Wednesday, Apr. 6, 2005

It’s time to deck-orate

When spring rolls around, home improvement projects tend to move to the great outdoors, where nice weather, ideal planting conditions and longer days offer infinite opportunities for exterior home enhancements.

The typical backyard deck is a perfect example of an often-overlooked place that offers a new frontier for homeowners who want to create an inviting outdoor living space.

As the season approaches, the design experts at Deckorators, Inc., are offering a wide variety of products and new ideas designed to help homeowners “deck-orate.”

“The backyard deck is no longer just a place to park the grill and a couple of lawn chairs,” explained Kelly Jones, president of Deckorators, Inc. “With the growing interest of homeowners in outdoor living environments, the traditional deck has become an important extension of the home’s living space and a great asset to the home itself.”

Giving deck space an updated, personal touch was the original goal of the Deckorators’ founder when his company launched its first product in the late 1990s.

Today the St. Louis-based manufacturer offers a large line of decorative deck balusters, centerpieces, post caps, finials and accessories and is known as an industry leader when it comes to new ideas for decks.

“Decks continue to be an incredibly popular selling point for both new and used homes,” said Terry Dempsey, Jr., general manager of DeckExpo, the deck building industry’s premier event, which attracted hundreds of deck builders to the Tampa Convention Center in February for a sneak peak at new design ideas, accessories and new décor for the deck builder and homeowner.

As a major player in the deck industry, Deckorators has developed a reputation for high quality, low maintenance aluminum balusters, which look like wrought iron, yet sell for a fraction of the cost.

Several different styles of balusters in as many as seven different colors each are available at hardware and home improvement stores (including Lowes) nationwide. The Deckorators products have won numerous awards for everything from ease of installation to innovation in design.

Don and Patricia Ward of Naperville, Ill. recently renovated the deck on their suburban home by replacing the two inch wide vertical wooden pickets that were originally used with Colonial-style aluminum balusters in a rich, black color.

“We spent a lot of time and effort making every room in our house a statement of who we are with paint and furnishings and all the customizations. And then one day we were sitting out on the deck where we actually spend a lot of time, and I started noticing that our deck was a cookie cutter of every other deck I could see. It bothered me, and so we started looking for options that would make that change.”

At just three years old, the Wards’ deck was in great shape structurally, so after a fresh power wash, they removed the wooden pickets along all three sides of the deck and stairway, and replaced them with new balusters.

“The reaction from our neighbors has been fun to see,” said Patricia. “Our deck looks so much better than the rest of them. Our neighbors have asked, and I’ve told them about the deck accessories that are out there, and we’re seeing more and more changes. The variety is really great. Different neighbors have different tastes, and we’re seeing some of everything. It makes all our homes more special.”.

For lakefront properties or other landscapes where sweeping views beg to be maximized, Deckorators recently introduced the industry’s first beveled glass baluster.

The four inch wide glass balusters are made of an ultra-strong safety glass and are available in Clear View, Autumn View and Dusk View tints. Installation on the glass balusters is as simple as all the other baluster products, and Jones said it’s definitely a fun project for the weekend do-it-yourselfer.

“The glass balusters are proving to be incredibly popular both with homeowners and deck builders, who recognize the opportunity to construct something really special,” said Jones.

To make it easy to envision your renovated deck, Deckorators has added a version of DeckTools software to their website (www.deckorators.com). The software allows homeowners to experiment with different deck baluster designs -- from simple classic styles to intricate, architectural styles, like the outward curves of Baroque.

No matter what your style, new options for renovating your existing deck are out there. So consider your next outdoor project a chance to express yourself and deck-orate your deck.

— ARA Content