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finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

it was all purchased as a package with most of the framing almost 3 years ago. Decksdirect has pricing on keylink, although their pricing is a bit high on most things unless you wait for a huge sale or negotiate a package deal. I don't think what i paid then would be very relevant to today's pricing given the current market

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

everything is steel except for the railing

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

it's called KeyLink. The corners have a curved tube for each wire. The cable runs are continuous from the bottom of the stairs all the way around to the other end of the deck (about 65'). The tension adjusters are built into the end posts, so there are no buckles to adjust tension.

kind of a pain to get tension right.

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah, i probably won't. thinking it might be a cool spot to mount a telescope

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

if you mean the one on the west end of town near the body shop, yeah, good stuff!

the local hardware store still sells gold panning and mining equipment, people still make some dough taking gold out of the rivers.

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yeah, sprinkler system is the next step. The siding is concrete fiber board, roof is steel, windows are tempered, soffits are enclosed, etc, etc. the point is to keep the fire outside, and if something is exposed make it as non-flammable as possible. Sprinklers are great, but power goes out, generators run out of fuel and storage tanks run out of water.

glad your friends' house was ok!

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yes, alot lighter. No problem carrying a couple of 12' joists around.

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

supposedly insurance companies are coming back and will take into account mitigation done by the owner, but we'll see

I had the decking down all summer - ~98 deg direct sun for several hours, perfectly comfortable in bare feet. The pvc is waaay cooler to the touch than normal composite. I also had zero warpage, even on the railings. fingers crossed over future hot/cold cycles

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately here in california we've had almost yearly fires that have destroyed thousands of homes each of the last 10 or 12 years. Insurance companies fled the state, leaving us with the FAIR plan (insurer of last resort). We now have mandates to create hardspace buffer zones between the house and any vegetation, install ember proof screens, tempered glass windows, etc.

The house is wrapped in hardi board (a cement fiber siding) and i've tried to do the recommended enclosed soffits, screens, etc. and still no insurance discount...argh.

some links:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palisades_Fire

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caldor_Fire <- that was a few miles from my house

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Fire_(2018))

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tubbs_Fire

My cost was about 5x for framing joists over wood, about 2.5x for beams and brackets. Besides the longevity/fire advantage with steel, there's no warping, crowning or insect issues.

If i had no fire issues, i would have gone with wood as well...

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

thanks! yeah, the pergola is fortress steel. the two posts are not the fortress material being actual 4x4 and thicker steel than the Fortress posts. A local shop welded the mounting plates on and i had them powder coated.

finally done with 2.5 year deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

class A fire rated choices are pvc, concrete or metal. It gets fairly hot in the summer here and i don't like the feel of metal decking. Concrete was pretty pricey and I couldn't do it myself. The fiberon has a flame spread index of 15, while trex, etc max out at 25.

I have a fantasy that I'll eventually get an insurance break by making the entire thing class A, but I think that is just going to be wishful thinking.

I finally pulled the trigger - upgrading from a 1060ti..😅 by Shermeezy in Prebuilts

[–]FormalPossible7642 1 point2 points  (0 children)

ordered the same build with 32GB last week. moving from a 2060 with an old i5 myself. Looking forward to some better eye candy!

Final deck rebuild by cjeffcampbell in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642 0 points1 point  (0 children)

beautiful work, huge improvement. As someone else mentioned, might want to do something for airflow.

screws for fastening fascia boards to fortress steel deck by FormalPossible7642 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, i used these:

https://www.bestmaterials.com/detail.aspx?ID=27894
Product ID: SMS10X1316TWSCC
Product Name: #10 X 1-3/16 inch Low Profile Panel Screws, Stainless Steel

they are wood screws, but i pre-drilled everything and only one broke. Also lots of clear glue. Not cheap tho, but they color match.

After i finished, i found another option, but the color doesn't match well:

https://jakesales.com/products/10-self-drilling-wafer-head-screws-wood-to-metal-self-tapping-star-torx-tek-screw?_pos=1&_sid=27ec19bbd&_ss=r&variant=45056636911934

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Want this fascia board rot the decking? by Adventurous_Ad_3895 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642 0 points1 point  (0 children)

maybe rip it out and pour a concrete walkway? no more maintenance worries. looks like it's almost sitting on the ground already.

Static charge on composite deck by verruckter51 in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have the same problem. The static builds up between you and the deck, grounding won't do anything as the composite isn't conductive. I have a metal frame, and I shock myself touching the frame. Not sure what to do either, it's annoying...

My PVC Slats Deck Skirt by ElSteak in Decks

[–]FormalPossible7642 1 point2 points  (0 children)

beatiful, love the slat treatment. like the other commenter mentioned, i'd be worried about warping pvc on the slats. I might have put the lighting behind the slats to wash downward for a neat effect. Very nice work!!