Deck & Patio Builders

Patios and decks – two equivalent competitors. Homeowners are met with one of the most confusing questions – should I install a patio or a deck?

If you have decided to invest in an outdoor space, you have to consider all possible factors affecting your final decision. Learn the pros and cons of having a deck or a patio, to resolve your confusion.

What is a Deck?
A deck is an entirely open area extending from your house. Decks are open-air and can also act as an outdoor porch of your home. If you choose a natural wood build or a concrete finish, your deck will bring an aesthetic charm to the exterior of your house.

What are the Benefits and Drawbacks of a Deck?

1. Helps to add artistic charm to the exterior of the house:
Decks are available in a wide variety of shades and textures. You can easily paint the deck to complement your house's current exterior design and contrast, along with all the construction choices. For instance, many owners correspond precisely to their deck with the shade of their window shutters. Having a deck can make your home more appealing.

When you match the design of your house with your deck, you can add decorations on your deck that can further complement the design of your house. You can choose to add lights or bouquets around the deck along with some chairs and sofas to create a relaxing atmosphere that you can enjoy at night.

2. Creates a platform for hosting events and family gatherings:
Decks are also an ideal place to host summer parties, barbecues, and family gatherings. It allows your guests to meet each other along with enjoying the weather and get relaxed. Decks also will enable you to make more use of your yard area so that visitors can get more room to unwind or play a game. You may also want to add additional amenities to your deck to adequately accommodate your visitors, such as lights, a grill, a bar, or an outdoor kitchen. You might even consider adding an outdoor fireplace. But decks generally have a smaller lifespan than patios.

3. Comfortable in summers and easy to customize:
Decks are ideal for you if your house faces the sun directly, and you get much sunlight because wooden decks give out less heat, and they are natural absorbents. Decks are also, without a doubt, easy to customize. You can stain them to coordinate with the hues and shades of the interior of your house.

4. Decks increase the square footage of a house:
Decks increase your house's outlook and give you other benefits like maximizing the square footage of your house. Many decks often have available space beneath them, which can prove very useful for you to store equipment or appliances that were filling up your garage or store.

5. Utilization of extra and available space:
Decks be a great utilization of the available space for many different purposes like parties, events, and family gatherings. It is also perfect for one of those nights where you want to just sit outside, watch the sky and relax.

Decks can also be an excellent idea for an outdoor dinner or breakfast in the fresh air at one of those winter months that usually have mild sunlight.

6. Increases the worth of your house:
A deck can be a very convenient and affordable way to increase the worth of your house. As a matter of fact, according to some experts, building a deck in your house is likely to increase the worth of your house more than building a living room or a bathroom.

7. High maintenance:
Decks are high maintenance. They need to be maintained and cleaned consistently twice every week. They also need to be power washed and sealed twice every year.

8. Expensive and weight limited:
Decks are generally more expensive than patios. They are also weight restricted. You will need to consider the weight of the furniture or the appliances you fill your deck with. The average cost of decks with good quality material is $30 per square foot.

9. Material used:
Decks are made of wood or other synthetic wood materials that may look like wood but aren’t wood.

10. Permits:
Some cities and towns might require a permit to construct a deck. Requiring permits will probably mean a waiting period or a fee before building a deck.

What is a Patio?
A patio's idea comes from the Spanish word ‘patio,’ which means a back garden or a backyard. It usually does not matter if patios have a roof or not. They are usually built between a house and its garden. These are like an inner garden of a Spanish-style house. It is widely used to describe any outdoor living area often next to a residence used for cooking, recreation, or relaxing. They can be built from concrete, tiles, wood flooring, gravel, brick, granite cobblestone, flagstone, and poured concrete. A patio may be connected to a residence or freestanding.

Building a patio that is carefully and delicately designed can extend a living area for a house. Coordinating colors, hues, tiles, flooring, designs, and picking furniture that contrasts with the inner-house furniture can be an ideal technique for extending one’s dining space. It also allows you to work, read books, admire the weather, or have a cup of coffee as the cold wind breeze gently touches your face. Patios should be built equal to the interior flooring level to make patios an extension of the house. How big or small the patio must entirely depend on the available space.

What Types of Patios Are There?
Where a patio is located has a massive influence on the shape or type of a patio. There can also be other factors like the architecture, or the design of how your house is built, your budget, and a few other factors.

1. L-Shaped or U-Shaped Patio:
These are typically used for making a relaxing environment like a living room in an outdoor area.

2. Wraparound Patio:
These types of patios are larger and take up more space than a typical average-sized patio. Such patios are generally attached to the sides of the backside of a house, and they help in enlarging the space of the house.

3. Entry Patio:
For some of you, the idea of a basic front lawn with basic chairs can sound very dull and mainstream. Some of you want to do something different and creative with your house and want to make changes in every possible part of your house. Other than just following the mainstream trend, a front lawn and chairs also do not give you privacy at all. Anyone who enters your house can see who is sitting, relaxing, or dining in your lawn, which bothers some people. If you are one of these people, then an entry patio is your answer.

4. Multi-level Patio:
As the name suggests, a multi-level patio is built for a house built on multiple levels like stories.

5. Freestanding Patio:
Such a patio is also perfect for large spaces. It’s the perfect type of patio to escape from reality and relax.

What are the Benefits and Drawbacks of a Patio?

1. Increases the worth of your house:
A patio can also be a very convenient way to increase your house's worth. These are aesthetically appealing, relaxing, and a unique idea for your house.

2. Extends your living area:
Like decks, patios can also extend your living area, allowing you to get more chances of making a whole different outdoor environment for your family, cousins, friends, and children. These are very popular and ideal because, believe it or not, an outdoor environment always feels different like a refreshing change of pace. It is, without a doubt, different and more relaxing than an indoor environment. This is undoubtedly one of the reasons why people used to prefer sleeping on their roofs or porches in the old times.

3. More entertainment:
Patios can help you in organizing a better entertainment with proper space and resources. For instance, you can host barbecues, a birthday party, a movie night with a projector, a game night, or a music night with dim lights.

4. Low maintenance:
Patios are generally low maintenance and are easy to keep clean. They do not require a lot of extra effort because patios are made from the best and ideal materials available. Patios are also very durable. You can choose to seal your patio. Patios generally have a longer lifespan than decks. They can last in good condition for up to 25 or 30 years.

5. Material used:
Patios can be built by materials like brick, concrete, tiles, or other materials.

6. Hectic construction:
Constructing a patio requires a complex construction and is time-consuming. Building a patio on hilly or uneven surfaces is a challenge and might not be worth the additional expense.

7. Prone to cracks and slipping risk:
Under the extreme conditions, or if the soil under the concrete is not prepared well there is a great probability that your patio will crack. in colder regions, ice can form over the patio surface making it slippery and risky to walk.

8. Permits:
Constructing a patio does not require any permit for inspection or any permit at all.

What is the Cost of Deck Installations?
The average rate of installing a new deck is $7,663, with a general range of $4,151 to $11,188. About 50% of the total budget is taken up by the cost of material and labor, which plays around $30 to $60 per square foot.

The deck designs cover all sorts of construction types, including L-shaped, Complex, Basic Rectangular, Wrap around, or even Multi-level decks. Their cost varies according to the designs. Decks can be built with a roof on them, which prices between $5,000 to $35,000. Similarly, a deck installation with stairs expenses between $15 to $25 per square foot. A floating deck will run around the range of $20 to $60. Additionally, the price range of a deck on the ground floor and second floor also varies. For example, a deck on the ground floor expenses between $10 to $20 per square foot, and the one on the second-floor costs between $40 to $50 total per square foot.

What is the Cost of Patio Installations?
On average, installing a patio costs $3,420. Usually, the expenses roam around $1,853 to $5,118. If you are going for high-end, luxurious installments, then expect to pay $10,000+. The general expense of installing a patio for a total per square foot is $10 to $20.