Deck advice please!

You're right.
We (people in WA) aren't used to highsets and things that have been built under. It wasn't until I saw the photo of the house that I realised "duh queensland, so living is at the top and they've built in under"

How many square metres is the deck? I think after 7 quotes it's probably who you feel comfortable with and who's work you can assess and reviews from past clients.

 

I know it would be cheaper, but we don't really have anything downstairs-so not sure that would work in this case. There's no view upstairs- but can turn kitchen window into servery.

 

The deck will be approx 5 x 6. It's not small. But as one of the builders/a mate told us 'go big- you'll never regret that extra metre'

 

If you're going to spend $40k ish then that 30sqm is awesome.
Do consider how 4 x 7 can sometimes be more furnishable and can take a dining area (4 x 3) plus a sitting area (4 x 4) vs 5 x 6 which is harder to do that.

 

Good thinking! Will talk to builder about this. We're restricted with back fenceline though

 

Dunno if this helps or not but when I was getting quotes for the deck roof there were quite a few options and building systems available.

Insulated roofing was much more expensive and there were quite a few ways to fasten it to the house.

Anyways, we discovered that having the deck roof high (3m+) and overlapping the roof of the house keeps everything very cool. The hot air escapes easily and the extra roof height provides great insulation. So much so that we didn't need to buy insulated roofing. Even in Darwin.
Looks great and can help keep costs down.

Here's an example of what I mean...

 

Think of maintenance. I personally would choose stainless steel balestrades and wire instead of rails that block the view. As for timber railings they're a painting nightmare.

Timber flooring will need regular oiling / sealing unless you go for modwood or similar. We chose timber flooring. Choose your type of floor coating carefully eg water based vs oil. If water based coatings aren't maintained well it can be a real pain trying to fix.

All our posts and bearers are colorbond steel and joists galvanised steel. Will likely never need replacing unlike timber posts / bearers / joists. The only part of the deck that's timber is the floorboards themselves and top rail.

Here's a picture of the new section of deck at left (75 sqm) which replaced the old one. This picture is a couple of years old now when we first moved there. Much has improved since then:

 

This looks great! Thanks for tips

 

Looks great! Can I ask how much this cost?

 

There was other work included not just this section of the deck. But at a rough guess around $62k for 75 sqm. That included demolishing the old deck of same size which had a lot of decaying timber.

Note that except for the floorboards everything else is colorbond / galvanised / stainless steel.

 

Can be worth it if only from the utilitarian aspect.

This is what I did at the old place front and back.

Back deck was fly screened (underneath as well).

All posts were powder coated and the frame was steel.

 

This has become the "show us you deck" thread. (Must be said in a NZ accent)
My lower deck dedicated to unicycling.

 

Gee that would be fun after a generous session of home brew. I struggle even with four wheels.

 

I dunno what your implying ?