Backyard Adventures with the Weekend Warrior

Improving Outdoor Deck Traffic Flow

When we moved into our twenty-plus-year-old middle class home in Santa Cruz, we liked the deck that was framed by the U shaped single story ranch style house. However, we knew that some renovations on the deck were in order. While the deck seemed to be in pretty good shape, it was painted with brown exterior paint or had been covered with some combination of dark brown exterior wood stain and paint over the years.

While the deck was pretty low to the ground, our housing inspector was able to crawl part-way under our house when he did the initial inspection for us when we were buying this house. His conclusion that the cement block footings were firmly placed on the ground and that the installer seemed to have even taken the precaution of laying some gravel under and near the cement footing so stabilize the ground when it got wet. Since our roughly quarter acre lot was irrigated by sprinklers, obviously the deck did not get wet because of lawn watering most of the year when it did not rain. However, it can rain of days on end sometimes in Santa Cruz in the winter, which could cause mud and shifting of the deck. Therefore, this gravel was a good precaution instead of just plopping the cement piers on the bare ground.

The original builder had used the typical cement piers that you can buy in a home improvement store. They look like little pyramids with their tops sliced off and an indentation for the bottom on of the posts. You can buy some of these cement decking piers now with galvanized metal fastening strips molded into the cement pier when the cement was poured into the mold to make the deck pier. However, for our deck this had not been done, probably because the deck was so low to the ground.

Furthermore, the whole deck was framed in on three sides by the foundation of the house and there were redwood 2 x 4s bolted to the sides of the foundation on the inside of the U of the house. From what we – the home inspector and I – could tell, the original deck builder had probably added the deck for the new owner of the house when it was built. Typically, new single family homes are sold with the landscaping done in the front yard to aid in the selling process, but the back yard was empty, so that the new owners could decide how they wanted to design their own backyard. Plus, obviously, this cut costs and lowered the overall initial purchase price of the house when it was sold new.

A few of my older neighbors are original home owners and told me that this is how the homes were sold when our subdivision was developed. It is also clear, given the variety of designs in the back yards of the neighborhood. While the homes are semi-custom ranch style homes, and not just cookie cutter homes from a few different models, there is a far greater variety in back yard designs that the moderate amount of variety you see in the homes themselves, when you drive down the streets of our housing development.

In the backyards of some homes in our neighborhood is a cement or wooden step outside and down from the sliding glass doors for the family rooms. Usually, when there is a step, the U shaped part of the back yard the surrounded on three sides by the homes will have a cement patio, a flagstone patio, a brick patio, a paving stone patio, or simply an extension to the grass yard. Most houses in the neighborhood have a patio, but a few are like ours and have a deck instead.

For all the backyard decks that I have seen in the neighborhood, they all try to be level with the interior floors of the house so that you can just step out on them. Our house is one of these. We have a family room or sun room, as we call it, because it gets full southern exposure, and we have decorated our sunroom with a tropical theme. We have furnished our sun room with some good quality indoor outdoor rattan furniture and white wicker furniture. We also bought a bit of extra matching rattan furniture to use outside on our deck. When the rains come, we haul it into this sunroom / family room for temporary storage. All this nice garden furniture goes out again, when the sun and warm weather returns. One nice thing about rattan and wicker furniture is that it is very solid and durable, yet it still is not terribly heavy.

On the other side of the deck off the back of a large central bathroom is a regular door that swings inward allowing access to the backyard and deck from there. That means we have a level deck that completely covers the exterior of the partially enclosed U part of the back yard. The deck even extends about four feet into the back yard beyond the U part of the house.

Now, I have told you that the foundation was in good shape and that the boards covering the entire deck were in good shape. However, they had an ugly brown paint on them, when we bought the house and it was peeling up in a few places. Obviously, it at least needed some tender loving care and a new coat of paint, stain, or deck waterproofing.

Other Handyman and Wooden Deck Articles

• Redwood Deck Waterproofing (Applying a Preservative to Maintain a Refinished Redwood Deck The deck almost looked like it was brand new. All I needed to do was to apply some redwood deck waterproofing so that all of my hard work would on my refinished redwood deck would be preserved. If you looked more closely you noticed the patch where [...])
• Building a Deck Low to the Ground (Deck Design Considerations for a Wooden Deck Built Low to the Ground One thing that was a bit unusual about our original redwood backyard deck is that some of its supporting pieces are bolted to the foundation. It you look at some of the books and magazines about how to build a deck, you will see [...])
• Refinishing a Redwood Deck (Giving New Life to a Knotless Heart Redwood Deck Now with the frame in place, it was just a matter of installing the redwood patch on the deck surface. Later, I would complete this refinishing job with some waterproofing and preservative. First, I applied as much of the old wood as I could to patch up [...])
• Do It Yourself Deck Construction (Improving My Redwood Deck by Removing a Redwood Planter Box There was a second problem with this deck that otherwise seemed highly utilitarian. For some reason, they had decided to build in a six foot square planter into the deck just a bit off center. While the edges of this elevated planter allowed people to [...])
• Attaching a Wood Deck to a Cement Foundation (Save Deck Costs by Bolting the Edges of a Wood Deck to the House Foundation Given this layout of the house, the decking contractor decided to use the foundation of the house on the three sides of the interior U shape of the house to provide support of the edges of the deck and to ensure [...])

Backyard Adventures and Backyard Games - June 27 Edition

Welcome to the June 27 edition of Backyard Adventures and Backyard Games — the Carnival of Family Fun.

Backyard Adventures and Backyard Games — the Carnival of Family Fun brings you thoughtful blog posts about family activities in the backyard, including ideas for family fun, BBQ cooking, swimming pools, garden patios, wooden decks, family pets, backyard sports, backyard toys, and vegetable gardening, lawn care, and flower gardening. Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter — year round fun for kids and adult children of all ages!

This edition is arranged by subject heading, so that you can browse efficiently.

Enjoy!

Jack Clifton

Backyard Sports

Amir Marzouq presents A Green Way To Play Frisbee posted at Guffly.

Backyard Toys

Edmond Barre presents Tennis Ball Machine posted at Tennis Equipment, saying, “If you are lucky, you have a tennis court in your back yard. But, if you have a cement patio and a decent fence at least you can practice your returns with a Tennis Ball machine. Since they are portable, you can pop them into your minivan and take them to the nearest tennis court, as well.”

The Fairway Golf Slicer presents Discount Golf Clubs posted at How to Swing a Golf Club, saying, “It is a good time to start practicing your golf game in your backyard. Get some cheap clubs and a practice net and wack away. Careful with the divots, because you are the grounds keeper in you own backyard!”

BBQ Cooking

Belle presents Fried Fish, a LaMancha Dairy Goat, and Homemade Goat Milk Ice Cream posted at Homesteaderbelle’s Blog.

Angelica Potter presents Stainless Steel Grills posted at Stainless Steel Cookware, saying, “Information about stainless steel grills for barbeque on your backyard deck or patio.”

Luca presents Plan a Perfect BBQ Party posted at Home and Family Info.

Jan Hendricks presents Roasting Meat posted at History of Cooking, saying, “Two conditions are necessary for good roasting - a clear bright fire and frequent basting. Next to boiling or stewing it is the most economical method of cooking. The meat at first should be placed close to a brisk fire for five minutes to coagulate the albumen. It should then be drawn back a short distance and roasted slowly.”

Family Fun

Samantha Fowler presents Kiddie Green Garden posted at Green as Wee Grow, saying, “Inexpensive ideas to get the whole family outside. Fun ways to make gardening fun for toddlers and young children”

Billeater presents Summer Entertainment for Families on a Budget posted at Billeater.

Family Pets

Jake presents Seven Tips for Preventing A Dog from Biting Your Children posted at Dog Training Pet.

Raising Whiskers presents Cat Coughing - Reasons for Cat Coughing - Remedies for Cat Coughing posted at Cat Care Tips, saying, “Sometimes cat coughing can be an indication that there is something wrong with your cat.”

Ralph Sparkson presents Why I Love My Dog posted at Funny Dog Pictures, saying, “We got another dog about two years ago. It had been over ten years since our last dog, who died just before our daughter was born. With our new dog, we were lucky because our daughter has a small neighborhood business of caring for pets and that is how we found the dog we now love so much.”

Raising Whiskers presents Big Cat Games - Cat Games - Mouse Play - Cat Play posted at Cat Care Tips, saying, “If you want to improve the mental and physical prowess of your cat, you should try playing some big cat games with her.”

Jake presents 3 Different Types of Dog Breeds To Remember | Dog Training Pet posted at Dog Training Pet, saying, “If you want to raise your dog with the healthiest attitude and behaviors possible, then not only are you going to need to understand dog training, you’re going to have to learn about your dog’s breed, as well.”

Flower Gardens

Condo Blues presents Make a Garden Border Out of Old Bricks! posted at Condo Blues, saying, “They had a pile of old bricks in a junk pile. I wanted a dry stack garden border - it’s a win win!”

Madeleine Begun Kane presents Yard Yarns (Limerick and Haiku Prompt) posted at Mad Kane’s Humor Blog.

GrrlScientist presents Let’s Give Three Bronx Cheers for Bumblebees! posted at Living the Scientific Life, saying, “This essay, filled with pictures and valuable reference books, discusses the natural history and economic importance of Bombus species — the Bumblebees — and what you can do to help keep them happily living in your garden.”

Old Fogie Fun

Alvina Lopez presents 100 Awesome Anti-Aging Brain Games (Online and Off) posted at Masters of Healthcare

Eddie Franklin presents Beer Pong Equipment posted at Beer Pong Equipment, saying, “Beer Pong is a real crowd pleaser for the adults. After Grandma takes the kids to her house, gather your friends in the backyard for some beer pong fun.”

Luca presents Planning a BBQ Clambake Party posted at Home and Family Info.

Summer Fun

Renee V. Rouse presents Frugal Tip - Summer Fun Bags posted at Frugal-Living-Skills Blog.

Vegetable Gardens

Bobbie Whitehead presents Plant A Row For Hungry posted at Bobbie Whitehead, saying, “By planting an extra row of fruits and vegetables, gardeners can help support families that might face hunger.”

Watch Me Eat presents Watch Me Eat: Beans Fresh From the Garden posted at Watch Me Eat, saying, “Documentation of a harvest of Yard Long Asparagus beans and Purple Podded Pole beans from the backyard garden…”

Gregory E. Rouse presents Raised Bed Garden Mounds posted at Raised-Bed-Gardening Blog, saying, “Raised beds are one of the best ways to garden for the home gardener. They allow you to do concentrated gardening, square foot gardening, companion planting, mulching, etc… They’re easy to build and relatively cheap. But if you’re looking for the cheapest and easiest way to do raised beds and you have the room for it, then raised bed mounds are the way to go.”

Fiona Slattery Lohrenz presents Begin Organic Gardening With Me! From Scratch! posted at DIY Organic Garden, saying, “I have finally taken the plunge and started my own organic garden (in a very small way but with great plans for expansion as my knowledge expands).”

Brian presents Super Sturdy Trellis posted at Meadowwood Garden, saying, “Need support? The Super Sturdy Trellis is inexpensive, easy to make and a hurricane couldn’t knock it down! Perfect for pole beans, peas, melons, cucumbers etc. Visit us to learn how to make yours!”

Lyndsey presents Follow The Sun: Garden Chronicles : Chapter 1 posted at Follow The Sun, saying, “Watch as we tackle composting, gardening, chickens and more!”

Water Sports

Bass Lasso presents Best Fishing Net Born Of Frustration posted at mybasslasso.com, saying, “Are you tired of reaching for a fishing net and finding it entangled in hooks, line, and other things found in your boat? You are not the only one, and now there is a solution to this fish-losing, fun-ending problem. Rod Presnell, of Tallahassee, Florida has developed a product that solves the issue.”

Wood Decks

Jack Clifton presents Attaching a Wood Deck to a Cement Foundation posted at How to Build a Deck, saying, “Given this layout of the house, the decking contractor decided to use the foundation of the house on the three sides of the interior U shape of the house to provide support of the edges of the deck and to ensure that the deck was level with the interior floor of the home at the doors.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Backyard Adventures and Backyard Games – The Carnival of Family Fun using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.  Here is the Carnival Submission Form.

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