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Landscape Design Porches & Decks Design Dilemma

Am I crazy to want to remove deck and put down pavers in backyard?

4 years ago

last modified: 4 years ago

Here is an old picture of our back porch after I had to replace a bunch of the wood because they were rotting. I sanded everything down and repainted. The problem is, in a year or 2, the rest of the wood is going to need to be replaced because I don't believe the wood they used was pressure treated and it seems I find more rotting places every day.

SO... am I crazy to want to remove the whole wooden deck and do a patio with pavers? Lay it once, no maintenance. One other thing is I swear mosquitos hide underneath the porch and come up through the cracks (we are in Dallas) so that would be one area that would be much easier to treat. I also saw the Silca system to put pavers on top of the wood deck frame which would be the best of both worlds (but very expensive). Any thoughts?

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Comments (5)

lizziesma
4 years ago
Not crazy. You will still have a wee bit of maintenance with brick, pavers, or concrete. We chose aggregate cement as we'd had enough skunky nights and visits by possums who lived under the neighbors deck.
Reed C
Original Author
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago

We'll try to add the picture again...
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Arch you are right, we are close to neighbors and we used to have a patio but we built the addition over it, and added the glass doors to get direct access. the house is 34" above grade which is why we thought of the deck that is a few steps down from the house - privacy + more integrated with the lawn and paver stone area. our architect started with steps down, but they projected out 9' (3' landing + 3 risers + 3' landing). this is required to meet code without guardrails. it was also wide -- I think 12'. therefore, we thought this took up too much yard space and chopped up the area we'd want for adult hangout close to the house. we thought the deck that is a few steps down doesn't waste as much space, gives us a good location to the house / kitchen, privacy and we'll use it more when it's closer to the kitchen. we're thinking of Aztek decking. any other ideas? if there was a concise way to get to ground level we'd prefer that, but we need 3' landing at the door and each riser can't be more than about 7.5" per code. included the first option from architect with the steps down and landing. thank you all!!
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PRO
Revolutionary Gardens
4 years ago
If you're experiencing rot in places around the deck, and given that you have a low deck (which means damp and not much ventilation/air movement), I wouldn't spend the money for a paver system on the existing framing. As for general deck vs pavers, that's a personal preference and design decision
Oliviag
4 years ago
Youll need some big steps down to a lower patio. How would you feel about that? I would want at least three feet raised, beyond the patio doors, as a landing, personally.
I get the bug thing. We're in rainy season here. I can't visit the neighbor's patio and yard. too many gnats and mosquitoes. Mine is ok, for now.
PRO
Yardvaark
4 years ago
It's true ... mosquitos love dark places during the day and crawl spaces are a favorite. The deck being only 2-3 steps high is close enough to the ground to warrant a patio. You could raise it a little with a retaining curb. At 18" or less above grade, I'd opt for patio. At 18" to 24", it's a toss up. Above 36", I'd opt for deck.

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