Wow, another week slipped by. A couple of days lost to rain, paying taxes and working at my day job, and here we are.
I finished the stairs for the upper deck--black stain, joist protection tape and the treads. Mostly figuring out what the lower two treads do at the free end. Gave up on the sweeping curve idea.
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We have backyard access once again.
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Time to start on the lower deck. That means striking a level line at the house and setting the main girder, then setting two more girders at the exact same level and square with the ends of the first girder. Lots of chin stroking, but we got there.
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Girder propped up so we can measure posts
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I built the three girders first--they are made of pieces of 2x8, some reclaimed and some new. Once we cut the 4x4 supports to the right height--several had to be cut and trimmed three times--the ends get wood preservative.
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The second girder is propped up, but now we have to check height relative to the first girder.
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Status as of Sunday night. The cantilevered board is just laying there.
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By Sunday night, all three girders are set parallel to each other and at the same height. They rest on 4x4s to piers that are resting on level, relatively undisturbed earth. Two rim joists have been installed and squared (good old Pythagoras) so that we know the secondary girder aligns with the first girder on the east.
The cantilevered joist in the photo above was used for checking level--it's not attached. It is where a similar joist will go, but that depends on the precise angle of the rim joist, which is meant to match the existing concrete steps. The two rim joists that are installed have miter cuts anticipating the two different angles of the "prow."
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We musn't forget the third girder, at the top of the stairs
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Joist and deck are just resting there, showing how the deck meets the threshold
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Can't you just imagine the stairs?
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