After much deliberation, Justine and I have decided that rather than pave or install a deck at our rear Al-Fresco, we’ll be spraying or polishing the concrete instead.
In the display home, the Porter Davis Kensington 24 looks stunning with Decking, but it won’t suit our back yard, and given the BBQ is already at the perfect height for me (I am a tall guy!) I don’t want to raise the footing any higher.
Justine’s dad John is also creating a step for the rear-french doors so the step outside from the house isn’t as harsh, as we find people have trouble stepping out of the house down to an unexpected drop.
I’ve seen some good examples of sprayed or polished concrete, and I think this will give the area a well-finished look, and will almost complete our back-yard project, although I’m assessing an outdoor fireplace of some variety, and postponing the outdoor gas BBQ being connected to natural gas for the time being.
Connecting the BBQ is impractical at this time of year, and quite expensive. The location of the outdoor gas point installed by Porter Davis is in a highly inconvenient spot, removing any cost-benefit of having it installed during construction.
The cost of the step and concrete spray is under $500, and will look stunning when finished.
That’s compared to a minimum of $2,000 for Decking, and a minimum of approximately $800 just for concrete or sand-stone pavers, before labour.
I will post photos of the area in a few weeks once it’s all completed.
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