Every job below is one we do ourselves across Olive Branch.
We draw up the layout before we cut a single board, working around your slope, your back door, and where the sun sits at four in the afternoon. Multi-level decks, built-in benches, and stair placement all get worked out on paper first so there are no surprises once framing starts.
We frame new decks with pressure-treated joists spaced to match the decking you choose, then set footings below frost depth so the structure doesn't heave with the clay soil. Ledger boards get bolted straight into the house framing, flashed to keep water from getting behind the siding.
Soft spots in the decking, wobbly railings, and stairs that flex under weight usually trace back to a rotted ledger board or a footing that's shifted. We pull up what's failed, check the framing underneath, and only replace what actually needs it instead of rebuilding the whole deck.
Pressure-treated pine has to dry out for a few weeks before it'll take a stain to hold properly, and we test the wood's moisture before we ever open a can. We pressure wash first, let it cure, then apply a penetrating stain or clear sealer that holds up to Mississippi sun instead of peeling by August.
Composite boards don't rot, but they still require proper joist spacing and hidden fastener systems to lie flat and stay quiet underfoot. We install brands rated for our climate and leave the gapping manufacturers specify for expansion in the heat.
Loose balusters and a wobbly top rail are almost always a post that's lost its lag bolts, not a design problem. We rebuild railings to current code height and spacing, whether you want wood pickets, cable rail, or aluminum.
If your frame is still solid but the decking boards are cupped, splintering, or gray, we strip the old boards and put down new decking on the existing joists. It's a faster, cheaper way to get a deck looking new without touching the substructure.
Some homeowners want part of the deck open and part of it screened off from mosquitoes, especially with how the bugs get here in July. We frame the screened section with its own roof line and tie it into the open deck so it reads as one structure, not two projects stapled together.
Old decks with rotted ledger boards or undersized footings sometimes aren't worth saving, and we'll tell you that instead of patching something that's going to fail again in two years. We tear it out, haul off the lumber and old concrete footings, and clear the site for whatever comes next.
A deck that faces west gets brutal by four o'clock in July, and a pergola built into the deck framing cuts that heat without closing the space in. We size the rafters and posts to carry real weight, not just look good in a photo.
Four steps, and no surprises in any of them.
You tell us what you want doing, we look at what is actually there, and we ask the awkward questions early.
In writing, itemised, free. If something might add cost later we flag it now rather than at the end.
Same crew throughout. We cover your floors, keep the dust down and tidy up before we leave each day.
You point out anything you are not happy with and we fix it before the invoice, not after.
Deck work covered across Olive Branch and the surrounding towns.
Questions that come up once a deck project is underway.
Describe the problem and we will tell you what it probably is. No obligation.
