deck vs patio

We have a back deck but it needs to be redone. Would you keep a deck or do a brick patio?

Re: deck vs patio

We had this same dilemma this spring because our house had an 8'x8' deck and it was a POS. We had some people come out and give us estimates for all different types of patios (brick, pavers, stamped concrete) and then we got pricing on a new deck.

We have a raised ranch so we decided to go with the bigger deck since we can just walk right out through the kitchen. If we went with the patio then we'd have to walk through the tiny deck and down to the patio or go down through the finished basement.

The pressure treated wood deck was almost 1/3 the price of stamped concrete.

What really sealed the deal for us was that we have a high water table in our backyard and I didn't want the patio to be all slippery from the moss.

Re: deck vs patio

i am a deck girl....one of the things i wish my house had was a wood deck...i like decks especially if the walk out is not ground level...plus a deck might be less expensive? i'm not sure....but they do require maintenance if you get real wood and a patio would be more maintenace free i think?...

Message edited 6/9/2011 12:46:08 PM.

Re: deck vs patio

I think a deck is a huge selling point (if one day you plan on selling). I know there is some upkeep with it, especially if you have wood. There is Trex material, but I believe it can be costly. I have a rather large wooden deck right off our kitchen. It is weathered a bit, and will need to be replaced one day, but I love it. It was one of the things we kept talking about after we first saw the house.

Re: deck vs patio

Patio! So much nicer IMO!

Re: deck vs patio

Patio for sure unless is a high ranch.

Re: deck vs patio

Re: deck vs patio

We're in the same boat as you.
We have a deck (will when we move next week) and I'm not crazy about it.
I think next year I'm taking it down and doing steps with pavers. 1) because the deck is HUGE and I want more grass area and 2) less maintenance.
So I say patio.

And now I have a qustionsabout taking a deck down.
If I contact the town will that reduce my taxes at all? I know adding a deck increases taxes, I'm hoping they will reduce them once it's gone.

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I'm a patio girl. IMO I feel like when people have decks, they dont adventure out into the rest of the yard as much, everyone just stays congregated in that one area. Plus they're more maintenance.

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Re: deck vs patio

I say Patio, if you do a deck PLEASE don't build one that is high enough to see over your neighbors property.

My neighbors have one that is about 2 feet away from my fence and look sover into my yard and I feel like we share yards when we are both back there. I feel like I have to change sometimes to go into my backyard b/c they can see over the fence etc...

Not to mention they are super friendly and feel the need to have 30 min long conversations when we are eating back there or just relaxing, it's super annoying.

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Re: deck vs patio

We just got the trex deck installed and couldn't be happier. It looks amazing. We went with a lighter trim around the perimeter and darker in the center. We got the lights on each post. This is what it looks like

Re: deck vs patio

We have a back deck that came with the house, and I love it.

We don't have a dining room (just a large kitchen) and this is where we spend most of our time in the summer.

It's great when we have people over, too.

DH will do a back patio as well, just not in the budget right now.

I do also spend a lot of time under a large shade tree in our backyard reading in the summertime too, so outside of eating, do use the rest of my yard.

Re: deck vs patio

We have a 16 x 33 pressure treated deck that has to be power washed and sealed every few years - I just finished sealing it a few weeks ago and if I had to do it all over again - I would of spent the extra money for a TREX deck which is maintenance free or a Brick patio

Re: deck vs patio

We just knocked down our pressure treated wood deck (20+ years old) and are replacing it with Trex.

The maintenance was just too much. Previous homeowners never took care of it so splintering was bad. We tried 'fixing' it a few times but it never got better. 3 years in a row we stained, sealed, etc. So we are just biting the bullet and converting to trex. Considering the amount we paid for wood maintenance and personal labor, the trex ROI should only be 5 years.

Getting ready for the 3rd home depot trip of the day.....

Re: deck vs patio

I don't know where you live and how close your neighbors are but we're in Nassau and our neighbors are close. At first DH and I wanted a deck. But we decided to go with a patio instead for more privacy. We have a 6' PVC fence around our entire yard and our pavers are being put in by Fernando tomorrow I guess it just depends on how much privacy you want. If our neighbors were further away we probably would have done a deck.

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Re: deck vs patio

We have a deck, but I'd like to have a patio, below the deck. Mary

Re: deck vs patio

Patio. 4 years ago when we bought the house, our deck needed to be replaced. we went with some handyman because he came in thousands cheaper for a 20 by 20 deck. we went with him and it was the biggest mistake ever. so much maintenence not to mention the deck is a POS. Next spring we will be demoing the deck and replacing with a multilevel patio. so much nicer