Tuesday Delivery Day
Oh happy day! We got our delivery of decking materials yesterday about noon. I am super stoked to have it in the yard and ready for me to start building. I had placed the order over a month ago but due to miscommunication we did not get the order delivered until now. In reality it was for the better that there were delays since it allowed me the time and focus to finish planting the gardens. If I would have had the materials here I would have been far too tempted to work on the deck instead of planting.
The driver hauled everything in in one load and set it right next to where I will be building. Super handy to have it nice and close so I am not lugging 16ft and 12ft lengths all over the property.
A bit of unwrapping, cutting straps, and sliding the decking off the lumber got everything available and accessible. Thankfully everything is weather proof so I am not worried about it getting drenched with rain that is now starting to pound the farm.
The first thing I did was to pull out the remnants of the weed fabric I have and made sure that I will have enough. Which I will have EXACTLY the right amount after cutting and piecing it all together. I have to have the fabric down so I am not getting the grasses and weeds growing up under the deck. Last thing I need to be doing is trying to weedeat under the deck.
A quick raking of the area removed most of the larger sticks and rocks. This is my before building picture of the area. Soon to look so much different!
The most integral part of the whole build is the main support beam that attached to the upper deck supports. This is where all the joists will be attached to and needs to be strong, even, and level. I measure out 1 foot intervals and marked each. I took the joist hangers and bent each one into shape to better fit the lumber. 2 of the hangers I had to bend one leg of to fit over the end of the 2x6 so the end joists will sit flush to the end of the header.
A quick test set of a joist to see how long it will be and get an idea of where I will need to clear for the footings. I plant to lower the header board down an inch to leave a bit of room between the fascia board on the upper deck and the top of the lower deck boards. This will give us room to sweep stuff away and if need be I can use the compressor to blow the channel out.
With the big ass storm hitting now I had to adjust my last drenching of the bees forward one day. I was supposed to do it today but with it cooler and raining I didn't want to drown the bees, just drench them with syrup. Both hives are plugging along nicely.
The lower deck is going to be 12 feet deep which meant this maple tree needed to be removed. I can't have it growing bigger and hurting the deck. Initially I attempted to heft it out, then dig it out, then I brought out the big chain and drug it out with the car. That'll teach that tree to grow there!
Maple trees are pretty amazing things. This is a log that was cut in November of last year and is now putting off new growth from the side of it. Serious strong will to live it seems.
It was in the 70s yesterday so we went to the creek before dinner. HOLY BALLS the water is still icy and cold as it is snow melt from Mt. Spokane. Jax couldn't get enough of it and had a blast splash/biting at the water. The boys were split. J loved it and wanted to go pounding around the water while R was freezing. I could only spend a bit of time with my legs in the water before my toes started aching.
Now I sit and watch the doppler as the storm makes its way through. It'll hang around for about 2 hours then be gone but it will likely dump at least a 1/4 inch of rain. As usual we need the moisture in area to hopefully help stem the tides of wildfires. Also watching our new batch of mini mantis that hatched over night, they will get put outside once the weather has passed so they don't drown. Hopefully the first batch are snug under some leaves.
Fleming Family Farm
FLEMING FAMILY FARM, LLC
Sustainable & Organic Methods | Heirloom Produce
All images are original works of Fleming Family Farm unless otherwise notated and credited.
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