Openings, decks and shade in Rolling Hills, Los Angeles County
Decks, Ledgers and Glass Doors in Rolling Hills
Palmcrest Contractors builds Rolling Hills decks on flashed ledgers with stainless hangers, then widens the family room door that opens onto the boards.
For Palmcrest, the joint that matters most on a Rolling Hills house is the ledger, the board where a deck hangs off the wall below a wide glass door. Everything you see depends on it: the step out from the family room, the level of the boards, the posts of any shade roof. Where the lot sits near the water, damp air and mineral film work on that joint first, so we detail it before choosing a single plank.
Detailing the ledger
Before the ledger goes up, the siding or stucco is cut back and a self-adhered membrane is lapped onto the sheathing. The ledger is then lagged or through-bolted to the house framing at the spacing the engineer sets, with spacers or a drainage profile so moisture can escape behind it. A metal cap flashing tucks under the wall finish above and laps over the ledger face. Hot-dipped galvanized or stainless hangers and screws last far longer in moist, mineral laden air than plain zinc. Joist tops get butyl tape, which seals each fastener hole where the decking lands.
The door and the shade above the boards
With a sound ledger in place, the door above it can grow. Cutting that wall wider brings an engineered header and posts carried down to footings, and the sill sits in a sloped pan so wind-driven rain weeps out toward the deck. Fiberglass frames and stainless rollers keep a big slider gliding in moist air. A louvered or solid cover over part of the deck softens the light reaching the family room, and its posts stand on their own footings with uplift connectors. The office that issues permits for Rolling Hills reviews the drawings, and an inspector sees the framing before boards cover it.
What we build in Rolling Hills
Every service below is available here, from a wider opening at the back of the house to a full remodel.
Open up your house in Rolling Hills
Tell us which wall, room or yard you have in mind, and we will arrange a measure.