Review - Building and Designing Decks by Scott Schuttner

Scott Schuttner is well known for his carpentry books. Building and Designing Decks is intended for the accomplished do-it-yourselfer. Schuttner takes you step by step in some detail through the entire deck-building process for designing and building attractive and durable decks. You are encouraged to develop your own design ideas and turn them into engineering plans. Right from selecting lumber, fasteners and finishes you get to know how to build the solid framework of the deck. You learn how to efficiently build planters, stairs and seating without compromising on quality. With crystal clear descriptions and detailed drawings you can build whatever kind of deck your budget and skill allow you to. Starting from basic, single-level decks to elaborate, multilevel masterpieces you are actually spurred on to get started. More than 40 deck design illustrations serve as excellent motivation that can inspire you. The author advices that you spend more time designing than building as mistakes that could undo the project, can be easily corrected in the design stage.

The book has a lot of photographs and line drawings and contains much hands-on information to build any kind of deck-from the most basic to the most sophisticated. Beginning with a practical introduction every successive chapter takes up the different components of deck building. Starting with Designing, the author takes you to understand Building Materials, Foundations, Framing, Putting Down Decks, Railings, Stairs, Benches and Other Accessories and finally to the Finishing and Maintenance. There is a useful Resource Guide and Index at the end. If you've never built a deck before this book could egg you on. It's a great mix of construction know-how, design suggestions, and specific examples. Clear and simple, it tackles every aspect of deck construction. Given common sense, the right tools and this book you have everything you need to build a great deck.