A beautifully designed deck can add instant beauty to the structure of any house. It becomes an outdoor place to relax and socialize with your family and friends.
But building your dream deck doesn’t come easy. You have to pay a lot of attention to its footings, structural supports, and aesthetics. Many people decide to build a deck themselves, while others prefer hiring a professional for it.
Deckbuilding is not any weekend project and demands a lot of planning and creativity. Hence, the hassle is best left to the expert deck builders skilled and specialized in this field.
Here is how you can pick the best deck builder in your city-
Assess your needs
Before heading out to hire any contractor or builder, the most important thing is to have a fair idea in your mind regarding the kind of deck you are looking out for your home. Some crucial elements should be sorted in mind to clarify the project to your prospective builder, like the layout of the deck, number of stories, staircases, type of building material and railings, special features like benches or fire pits.
Knowing what you want will help decide your project’s scope and get you a step closer to the right kind of builder.
Search around
If any of your friends, relatives, or neighbors have installed a fabulous deck lately, then you should ask them who built it. Talk to them about their experience and whether they would recommend the same contractor to you. There are higher possibilities of meeting a reliable contractor via your personal contacts who would also give you an inside view regarding the whole process.
Other than personal referrals, you can also consult online forums to get reviews about local builders. However, don’t trust them completely as they might have been paid for.
Interview multiple builders
You should never rely on one builder for your project. Always have at least five to six potential builders on your list and interview all of them before making a final call. Some of the important questions that you should be asking are –
- How long have you been in the business?
- Are you duly licensed and insured?
- Can you work on the material I have planned for my deck?
- When can you start my project, and how will it take?
- Do you offer any warranty for your products and services?
Ask for a written estimate.
After shortlisting the builders for your project, ask them to pay a visit to your residence to note all the details. Ask them to share a detailed estimation of costs in writing and match it with the budget you had pre-determined for the deck building. The estimation should include other things like – the work to be done, the materials to be used, and the time frame for completing the whole project.
Getting a written estimate from two to three different builders will help you make a fair comparison and take your final decision.
Look at your work portfolio.
Now, just because a company speaks great about its products and skills doesn’t mean it is equipped. You need to look into the kind of work they do, and what better than asking for the pictures of work they have carried out in the past and a list of their past clients to refer to.
So, to gain better clarity in the contractor’s working style and creativity, go through their portfolio and then decide ahead.
