All trades

Decking Resources

Straight-talking guides and checklists for decking, written to help you spend smart and hire well, not to sell you a lead.

A homeowner and a deck contractor review a quote on a tablet beside a backyard deck

Why Is One Deck Quote $8k and Another $22k?

One deck bid reads $8,000 and another $22,000 for the same yard. The gap is the ledger, the footings, and the code railings the cheap quote left off.

A deck contractor in a tool belt and work gloves kneeling on a partly built deck, driving a fastener into a composite deck board with a cordless drill, with pressure-treated joists on pedestal supports and a finished wood railing behind him.

How to Tell If a Deck Contractor Is Licensed and Insured

"Licensed and insured" is only a claim until you verify it. How to check a deck contractor's license, classification, insurance, and bond yourself.

A crew driving screws into evenly spaced pressure-treated joists on a partly framed backyard deck, with the beam, posts, and rim joist exposed before any boards are laid

How to Frame a Deck: Joists, Beams, and Spans

How to frame a deck to code: find your load case first, then size joists, beams, and posts off the right table. Spans, cantilevers, and hardware.

A homeowner standing on a weathered wood deck looking down at several visibly warped and cupped boards that have curled and pulled away from level

Why Is My Deck Board Warping? (And How to Fix It)

Cupping, bowing, twisting, or splitting? The shape a deck board takes points at the cause. How to read yours, fix it yourself, and know when to stop.

A tradesperson and a homeowner sitting at a patio table on a finished deck, reviewing an itemized deck quote on a clipboard next to a sketched plan and a tape measure

How Much Should a Deck Cost Per Square Foot?

A full-scope deck runs about $57 a square foot in wood and $78 in composite. Here is where those numbers come from, and why the unit itself misleads you.