Playset Ramp for Lauren

We've got a big swing set in the backyard that also has a slide attached to a platform that is about four feet off the ground. Lauren loves to go down the slide, but she can't quite make it up the ladder to the platform all by herself.

Last night Rosemary asked me about building a ramp so that Lauren could make it up without our help. Thirty minutes later this is what we had :

It's made up of two 2x4s on edge for the sides, with 2x4 blocking on 16" centers separating them. Topped off with 3/8" plywood, then some 3/8" plywood strips for traction. Lauren had a little trouble getting up so I added some more 5/8" softwood strips in between the 3/8" strips and now she can make it up no problem.


I think I'll add a 2x4 railing about a foot or so high to make it a little safer for her. Joshua liked going up and down the ramp as well - he asked to ride his scooter down it but we convinced him that it was not a good idea. Well, I think we convinced him...

Deck Finished

The Deck is done.

All the rotted wood has been picked up at the curb. The garbage men here are really good at taking anything I put out and I take advantage of that. They took the old deck in 5 or 6 loads and saved me from having to cart it to the dump and pay to get rid of it. Over the past two months I've got all the old deck into smaller pieces and filled up 6 garbage cans and a number of recycling bins and they took every piece away.

The railing is completed on the new deck and we've put our table back up and started eating on it. Though it was a lot of extra work, the under deck mounted screws means the top surface looks great.

We are very happy with how it has turned out - I'm sure we'll get a number of years out of this deck.

A few things that will eventually be addressed :

• boxing in the bottom of the columns for the roof to cover up the cement bases
• lattice on the side of the deck under the railing
• a trip hazard - open spot between the railing and the top deck stop on the sloping part of the railing

In any case the deck is done enough for now. I'll finish up other things before I get back to the deck.

Joshua's First Day of School

Joshua was very excited on his first day of Junior Kindergarten. He rode the bus all by himself with his backpack and Spiderman lunchbox.

Garage Painting

My house and back garage are both covered in vertical wood (pine) siding. Both were in need of a new coat of stain when we bought the house and I got started on that last year. The tallest part of the house is a little under 30 feet so I needed to use 3 ladders, including a borrowed 28 footer to get the house done.

I'm not sure how many hours the house took, but it was a lot. I'd have to guess somewhere around 40 hours total? Probably more - it's best not to think about it too much.

In any case, it's time to finish up the garage and I got started on it this weekend. I put in 6.5 hours to cover the front and side that you can see in the picture - that was the first coat. I started on the second coat and that will probably only take 4 hours.

That stain I am using (Superdeck) has a 15 year guarantee, and I'll be happy if it lasts 10 years. It's only sold by the gallon and I'll need 11 gallons to do the house and garage. I've been paying between $40 and $50 a gallon depending on if it's on sale.

The stain goes on pretty easy, I'm rolling it on and the back brushing. It dries quickly and it's thick enough that there are no visible runs. I'll have to wait and see how it holds up over the years but so far I'm very happy with it.

Deck Replacement - Part 7

Here is the deck with two coats of blue on it. The blue is darker in 'real life', the flash lightened it up a bit. Since I put one coat of stain Superdeck stain on the decking boards before I installed them, they've all got 3 coats of stain. With the protection of the roof overhead I hope this stain will last at least as long as the 5 year guarantee.

The two coats took 1.5 gallons of stain and about 2-3 hours to put on. I did my best to stain in between the cracks of the decking boards as they were originally stained a lighter colour. We are really pleased with the end result.

After finishing I realized that I should have stained the risers on the stairs the tan colour to match the house - oh well, maybe next time (5 years?).

To finish up I need to re-install the railing that I took out for the staining, add a coat of stain to the railing and posts, and stain/paint that green cement step.

To really finish up I need to box in the cement at the bottom of the support posts for the roof and add a railing between the end of the (uninstalled) railing and the support post at the far end of the deck. Those two might take a bit longer.