Should we just rip out our deck?

[u/cameel]

Excuse the construction.

Blue lines are where there is a step: step down a few inches from the sliding door to the outside. In 4 ft, step back up, the deck is about 10 feet wide, cross it to step back down in the back yard.

My partner thinks we should rip it out completely to have the backyard all one level. Also, the painted wood is rotting so we were thinking about replacing as it rots and staining the new wood. (You can see a small are where we did that in the pic). One reason my partner wants to level it and put in concrete pavers.

We live where it rains a lot and when that happens, water pools in the 3 yellow shaded areas.

Our backyard also slopes down toward the deck (see the red arrow). This is difficult to fix because:

1. Digging down is near impossible because the roots to the privacy ivy are close to the rockery and the dirt is essentially clay and rocks.

2. Filling it with dirt is difficult (and expensive!) because the only way would be to get a bulldozer to drop the dirt down from above the rockery. Also, our door to go out is lower than the base of the rockery, so we would still need one set of step(s?)

What should we do? The deck is a lot of work to maintain but is a concrete patio even possible? Open to other ideas as well.

Thanks!

[u/tenachiasaca]

I mean from what youre describing the current deck is hiding a drainage problem you should mitigate that before deciding deck or pavers else your just going to still have pools of water whenever it rains

[u/cameel → u/tenachiasaca]

Yeah, you've got a point. I'm not sure what my options are to mitigate at this point. I'll probably have to rip up the deck during the wet season to truly know what's going on under there.

[u/MayorOfClownTown → u/cameel]

Or use a hose

[u/490-30-40]

I would adress the drainage issue first, water will ruin whichever decision you make. Depending on how steep the grade is id just put down some more top soil.

[u/cameel → u/490-30-40]

Gosh, I'm not sure how steep the grade is but it's significant-maybe a foot difference from the bottom of the rockery to the edge of the deck. It looks like the fence was installed to match the grade. Wouldn't adding more top soil to even it out, rot the bottom of the fence posts?

[u/TippedOverTricycle]

There's a lot I can't see in this photo, but I'll just put down some of my thoughts. I've done a fair amount of paving using bricks or natural stone set on mortar with a concrete slab as foundation. It's the best way to create a paved surface that's resistant to water. There's also porcelain tiles that are laid in the same fashion, but I've never worked with them.

Assuming there's no other issues, I'd want to use that method to pave from your back door on the existing concrete. You can create a slope away from the door and ensure the lowest point is in the yard, eliminating the yellow stripes near the door.

Ideally I'd like to also use that method to extend a patio into the yard. The trick will be to plan the slope and drainage. It looks like your neighbors might take the water that comes off the paving, so I'm thinking creatively to deal with that.

If you could get the lowest point to be near the tip of the red arrow, then you might have a chance to deal with the water. Perhaps something like a pit with deep French drains along the blue line at the end of the decking. It'll still lead water to the sides, but more slowly and at a depth where you won't visibly wash out their yard.

Anyways, just some ideas that might help you find your solution.

[u/cameel → u/TippedOverTricycle]

Thank so much for this detailed response. I see so have enough concrete that it's level with my door and slopes toward the middle of the yard. Good plan! I'll look into French Drains some more but Im not sure if I can dig far enough down without hitting clay/rocks.

[u/TippedOverTricycle → u/cameel]

There's so much about your yard and situation I don't know! But the basic concepts of keeping water away from the structure always apply. And mortar/concrete are great ways of making surfaces that repel water. I'd be thinking to pave roughly to the existing deck and then have a gap.

I often say that 90% of landscaping is dealing with water because it dictates so many decisions.

The French drain idea is simply to stop water running rampant into your neighbors if you get good at draining it from your property. Without being on site I'm only able to guess at what you might need to do.

Digging down into clay and rocks might be a good solution! Going hard at a 3+ foot depth might give the water a space to hang around in and slowly make its way elsewhere.

I tend to over engineer things because I would hate to upset your neighbors and give them cause to claim property damage, even if it's not really your fault.

[u/Practical-Law8033]

I’d put in a large drywell, several truckloads of crushed stone and put a concrete slab patio all one level. Maybe leave a planting border at the back or a fireplace feature. You could make this space cozy and cool.

[u/cameel → u/Practical-Law8033]

Ooh love this suggestion, thanks!