Thanks! - Where the ribbons went; we added extra 2x4 joist spans, lowered them to depth of a 2x8 and then laid the 2x8 down on top to make a flat support flush with everything else. We laid the ribbon right on that and secured with screws, and then had room on each side to secure the planks. - everything is Ipe, rails and 4x4's included. The rails are all 2x4's - with the balusters, we wanted to make sure that there would not be sag so we added the mid rails support (and b/c we have a child who may climb on them) They span about 7 feet and Ipe sayd you won't need them, I didn't mind the look and didn't want to find out... PS : we glued every board to the joists as well and the lattice is cedar Wardman

The deck is essentially 16x29. There are two decks, that are each 16x16. However, the one deck surface is one step down and offset from the house 5 feet. Then slid under the upper deck 3 feet. So along the house it is 29 feet. In some sections it sticks out 16 feet from the house, in others 21 feet. Make sense? Thanks...Mike

The Trex trim seems to be a bit less dense /heavy than Azek but was less expensive. It also was slightly less bright white. This was shown to be the case because all the trim on the house is Trex PVC except the sheets ie. the gable triangles because they didnt offer it. So beware of small issues like this. Im not sure who is best among Azek, Versatex,Koma, Kleer , Trex and others. I wish I had researched the installation /bonding of the trim a bit more ahead of time. There are issues of expansion and contraction you need to deal with, especially on longer pieces. Yes the columns were wrapped in Trex trim. I used 1x12 on the larger ones and 1x8 on the smaller ones. They were first built up over 6x6 PT posts. John. No problem with dimpling ???? The turnbuckles attach using 3-1 1/2" stainless steel screws. Like I said I am most concerned about expansion and contraction on longer spans and filling some gaps and nail holes. Im looking into Bond & Fill, Gorilla pvc, and Trimbonder for this issue as we speak to address it on this and future project. Not sure yet what the ceiling will end up being. I had considered using metal barn siding sloped out to a gutter but nothing solid yet.

the weber will outlast the charbroil, but at twice the price, is it worth it to you? the Charbroil has a larger cooking surface AND higher BTU rate than the Weber. also it has cast iron cooking grates, which to me equal more even heat than the Weber's stainless grate. so, for me, i would go with the Charbroil. not to start anything here, but have you considered charcoal or dual fuel grills? i saw a Char-Griller at my lowes a couple weeks back that was 2 grills in 1. gas on one side and the other grill was charcoal. ifyou plan on cooking anything that requires a long cook time, such as smoking meats, you just cannot beat a charcoal grill. gas cooks quicker, and has less mess to clean, but does not do as well for slow cooking items. i smoke my ribs for 6 hours on my chargriller, and they fall off the bone. trying to cook teh same ribs on a gas grill and they cook in under 2 hours and are TUFF!