When installing your new outdoor deck, it’s important to adequately plan its layout to ensure you have the appropriate amount of materials and, most importantly, you meet all local building and safety code requirements.
Arguably, the most crucial aspect of building a deck is having a solid foundation to prevent shifting and sinking. The deck foundation carries the weight load for not only the weight of the decking, but also of all the furniture, appliances, and people that reside on top of it. As you begin planning your outdoor deck, start with planning how many deck footings you need for the desired size of your deck to again ensure the decking structure is properly supported.
What Is a Deck Footing?
Deck footings are a vital part of a deck’s foundation; they allow support posts to better hold weight, prevent them from sinking into the ground, and keep the decking level. To hold the weight, deck footings are deep inside the ground, often required to be below frost level, and use non-decaying materials like concrete and gravel to add stability and strength to your deck’s foundation. This gives the deck posts “quite literally” solid ground to stand on, so they can distribute and hold the weight of the entire decking structure.
Determining the Number of Deck Footings
Ultimately the number of deck footings your deck needs varies and is determined by several factors:
- Size of deck
- Climate and soil composition
- Local building and safety codes
- Size of decking materials used
- Deck design (i.e. basic decking requires less than a deck with more complicated angles)
- Potential additional weight on the deck (e.g. hot tub, outdoor stone kitchen, etc.)
It’s important to turn to your local and state building codes for details on requirements and approved materials, etc., as these will help you determine the number of deck footings you need for your unique deck design. For example, Minnesota state deck building codes require deck footings to be 42 inches deep with a diameter of at least eight inches and must use cardboard forms to set the footings. In general, deck footings are usually less than eight feet apart from one another, but some of the above factors can influence the need for more or less support.
For more specified information and advice on building your deck, be sure to consult with a professional deck builder like UglyDeck.com, as they can address all of your questions and concerns and recommend decking materials that will work best for your goals, design and climate.
Turn to UglyDeck.com for All Your Decking Materials
Choosing deck footing and decking supplies you can trust is a huge part of taking on a decking project. As a Twin Cities deck-building company and decking-materials supplier since 2005, our entire team understands how quality decking materials make all the difference when installing outdoor decks and other home projects, as your materials need to withstand harsh weather conditions and the test of time. At UglyDeck.com, we offer our customers the same access to the high-quality decking materials that our Minnesota deck builders utilize in our professional maintenance-free deck projects, as it is important to us that your project is a success.
As you begin your deck plans, you can get a hands-on feel for these amazing maintenance-free decking materials by heading to one of decking showrooms, like our new Mandan, ND location! We also have several photos of completed projects on our website that are sure to inspire ideas for your own deck designs!
If you’re ready to get started, order maintenance-free decking materials, spiral staircases, deck railings, accessories and more by messaging us through our contact form with photos and/or your decking plan. And, if you’re not local, no worries! No matter where you live in the U.S., UglyDeck.com now proudly ships to all 50 states. Reach out to us today to get started on building the deck you’ve always wanted!
