- Paving slabs – old or cheap ones are fine
- Timber for the frame and legs
- Type 1 MOT hardcore
- Mark out the area as we explain in ‘How to lay decking’. Then, dig to 200mm below where you want to surface of the decking to be.
- Add a 50mm layer of hardcore and make sure it’s compact.
- Build the decking sub-frame as we describe in ‘How to build a deck frame’.
- Lay out paving slabs along the edges and in the centre of the area. This will help to spread the weight of the decking.
- Set the decking frame on the slabs, checking for high or low points and adding off-cuts of timber where needed. Don’t forget to sand and seal these off-cuts with decking preservative.
- Add your joists and then the deck boards, leaving the recommended gaps of expansion of between 5-8mm.