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Show 11 a it aJicad so you9l be decked out for summer A new deck can tlo wonderful wonder-ful things for your home's Appearance Ap-pearance and your outdoor lifestyle. But before you dive into the project, take time out to do some thoughtful planning. plan-ning. Your project will go quicker in the long run, and you'll be happier with the results. re-sults. First, analyze your needs. What's the main purpose of the deck? Is it for sun worship or dining al fresco, to dress up an entry or provide a private getaway? Knowing the deck's function func-tion is essential to a good plan. You may find you need several areas or levels one for entertainment enter-tainment and outdoor cooking, cook-ing, one for sunning. While rectangular and square decks arc easiest to build, the simplest design may not be the best for you. Multiple Multi-ple levels can add more flair and function than one large platform in some situations. Stake out the deck Begin by drawing to scale on graph paper a top and side view of the house. Include major landscaping, driveways, doors, and location of utility lines underground. Then lay out the deck on paper. pa-per. Try to design it in increments incre-ments of 2 feet since lumber comes in these even lengths. It will save you a lot of sawing and extra expense. Now go outside with tape measure und Jx2 Makes and Jay out the deck on (he site. Determine De-termine width, then length and height by measuring the side of the house and marking where you want the top of the decking. Tap stakes into the ground along the house where the ledger strip will go and at points somewhat beyond the exact points where posts will be placed. Mark the string with a felt pen exactly at the posts positions. Check for square To check the corners of the deck for square, use this simple sim-ple surveying procedure with two fixed lines forming a right angle. This will be your guide for measurements. Line I is always parallel to the house or other structure the deck is built against. If the deck will be detached, just run a straight line along one edge of the proposed site. Line 2 will intersect line 1 (see drawing). Take three stakes and a nylon line and lay out a triangle. Line 1 should be 8 feet long, parallel to the wall. Stake the line at points A and B. Line 2 also connects to stake A, running to a point 6' from A. Attach the line to point C several feel beyond. Check the distance from HOME FIRES DEADLY Seventy-five percent of all U.S. fire deaths occur at home, according to the National Na-tional Fire Protection Agency, which says a little extra care could prevent most of them. CNS FENCE POST WOOD Considered the best woods for fence posts are, in the order of their durability, dura-bility, Osage orange, locust, lo-cust, red cedar, mulberry, catalpa, white cedar and chestnut. Also good are walnut, oak and black ash. - CNS y 1 A, v'.V.iv... ! j tit . :rc-;.. CAM IT CRinWORK, I'AKVIIKT OK CIIKCK KKIIOAItl) ... by any ,, kT. -UHy to build if you firnt ulurt with n good plini. stake C to stake B, the hypotenuse hypote-nuse of the right triangle. When its measurement is exactly 10 feel, your corner will be square. Double check at stake A with a carpenter's square. Then, using stakes and string, lay out the entire deck, repeating the process to check each corner for square. If building a detached deck, you can form line 1 by placing plac-ing stakes along a line parallel to one edge of the deck site. Select materials Your next decision is what kind of wood to use. We recommend rec-ommend pressure treated lumber for all your outdoor project needs. Why? Several reasons: low cost, low maintenance, mainte-nance, resistance to decay and I insects, handsome finish qualities, qual-ities, and workability. A process which forces preservatives pre-servatives deep into the cells of quality lumber makes O P pressure-treated lumber a solid choice for decking, joints and beams. And, it's essential to use only pressure-treated lumber lum-ber for posts to resist decay. Use stainless steel fasteners and hot-dipped galvanized nails to resist stains. Know the code Also, don't forget to check your local building code before be-fore beginning construction to be sure you meet local requirements. re-quirements. Be sure to follow manufacturer's manufac-turer's instructions when using power tools. And, don't forget to wear safety goggles when using hammer or power tools. Kind Ihc source Your local Georgia-Pacific Registered Dealer can help you estimate the amount of lumber you will need for your plan and give you a copy of G-P's booklet, Decks A Outdoor Out-door Projects. Twelve pages that take you from the planning plan-ning stages all ihc way to your first barbecue. Designs, diagrams dia-grams and detailed instructions instruc-tions help you adapt any deck idea to your own home. To find your nearest Georgia-Pacific Registered Dealer, call I-800-447-2XH2 or write Georgia-Pacific, 133 Pcachtrec Street, N.E., Atlanta, At-lanta, GA 30303. |