The dialogue expressed between your deck and its respective house and yard will play a huge part in how well your deck relates to its surroundings. There is no one size fits all deck design. A generic plan for a deck will often end up looking like it was tacked on to the house out of thin air. Your intention should be to develop a smooth transition between these parts to create a visual and functional extension of what already exists.

What aspects of the house and yard can be incorporated into your deck to suggest a meaningful relationship? You can think of this connection as a bridge between the comforts and familiarity of your house with the dynamic environmental characteristics of what lies beyond. Use a sense of design sensitivity in addressing the intersections where the deck touches the house and makes contact with the ground.

Most houses built since the 1980’s were designed with the thought of a future deck in mind. Many painstaking decisions will be made somewhat easier for you. Older houses built before decks became popular will require more attention to how the deck will fit in. In some cases you may need to add an exterior door. Large decks often look out of place attached to older houses.