Arlington, TX · Dallas County
Decks in Arlington, Texas
Arlington is big enough to contain several different deck markets at once, from 1960s ranch streets near the centre to newer building on the southern edge. We work the whole city, and the first question is always which part.
01 — The area
Decks in Arlington
Arlington shares a long border with Grand Prairie and is the city we are called into most often after our own. It is also the most varied: a lot of housing from the 1960s through the 1980s across the central and northern parts, substantial newer development to the south and southwest, and plenty of streets where two eras sit side by side.
The practical consequence is that the most common Arlington job is not a new deck. It is dealing with something that already exists — a deck at the end of its life, a patio enclosure somebody added in the nineties, a cover built without flashing, or a back yard where three generations of improvements have been layered on top of each other.
That suits us. Working out what you have before deciding what to build is the part of this trade that saves people the most money.
02 — Arlington
Split Levels and Decks That Start Above Your Head
Arlington has a good number of split-level and partially raised houses from the sixties and seventies, and they produce a specific kind of deck problem: the back door is a long way above the ground, and whatever is out there now was built to reach it.
A deck seven or eight feet up is a structure rather than a platform. It needs real posts, a code-compliant rail, a stair run with a landing if it is long, and it has consequences underneath — where the space is either useful or an eyesore, and rarely in between. Older examples of these decks are also where we find the most serious faults, because the loads are higher and the original builders were often working to a standard that has since changed.
The two things we check first on a raised deck of this age are the ledger connection and the posts. At this height, a ledger fixed into cladding rather than structure is not a defect to note for later; it is a reason to stop using the deck. And a tall post that is soft at the base is carrying far more than a post on a low deck.
The opportunity is the space below. With a drainage layer between the boards and a ceiling beneath, it becomes a shaded dry patio that is often the most used part of the house in July. On a rebuild it costs very little to design in, and it effectively doubles what the structure gives you.
03 — Arlington
Enclosed Porches, Sunrooms and Tying New Work Into Old Additions
A particular Arlington pattern: a house that has already been added to. An enclosed porch, a sunroom, a glazed patio room, a converted carport — frequently done decades ago, sometimes well and sometimes not, and now the client wants a deck or a cover that connects to it.
This is where quotes diverge sharply between contractors, and the reason is that an addition is an unknown. We need to know whether its roof can be tied into, whether its wall is structural, how its foundation relates to the house, and whether it was built with permits — because new work attached to an old addition inherits some of that addition's problems.
Roof geometry is the usual sticking point. A new cover meeting the roof of an existing sunroom creates a junction that has to be flashed properly, and sunroom roofs are often shallow, lightweight, or made of a material that will not accept a standard detail. Sometimes the honest answer is that the new structure should stand clear of the addition on its own posts rather than attach to it. That costs a little more and removes the risk of putting water into somebody else's work.
We would rather spend an afternoon establishing all of that than quote from the back fence. Where we cannot determine something without opening it up, we say so in the quote instead of pricing around it quietly.
04 — Arlington
Boundaries, Setbacks and the Fence-Line Conversation
Arlington lots in the older neighbourhoods are not generous, and a deck or a cover that extends toward a boundary runs into rules and sometimes into neighbours.
Setbacks are the first thing. How close a structure may sit to a side or rear property line is set by zoning rather than by preference, and the limit can differ for an open deck, a roofed cover and a solid wall. Designing a cover to the line and finding out afterwards is an expensive way to learn it, so we establish the applicable setbacks for your address before drawing.
The fence itself is the second. A deck built hard against a boundary fence traps debris and damp between them, and makes the fence impossible to maintain from your side. We leave a working gap. Where a client wants the deck to reach the line, it is worth knowing that the fence will probably need replacing before the deck does, and planning for the access.
Overlooking is the third, and it is social rather than regulatory. A raised deck on a tight lot can look straight into a neighbour's kitchen, and the version of privacy that works is screening the sight line at the deck rather than building a tall wall at the boundary. A slatted panel at seated height, placed close to where you sit, removes the view with a fraction of the material and does not block the breeze.
None of this is complicated. It is simply better handled before the footings than after the complaint.
Services
What we build in Arlington
Every service below is available across Arlington.
Deck Building
A deck is a structure that has to hold a group of people several feet in the air for twenty years, wearing a d…
Deck Repair
Most decks that look finished are not. If the frame and the connection to the house are sound, replacing the s…
Patio Covers
A solid cover is what turns an outdoor space from somewhere you use twice a year into part of the house. It al…
Pergolas
A pergola is the cheapest real shade there is, and the difference between one that works and one that is decor…
Pool Decks
A pool deck is wet, barefoot and in full sun, and the three requirements that follow from that — grip, a surfa…
Deck Staining
Ninety per cent of a good finish is what happens before the first coat goes on. Staining a deck that has not b…
Questions
Arlington — asked and answered
Do you travel to Arlington, or only Grand Prairie?
Arlington is our nearest neighbour and one of the areas we work most. No distance charge for anything of normal size; if a specific job carries extra cost it appears as a line in the quote rather than being folded in quietly.
My raised deck is from the 1970s. Should I be worried?
Check two things today. Push hard against the rail — it should not move at all. And look at where the deck meets the house for metal flashing over the ledger board. A tall deck with a loose rail or a ledger fixed into siding should not be used for gatherings until it has been looked at.
Can you build a cover that connects to my sunroom?
Sometimes, and sometimes the better answer is a structure that stands clear of it on its own posts. Sunroom roofs are often shallow or lightweight and will not take a standard flashing detail, and putting water into an existing addition is a problem we would rather design out than price around.
How close to the fence can the deck go?
That is set by zoning and it can differ between an open deck and a roofed cover. We confirm the setbacks for your specific address before designing. Separately, we would leave a working gap at the fence regardless, because a deck built hard against one traps damp and makes the fence unmaintainable.
Deck builders in Arlington
Tell us what you want the space to do · written quote · no obligation
Service area