Decks & Patios

How to Lay out Deck Stringers

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Any deck you add to your home must be fastened securely by a deck stringer. This is piece of lumber attached to the house. There are a few ways to ensure a smooth finish you lay out the groundwork to attach the deck stringer to your home... more »

How to Repair Deck Steps

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Deck stairs come in two basic types. In one, the stringers--the two diagonal side supports--are cut in a sawtooth shape to provide flat surfaces to support the treads you walk on. In the other, the treads (the boards you step on) are enclosed ... more »

How to Set Posts for a Deck

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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After the footing has been set in place you can add the support posts for the deck frame... more »

How to Anchor a Deck to a Wall

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Anchoring your deck to the house wall is one of the most crucial steps in building your attached deck. The process involves installing what contractors and professional builders call a ledger board, which is what allows you to attach the deck. ... more »

How to Attach Patio Screen Lattice Panels

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Attaching lattice panels to your patio can make for a nice screen against the elements, bugs, and other people. You can attach patio screen lattice panels yourself, as it's a fairly easy do-it-yourself project... more »

How to Build a Concrete Patio

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Building your own patio is hard work, but if you follow the steps below, you can have a patio with a smooth concrete surface. It is a good idea to go to your local home improvement store and ask about the materials needed. Once you have gathered ... more »

How to Build a Deck Box

By steven316

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A deck box is a handy addition to your yard, garden, or pool that allows you to store unsightly items when they are not in use... more »

How to Build a Four-Season Porch

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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One way to add valuable and usable square footage to your home is to build a four-season porch, also called a sunroom. A four-season porch is heated and insulated just like any other room in your home. These porches typically feature 180 degrees ... more »

How to build a patio

By sparklie

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A little help on how to create the perfect patio... more »

How to Build a Solid Patio Screen

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Adding a solid patio screen to your patio can help keep the sun off of you and will provide you with more privacy. Installation is relatively easy and requires only a few tools... more »

How to Build a Wheelchair Ramp for a Porch

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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The accessibility of your home for disabled and injured guests can be a challenge without a ramp. A sloped driveway and small steps to your porch can cause problems for anyone in a wheelchair who wants to enjoy an afternoon on the porch. You can ... more »

How to Build a Wooden Planter

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Making a wooden planter will add a new decorative dimension to the outside of your home. They are easy to make and can be used to hold many different types of flowers that will spruce up the exterior of your house... more »

How to Build Brick Porch Steps

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Brick porch steps not only give your home an attractive, traditional look, they are also as durable as it gets. Built properly, they can last decades without showing any wear. To build a set of quality brick stairs, you must follow masonry rules ... more »

How to Build Garden Steps

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Garden steps can be a wonderful addition to your home. You can build them without professional help by following these steps... more »

How to Build Stairs for a Deck

By briguy

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Building stairs for decks seems complicated at first but once you understand the formula you will become a pro in no time at all. Decks that are above 8 inches from the ground will need at least one step. If three or more steps are needed, ... more »

How to Build Stone Porch Columns

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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The columns on your front porch are often the focal point of your home's entranceway. When you build stone porch columns yourself, you can enjoy a sense of pride and accomplishment in completing a difficult home improvement project... more »

How to Buy Patio Awnings

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Adding an awning to the patio will not only beautify, it will extend your enjoyment of the outdoors and may even lower the cooling bill for your home by blocking heat from the sun. Awnings come in a wide array of styles, materials and colors, so ... more »

How to Buy Patio Overhead Material

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Patio overhead material can provide needed and wanted shade and shelter from sun and rain, but choosing and buying the proper material for your patio can be overwhelming. Taking into consideration a few vital points and ideas can relieve the ... more »

How to Buy Patio Stone

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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If you decide to use stone for the floor of your patio, there are many options to use. For each person, this decision may have a different outcome, depending on personal preference and patio layout. Choosing and buying patio stone should be done ... more »

How to Calculate Deck Heights

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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For numerous reasons you may need to know the height of your deck, whether you are replacing the decking material, installing a hot tub or calculating steps to descend from the deck. Figuring the exact height is important to the overall finished ... more »

How to Calculate Deck Joist Dimensions

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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The joists on your deck are clearly one of the most crucial elements to the entire deck-building process. Since the joist is the key to holding up the flooring, without the proper dimensions on your deck joist, you could be in for a disaster. ... more »

How to Calculate Deck Spans

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Building a deck onto your house is a job that requires a bit of planning to make sure it will support the weight of people and any furniture that you will be putting on it, as well as the weight of the deck itself. Choose the type of wood ... more »

How to Calculate Patio Bedding Material Needs

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Figuring the price of a patio project requires a homeowner to know the amount of materials needed to create a good patio base. Use the following standards, adapted for your patio design, to figure the amount of patio bedding materials you need to ... more »

How to Calculate Spacing on Deck Joists

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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The spacing between deck joists is commonly referred to as joist span in professional lingo. It doesn't matter what you call it--it's still a critical calculation when it comes to building your new deck. Though it may seem complicated to the ... more »

How to Excavate a Patio Site

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Once you have planned out where you would like your patio to be, the next step is to begin work on the site. The first thing that must be done is the excavation of the patio site so that the building of the patio can go as easy and as smoothly as ... more »

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