The Deck Building Process in St. Louis, MO

Most people have never hired a deck builder before, and the not-knowing is the worst part of it. So here is the whole thing, start to finish, including the slow parts and the messy parts. Nothing here is a surprise on purpose.

Step by step

1. The first phone call

10 minutes

You tell us roughly what you want and where you live. We tell you honestly whether we’re a fit and give you a very rough range so nobody wastes an afternoon. If your budget and the deck you’re describing are not in the same neighborhood, we’ll say so on the phone instead of after a site visit.

2. On-site visit and measure

About an hour, no charge

We measure the house, check the grade, look at door heights, find where the utilities and the downspouts run, and talk about how you actually plan to use the space. This is also when we spot the things that change the price — a walkout that’s higher than it looks, a bad slope, an existing deck that has to come off first.

3. Design and written estimate

A few days to a week

You get a real estimate with the material list spelled out, not a number on the back of a card. If you bought a 3D design from us, this is where you see the deck on your own house and start moving things around.

4. Contract and deposit

Same day you decide

Scope, materials, price, and payment schedule in writing before anybody orders anything. Read it. Ask about anything that isn’t clear.

5. Permit and HOA approval

1 to 4 weeks — and this is the slow one

We prepare and file the submittal. Then we wait on the municipality like everyone else. Some offices turn it around in a week; some take a month and come back with comments. If your subdivision has trustees, their approval often has to come first, and trustees meet on their own schedule, not yours. This is the single most common reason a deck starts later than the homeowner expected, and it is genuinely outside our control.

6. Material order and delivery

1 to 3 weeks, overlaps the permit

Standard pressure-treated and common composite lines are usually quick. Specialty colors, specific railing systems, and anything special-order can add weeks. If you picked something with a long lead time, we tell you at contract, not at delivery.

7. Footings and inspection

1 to 2 days of work, then a wait

We dig, set the footings below frost line, and stop. The inspector has to see the holes before concrete goes in. That inspection gets scheduled on the county’s calendar, not ours, and it can add a day or three.

8. Framing and framing inspection

3 to 5 days, then another wait

Posts, beams, joists, ledger, and flashing. Then we stop again for the framing inspection before anything gets covered up. Same deal — their calendar.

9. Decking, railing, and stairs

3 to 7 days

The part that looks like progress. This is where the deck stops being a frame and starts being a deck.

10. Final inspection and walkthrough

1 day

Inspector signs off. Then we walk the deck with you, top to bottom, and anything you’re not happy with goes on a list and gets fixed. We don’t consider the job done because we think it’s done.

11. Warranty

Ongoing

You get the manufacturer warranty on the material and our warranty on the workmanship, both in writing. If something moves, cracks, or squeaks in year two, you call us and we come back.

What actually slows jobs down

• Permit review. Covered above. It is the biggest variable in the whole schedule.
• Weather. Concrete does not go in the ground in a hard freeze or a downpour. A wet spring moves everybody’s start date, ours included.
• Inspector availability. Two mandatory stops in the middle of the build, both scheduled by the county.
• Changes mid-build. Deciding you want the stairs on the other side after the framing is up is expensive and it costs days. Cheap on a drawing, expensive in lumber. Make the changes at step 3.
• Special-order material. A railing system nobody stocks can hold up an otherwise finished deck.

What it looks like at your house

It is a construction site for a couple of weeks. Being straight with you about that:

• There will be a truck and a trailer, and usually a dumpster, taking up part of your driveway.
• Digging footings produces dirt. It goes somewhere until it gets hauled off.
• It is loud during the day. Saws, drills, and an impact driver.
• The grass in the work path takes a beating and usually needs to be reseeded. If that matters to you, tell us up front and we’ll plan around it.
• We clean up at the end of every day and run a magnet over the yard for screws and nails before we leave for good. Dogs and bare feet are exactly why.

What we need from you

• Access to the yard and a gate we can get through, or a heads-up if we can’t
• Dogs inside while the crew is working
• Somewhere to plug in
• A decision-maker who can answer a question the same day — small ones come up
• Your HOA or trustee contact if your subdivision requires approval

Where we work

Maryland Heights, St. Charles, O’Fallon, St. Peters, Ballwin, Chesterfield, Wentzville, Dardenne Prairie, Wildwood, Creve Coeur, and the rest of the St. Louis metro.