After moving into our new house in March (you can catch that announcement here), Chase and I made a rather long list of changes, additions, or updates we’d like to make in the next 5-10 years. Some of them were huge projects like finishing out a half-done bathroom (check!) and others are small like simple window treatments or new rugs. Either way, it was a little daunting looking at the spreadsheet we created. At first, we started completing the smaller items like new towels for the extra bathroom or replacing the clock that busted during the move. Eyeballing the more massive projects like granite countertops and redoing the entire deck seemed out of reach. But, at Red’s 4th birthday party, it was evident that the deck was in need of more than just TLC. Entire chunks the width of your thumb started breaking off from the decking and boards were much more warped than we had first imagined. Our deck makeover was much closer than we had anticipated.
The Great Southern Covered Deck Makeover
Quotes were obtained from at least three contractors, interviewed by both Chase and me, grilling on the process, cost, materials, and permits. We found one that we really liked and (gulp!) moved forward with the rather expensive, large project. What we started with was this: 1996, original to the house deck, a fair size and up to original ’96 code. It had a stairwell with two landings, leading down the curvy concrete patio and off into the green Bermuda grass. The footprint of the deck didn’t need to be changed, and due to the extremely good condition of the framing (the decking was the part that was chunking off), we could replace the decking and enhance the rest to become what we really wanted: a Southern covered porch.
You can see here what we started with: 19-year-old, unsealed wood, and a big bulldog prancing around. By the time we finished, we had a covered porch, complete with two ceiling fans, an outdoor television, and composite railings with aluminum pickets. Check out the before and after!
You should know that this process took nearly a month, from the tearing down of the original deck to the final approval by the inspectors and electricians. Lots of wet weather this fall delayed some of the project, and while we were really patient waiting for our deck makeover to finish, the original timeline was 2-3 weeks.
All of the decking was replaced, including adding kickplates to the stairway and boxing in the frame with new lumber. The roof went up rather quickly, as it comes in large planks and almost snaps together. We’re still drying out from the rain, waiting to have the deck stained in a dark walnut color to match the railings. Wouldn’t purpleheart decking in Atlanta from Brazilian Wood Depot have been gorgeous? We’ll put it on the list for when we need to redo some boards in the future.
With the big UGA game coming that same weekend, we had the best excuse to break in the porch with a big party (or two…). I’ll have to admit the weekend was enormous and really daunting to have two huge days back to back, but we made it through with the help of our friends. And having a TV on the porch helped a bunch…
With a big party (that I was helping to host and clean!) that I completely failed to take photos during, I decided to drag out my brand new personalized beverage tub on its shiny new black stand. I love the look of galvanized metal, and I hope to get a few more of these metal type bins for the deck to match. After all, a gal needs storage for both her wine AND her porch-sitting quilts!
My dad was kind enough to pose on the new sectional for me – he and Chase stayed up late the night before assembling the furniture and adding couch cushions. I’m grateful because it looks SO GOOD!
So what do you think? Want to come over and sip some sweet tea? I can tell you we’ve spent so much time out there recently. With the cooler weather upon us, we are relaxing in the morning under blankets and relishing in the cool breeze of the craftsman fans in the afternoon. It’s like we’ve added a new room to the house, all ready for entertaining, relaxing and catching our favorite flicks on the outdoor big screen. I’ll be sure to update when the staining and painting is finished, but in the meantime, I’m going to head outside and porch-sit!
I love this all. We’re in the process of redoing our and I’d want one like this however we’re going to be a little less grand!
And yes, I want come over and drink sweet tea.
🙂 We fell in love with this look while looking for houses. If Chase had his way and we had bought the house with that porch, we’d only have TWO bathrooms in that house. With as much company as we have, that was a no go!
Wow, the deck looks fantastic! I definitely want ceiling fans on my patio for this hot summer days. I’d love to sit out there and sip an Arnold Palmer!
I love it and want to come over for sweet tea soon!! I’d love to do something like this on my back porch. Want to give us a ballpark number for what it cost?
I’ll tell you know, it was worth EVERY PENNY. We saved a lot of cash being able to use the existing frame and not changing the footprint, but it was near 20k!
Would love to know who you used! I want to do the exact same thing to my deck in the next year! Silly question…can you still grill/use a smoker on the deck since it’s covered?
A company called FDR Atlanta, they were great! It depends on where you put the grill. We moved ours to the downstairs patio just in case. The contractor said our covered deck line was so high it wouldn’t hurt as long as it was on an exterior edge, but I wanted the upstairs to be just entertaining space.
It is beautiful!
Thank you!! You’ll have to come and see it in person!
we have a covered patio, but we seem to get sideways rain in marietta, so i am afraid to put electronics out there!!
Great work on the deck! It looks excellent for entertaining!
Great make over. It looks awesome.