We figured a heavy snow load or a wind storm could bring it down and kill somebody if they happened to be under it when it collapsed. This structure was laden down and carried a load much heavier than what it was ever designed to carry due to the fact it was covered with a huge grape vine. Not only that, as mentioned, its supports are in the way of our original deck board project.
Also, the monster vine atop the structure has been attracting Japanese beetles by the tens of thousands every July. The excrement from the throng of grape leaf eating bugs combined with the heavy shade below, has caused the growth of green mold on the deck boards and will inevitably lead to rot. "You don't want to damage your new deck finish do you?"
After checking with a very good friend John, who is, among other things, a professional deck installer in a major city, about some nail/screw issues and the wisdom of turning the boards over, we were nearly ready to rent the sander. Oh and by the way, John agreed with me about my decision to turn the boards over. "We do it all the time." he said
But wait, my wife suggested we look into expanding the deck now that the structure was down and a massive planter box had been emptied of a half a ton of topsoil and clay. I agreed that if an expansion was needed, this would be the perfect time to do it while everything was out of the way. It had always bothered us that the deck ended half way past our bedroom window. Why didn’t the original builder carry the thing just past the window? It always looked funny to me. If we every wanted to replace the window with a sliding door, the deck would have to be bigger.
NOW...
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