved support, extended deck & open railing design. Keith objects to annual take-down but Duane is willing. Can revisit when deciding final railing design.
Duane estimates he'd need about 2-3 weeks (abt $5000-$7500 in labor) to tear down deck, dig out roots, pour new footings & add a beam under the cabin wall under the big window, and construct new deck per above. Cleaning up (not falling) the hazard trees & repairing the east gable should fall within that 2-3 weeks also. He figures $70/hour = about $500/day for himself, his helper, and all his equipment (including bobcat, trailer, tools, etc.) I think his rate is really reasonable and his work is exceptional.
humecabinlot4 (Sunday, 16 March 2014 13:39)
Thanks for the feedback, Janet. Framing details are still to be determined and the fascia just under the deck needs to cover the joists; the 2x8 I showed in the drawing might not even be enough to cover it. An 8"+ diameter log might look a bit heavy but we do have in mind to work in a log somewhere, especially if you can supply. I love the idea of wide split boards.
Janet (Friday, 14 March 2014 15:22)
For deck skirting, how about a half log placed horizontally, just under edge of deck and then use either wide, split boards or rough sawn fence boards placed vertically. I can arrange for the boards and also try to get the needed lengths of half logs.
For the posts, I will provide redwood 6X6, if given a list of what is needed. Let me know if surfaced or rough. Also, we could cut some 5X5 if 6X6 seems too heavy.
For balusters, I can easily get more redwood 2X2