Artisan Outdoor Craftsman specializes in custom deck design and construction. We focus every day on providing the best outdoor living construction and design services in Central Indiana. This includes wood decks, composite decks, pergolas, pavilions, pool houses, and more.
We feel our premiere design services and quality work provide a distinct difference when we collaborate with you to create an outdoor living space that is not only functional but beautiful, too.
“Craftsman” is in our name for a reason: We pride ourselves on delivering high-quality craftsmanship with every project. We are a TrexPro Platinum Contractor, so you can be confident in our quality of work and materials, as well as our attention to detail.
We can create your dream backyard when we design your deck and the rest of your outdoor landscape, adding pergolas, arbors, pool houses, outdoor kitchens, or whatever your vision entails.
The Artisan Outdoor Craftsman Design Process
At Artisan Outdoor Craftsman, we take pride in is our custom deck design process. We make sure that we think through the entire process of functionality and what you’re actually wanting to use your space for, and make sure it fits you properly.
A deck and its accessories are an extension of your home and your personality. But, before we design your deck, we want to know how you plan to use it.
We firmly believe design follows function. So, we will talk to you a lot about how you plan to use your deck and what you want to do with it. The function of the structure will play a role in the final design.
How Artisan Outdoor Craftsman’s Custom Decks Differ from Others
We want to protect your investment. Just like the foundation of your home is important, so, too, is your deck’s foundation.
Protecting Your Deck’s Foundation
What we do differently is that we install a 6-by-6 solid concrete reinforced column, called a Perma-Column.
This column goes 4 feet into the ground, past the frost level. Then, wood timbers attach to the top of the Perma-Colum, protecting it from the freeze-thaw cycle. This method also prohibits moisture wicking up and rotting the post long-term because the wood posts are not buried in the ground.
Maximizing Structural Stability
We also consider your beams, and they’re being set on top of your post not lagged to the side. This means we do not have to rely on the lags of your deck for your structural stability.
We also consider all the blocking necessary for your handrails, break boards, and any other structures that you may have on top of your deck.
Attention to Details
We use a hidden fastener system. These are clips that go between two deck boards so you do not see any of the screw heads throughout your deck.
We make sure that we have the proper flashing that may be needed around the perimeter of your deck.
Speaking of the perimeter, when we design a custom deck, we do what is called picture framing of the deck. We use perimeter boards that wrap your entire deck so nobody sees the open-end cuts of the deck boards. This makes the deck look much better and it helps with the longevity of your deck as well.
We also use break boards. This means we don’t attach deck boards end-to-end. Instead, we run a board perpendicular to the deck boards. This allows for a nicer finish, and it prevents the ends from popping up over time, which creates long-term maintenance issues.
Ensuring Your Warranty is Intact
Another thing that sets Artisan Outdoor Craftsman apart from other deck builders is we use a three-quarter inch overhang on the picture frame board to ensure the warranty of your facia board that goes around and hides all of your framing is still intact.
With that facia board, we hide all of the fascia screws with the same color plugs that your Trex decking comes in. This provides a nice clean perimeter look.
When it comes to your railing, we like the surface mount these as much as possible. We recommend a powder-coated aluminum rail, but we have other railing options available.
Under Deck Systems
Now your project might be one of those that we install an under deck system, which is a dry space underneath your deck for more usable space. We use an EPDM rubber commercial-grade drainage system with commercial-grade seam tape over each joist and perimeter rim joist.
One main thing that we make sure we always do is to flash up against your house so you do not have any water leaks between your house and your rim joist for future leaks.
The most important thing that we do throughout this entire custom deck design process is a hose test. We make sure that before anything gets covered up underneath or on top that we are leak-free throughout your entire system.
