St. Louis Real Estate - Building Inspection Notes - Decks

Humpty Dumpty sat on his new deck, OPPS!

RESIDENTIAL DECKS by Harry Morrell, ASHI Certified Inspector

Residential wood decks that are attached to the house are popular in today’s housing market. The decks add to the value of the house and is a great way for homeowners to relax and entertain.

Deck construction on new homes usually are not a concern and most always, wink,wink have been constructed under a building permit obtained by the General Contractor from local authorities.

Decks on older homes should be inspected carefully, especially if no documentation exists on who built the deck, and if the deck was not constructed under permit with a deck plan. Safety issues with decks are a legitimate concern, deck failure including bodily injury has occurred across the country from poorly constructed decks. Your inspector should be thoroughly familiar with deck construction to provide you with a comprehensive inspection and report during a real estate transaction.

The deck should be constructed with a naturally decay-resistant lumber or a pressure treated lumber. The size of the wood columns and concrete piers that are required to support a deck is based on the square footage of the deck. The house itself is considered a support. Approved structural supports are very important and can easily be determined during a visual home inspection. A critical part of the structural inspection of the deck is the concrete piers. If the piers are too small a deck could settle over time, and become uneven, failure could also occur under severe circumstances. All piers should be a minimum 36 inches deep to go below the frost line. Structural supports and connections are important. Connections must resist lateral movements as well as uplift. An inspector can shift his weight on top of the deck to check for lateral movements.

Decks are usually connected to the house at the ledger board. The ledger connection and attachment is critical to insure the deck is safely and securely supported. Failure is common at this point if constructed by non-professional contractors. The deck ledger shall not be nailed to the house. It must be lagged or bolted to the rim joist, which in turn must be securely attached to the framing and structure and sitting on the foundation wall.

In addition, a professional installation should include that all deck boards, and wood structural components be stained and water proofed with approved materials to prevent deterioration and decay. All power lines should be ten feet above the deck surface and at least three feet away from horizontal reach. Guard rails should be at least 36 inches high and balusters must be 2-4 inches apart. Deck stair structure should be strapped in to the main deck structure.

Home-buyers should talk to their inspectors if they have any other deck issues or concerns before closing.

Do you have any questions about decks? Harry can be contacted at harrymorrell@stlouisrealestatevoice.com

Tags: St.+Louis+Real+Estate, Building+Inspection, Wood+Decks, ASHI

This entry was posted on Saturday, September 22nd, 2007 at 7:31 am and is filed under Building Inspection News, First Time Home Buyer, For Buyers, For Sellers, Relocation Buyer. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.