A circular deck can be used as an ideal way to improve the look and elegance of a home. Designs can be designed and adjusted with preference to taste and style. Family members can team up and take on the challenge of building one; the result will be worth your while.
Tools required
- Pencil
- Measuring tape
- Hammer
- Drill
- Phillips drill bit
- Table saw
- Dado blade
- Shovel
- Wheelbarrow
- Squares
- String
- Stakes (4 minimum)
Materials required
- Treated wood (including 1*8)
- Wood screws
- Metal fastening plates
- Cement
- Re-Bar
Instructions
- Plan out all the details of the circular deck including construction design and size. Use the stake to mark where the support and corner beams will be placed.
- Use the shovel to dig an area about 4 inches or deeper and 8 sq inches and then fill it with cement, you will place the re-bar into the cement so that 6 – 8 inches of it will be sticking out, this will create a stub support. Take a 3-inch length of the support beam and place it into cement.
- At the center of the deck place a round support beam which is about 1 inch in diameter for every foot of the final deck then drill a hole into one end of the beam and place it into the re-bar
- Take a 4*4 ply and attach it to the outer beam to set up the support frame and use metal “t plates” to secure each of them
- You can go ahead and make your designs with the dado blade, so the frames fit well together.
- The next step is to floor your deck. You may use solid deck flooring, tongue and groove flooring, or open flooring which can be made by using 2*4 boards to the support frame leaving half a gap between each board.
- The railing is another important part of creating your circular deck; this is done by making special cuts in your supporting framework, the top, and fencing rails. On the rails, you should create groove cuts or dovetail cuts and then place the rails according to your plans to secure the bottom of the fencing rails.
- Position a long screw, which leaves 3 – 6 inches of the screw exposed on the side of the support beams that face the fence.
- You can now attach a bungee chord to that screw so it crisscrosses over the rail firmly. This helps to hold the rail and fencing in place.
- Depending on how high the deck is you may want to implement small stairs that lead up and down to the deck. The increments leading up or down are normally anywhere between 6 – 8 depending on who mostly uses it for example children or persons with disabilities.
- When the deck has been completed the last step is to coat it. You may use coats designed for visual display or just all-purpose coats. You also have the choice of getting a clear coat or stained colors.
Tips and Warning
- Most professionals do not recommend using a solid deck or tongue and groove flooring for the floor deck because it is seen as not durable.
- It serves best to use an all-purpose coat on the deck, as this protects the deck from most extreme weather conditions and helps to prevent discoloration.
- Sand is sometimes added to the coat to help avoid people from slipping when the deck becomes wet.