• Exterior spaces
  • Merbau decking
  • Sydney

Merbau picture frame deck

A rotten courtyard deck replaced like for like in merbau, with the failed subframe rebuilt underneath and a picture-frame border that keeps every board inside it square and straight.

The brief was a like-for-like swap: take up the old rotten decking and lay new merbau in its place, then stain it. Once the boards came up, it was clear the problem went deeper. Around 80% of the subfloor had rotted through.

We stopped and walked the client through it before going any further. With their sign-off we replaced only the structurally poor sections of the subframe and kept whatever was still sound. Every joist was then covered in Protecta deck tape so the new frame stays dry under the boards.

The client wanted full-length boards, so the border pieces were ripped to width around the edge. That lets the field run in full lengths while everything inside the frame stays square and straight. The whole deck was stained once it was down.

Scope
Deck and subframe replacement
Decking
Merbau, stained
Subframe
Rotten sections replaced
Joist protection
Protecta deck tape
Edging
Picture frame, ripped border
Merbau picture frame deck: after
Merbau picture frame deck: before
Before After
01Before: weathered deck and lawn edge
02Before: from the terrace
03Before: worn picture-frame border
04Strip-out: rotten subframe exposed
05Build: boards going down
06Build: access hatch framed in
07Set-out: string lines and spacers
08Detail: mitred picture-frame corner
09Detail: flush access hatch
10Complete: deck and lawn
11Complete: from the terrace
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