Bowdoinham Cantilevered Deck

The biggest mistake deck builders make is to not prepare the area below the deck. We began with making the area where the foundation meets the earth watertight by banking heavy duty hardware cloth over a pitched ground level sloped away from house. This was then covered with 3/4″ crushed stone. The concrete piers support a 16″ on-center deck structure doubled every other bay. This allows the deck to jut out over the piers 5′. Steps are then cantilevered off that and more steps cantilevered off that. The effect is a floating deck because the vertical supports are almost hidden back under the deck.