November 2022 deck replacement by Upper Dauphin Vinyl Products – December 9, 2022
Replacing a deck or contemplating a new one?
Here are 3 steps to make your project easier than it was for us.
First, the project: replace a second-story 13’x32’ thirty-year-old pressure-treated pine deck (built upon the concrete-embedded metal posts from an earlier 1970s redwood deck) and its staircase and catwalk, with composite while doing no harm to a treasured black walnut tree.
Back then, composite was much more expensive than wood; now price-competitive. Composite uses recycled plastics (nice!); looks great (more colors, minimal shrinkage, no raised screws and rotting wood); is easier to maintain (no annual pressure-washing and biannual sealing); and if installed properly, should long outlast any wooden deck.
STEP 1: Contact a lot of contractors. From Big Box outlets to one-man operations who all say they do decks, we consulted with nearly a dozen businesses getting quotations that took many hours over months. Most were for a simple, straightforward replacement: deck boards and a fence railing. Two wanted to use the existing 2”x8” (30 years old) joists and metal posts (50 years old); or replace the stairs with a design that didn’t (as we discovered) meet code; or ask for 30% down payment without providing a detailed spec’d plan. With one exception, all estimators replied on Trex composite. Nothing quite felt right.
STEP 2: Be prepared for sticker shock! Estimates ranged from mid-$20K (50% above our guesstimate) to over $50K (4x what we paid for a stainless steel DeLorean). Yikes. Then we did one last Google search and found UDVP…
STEP 3: Eliminate Step 1 entirely and minimize Step 2 by contacting Upper Dauphin Vinyl Products. Why? Because you will likely get – as we did – the best bang-for-your-dollar with no hassle, chagrin and trepidation.
UDVP’s estimator, Benjamin, is the upmost professional, offering many options and open to every request and question. Detailed measurements and specifications? Code-compliant construction? Picture-framing? Cocktail rail? Upgrading (our choices) to Timbertech brand over Trex and opting for exotic cable railing over a basic post fence? Assuring that his crew would not damage the black walnut tree that is a centerpiece of the deck’s placement? Making us feel like he and his company really cared about the quality of UDVP’s work and our satisfaction with it? All there.
UDVP owner Vernon returned emails and phone calls quickly, keeping us fully “in the loop” when a misunderstanding about Code policy inadvertently delayed the project. Still, he guaranteed to squeeze in our job. To quote the Codes officer: “I never have a problem with Upper Dauphin!” Nor do we.
Bottom line: UDVP built us a lot of deck – complete post replacement upon titanium-infused foundation plates, new 6”x6” posts and 2”x10” joists, 13’x33’ area, picture-framing, cocktail rail, fancy cable fencing, catwalk and step-down platform to an under-deck patio, plus craftsmanship equal to everything this perfectionist would demand of himself (if we had the skills and tools to do the work) – for a price at the low end of estimates for a rudimentary “basic” replacement. And to quote the spouse: “I love it! I love it! I love it!”
Considering a new or replacement deck? Take our recommendation to heart: UDVP can, and will, deliver it. Full stop. Just know they are really busy – the best contractors always are.
