Decking

A-Z of DIY & Building Guides How To Lay Garden Decking

Email this page

Contents:

Date Published:
20/05/2009

Contributed By

George Clarke

George Clarke

Putting a deck in your garden will make it look smarter, neater - and make it easier to care for. It will also give you loads of new space for a dining area, space for seating or for kids to play.

Time required:
A small deck will probably take a weekend - but if you're working on your own, if your deck is large or if you're new to DIY, it will take longer.

Cost:
From around £200 for a DIY store kit; less if you buy components to your chosen size

Skill level:
It's best for a competent DIYer to tackle this task, but there's no reason that a patient, careful beginner shouldn't give it a go. My tip? Always measure twice before you cut anything!

You'll need:
tape measure; wooden pegs; string; spade; weedproof membrane; gravel; deck boards and joists; saw; wood preservative; drill; stainless-steel or galvanised countersunk screws; electric screwdriver; spirit level.

Get Started...

man measuring with string

Step One

Mark out the position of the deck using pegs and string. Clear the site of grass and weeds; and level it with a spade. Lay a weedproof membrane and cover it with gravel.

Your Comments

Post your comment

Please note: In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in to Channel 4:

Sign In Here or Register Here

Comments closed

Comments are closed at the present time

Your comments

Post your comment
By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our Comments Policy.
Mandatory Fields are marked with *
Your Comment (Maximum characters: 4000) *
You have

Comments

Thank you for your comment!

Your message will be reviewed and the best ones will be published below.

If you intended to make an official comment to Channel 4 please contact us.

Comments

  1. Exterior decking recommends not to construct your decking in contact with the ground, especially tarmac. all unsuitable sub materials should be remove and the deck be contstructe in a way that would let the decking substructure be raised off th ground. This will prevent it standing in water and also allow the air to circulate. cheers Exterior Decking
    Posted by Exterior Decking on 11/10/2009 10:20:46
    Offensive? Unsuitable? Report this comment
  2. To create the perfect deck you need to get perfect advice. For the best advice find your way to www.exteriordecking.co.uk where we will offer advice upon decking construction, regulations, materials and all other decking related issues.
    Posted by Exterior Decking on 08/08/2009 13:36:48
    Offensive? Unsuitable? Report this comment
  3. do u need planning permission to deck a garden area
    Posted by j ayers on 30/07/2009 16:15:04
    Offensive? Unsuitable? Report this comment
  4. hi there,i have a tarmak patio a 1m wide going around the side of my house,i'd like to cover that with decking the only problem is theres a 3-4 inch step off the bk door,would it be ok to lay 2 by 1 inch batons and make up a frame over the top of the tarmak to screw and surport my decking to,if not would you have any advise on what else i could do to get over this as i dont rearly want to pull up the tarmak.
    Posted by darren finch on 20/07/2009 20:57:30
    Offensive? Unsuitable? Report this comment

Advertisement

More on 4Homes

4Homes Property Search

Over 300,000 properties to search, interactive maps, neighbourhood reports and more...

 

e.g. Notting Hill, SW3, Glasgow

Powered by: Nestoria

Garden Planning

Win The Ultimate Garden Designer

Garden Designs & Ideas

Top Rated Garden Features

Advice On Decks & Patios

Test Your Gardening Skills

Advertisement


4Homes

Skip Channel4 main Navigation
Explore Channel4
Food
Homes
Film
4Car
News
See All

Channel 4 © 2009. Channel 4 is not responsible for the content of external websites.