Decking seamlessly linking to internal floor

[Tony K]

Hi,

I plan this sort of thing:

 

 

The inside of my place will have timber floor as a finish, made using engineered or real wood flooring stuck down on self adhesive underlay. This in turn will sit on a vapour barrier, on top of the screed. The flooring will have T&G. 

 

The question is, how to achieve the external deck in such a way as to make it look like a continuation of the internal surface?

I surely can't use the internal flooring outside? For one thing it may warp, for another the T&G will prevent rainwater passing through it to the ground below.

It looks like the example photo may have just plumped for external deckboards as close is colour and size as possible to the internal floor, and used really tight little gaps between them for drainage, though I can't be sure.

 

Is there a trick to outside decks that continue the inside timber floor that anyone knows of?

 

Ta

 

[willbish]

If you want a level threshold use decking pedestals externally. The water flows between the boards and away.

 

https://www.externalworksindex.co.uk/entry/140142/Buzon-UK/Decking-support-pedestals-for-apartment-terraces/#

 

 

[Russell griffiths]

I think you have got the answer, nothing too complicated you just need to get your levels right

 

the hardest thing will be getting good decking to match your floor, that photo looks like hardwood, expect to pay big dollars for that. 

[Tony K]

17 minutes ago, willbish said:

If you want a level threshold use decking pedestals externally. The water flows between the boards and away.

 

https://www.externalworksindex.co.uk/entry/140142/Buzon-UK/Decking-support-pedestals-for-apartment-terraces/#

 

 

 

Thanks. Apart from not seeing nails, does this have any other advantages over using normal timber joists?

[willbish]

You could use a timber substructure but it would rot eventually especially the uprights which would be stood on wet ground

[Tony K]

13 minutes ago, Russell griffiths said:

I think you have got the answer, nothing too complicated you just need to get your levels right

 

the hardest thing will be getting good decking to match your floor, that photo looks like hardwood, expect to pay big dollars for that. 

 

It's not a massive deck. I wonder if my best bet is getting enough timber flooring to do both the inside and the deck, then trimming the longest tongues off of the boards so I can use them externally with little gaps between them, like normal deck boards (albeit expensive ones)?

[Bitpipe]

I did similar with stone outside and resin inside. Getting the sliding door rail flush with the ffl required some careful thought and attention during design and build.

[Tony K]

5 minutes ago, willbish said:

You could use a timber substructure but it would rot eventually especially the uprights which would be stood on wet ground

 

I'd put the joists on blocks anyway, there will be a bit of a void under the deck (70cm or so) which I will use for storage via a hatch. 

[Mr Punter]

Easy to do and very effective with a wood effect porcelain tile but far more tricky with timber, where it will fade to grey when exposed.

[Mr Punter]

This kind of thing but the legs are extra

 

[Tony K]

54 minutes ago, Mr Punter said:

This kind of thing but the legs are extra

 

 

That's very interesting. I hadn't even thought of that kind of thing. What are 'legs' in this context please?

[Mr Punter]

2 minutes ago, Tony K said:

What are 'legs' in this context please?

 

Umm the pair of fleshy looking things under the coffee table...

[Tony K]

3 minutes ago, Mr Punter said:

 

Umm the pair of fleshy looking things under the coffee table...

 

Ha!

I thought it was some technical term, a bit of kit required to install the tiles!

 

I'm allowed to vote and drive a car you know.....

[Russell griffiths]

I didn’t mean use your internal flooring outside 

im sure there are not many wooden floors you can buy that can be used externally. 

 

it Would need to be solid timber for outdoor use. 

[Bitpipe]

11 hours ago, Mr Punter said:

This kind of thing but the legs are extra

 

 

On closer inspection that looks like a wood effect ceramic tile - which would be much more practical given it has a consistent thickness and should be usable outside.

 

 

[Tony K]

3 hours ago, Bitpipe said:

 

On closer inspection that looks like a wood effect ceramic tile - which would be much more practical given it has a consistent thickness and should be usable outside.

 

 

 

It is. @Mr Punter has confirmed, and looking at his photo I'm certainly interested in using that method.

In my project the outside floor area was going to be a raised timber deck with a 700mm storage void underneath, accessed through this kind of thing:

 

 

If I use the tiles however I'd presume I would be better with a solid patio base. That's fine, I'll do that and create voids, accessed with these kind of manhole covers into which tiles can be set:

 

 

[Mr Punter]

The photo was just copied from a website https://www.marazzitile.co.uk/collections/treverkheart/ but I have not used them

 

On our roof terrace we have some 20mm thick porcelain on adjustable feet but not wood effect.  Allows the water to drain away.

 

 

 

[Tony K]

2 hours ago, Mr Punter said:

The photo was just copied from a website https://www.marazzitile.co.uk/collections/treverkheart/ but I have not used them

 

On our roof terrace we have some 20mm thick porcelain on adjustable feet but not wood effect.  Allows the water to drain away.

 

 

I imagine the wood effect ones would not lend themselves to sitting on adjustable feet, and would instead have to have a very slight run away from the property threshold.