Julie Young
Richmond Times-Dispatch

A silver anniversary is not a happy occasion for a wood deck.

Twenty-five years of exposure to sun, rain, snow, temperature fluctuations, foot traffic and Chesterfield County’s notoriously shifty soils had left Mike and Raylene Harton’s deck in need of serious renovation or replacement.

“Since we rarely used the deck except for grilling — we spent most of our time in the attached screened porch — the deck was expendable,” Mike Harton said.

Raylene Harton suggested a patio.

Last fall, the couple rolled up their sleeves and decided to tackle the job themselves. “I guess you could say we’re do-it-yourselfers,” Mike Harton said. “We’ve done some light remodeling, and I installed our in-ground irrigation system.”

Demolishing the wraparound deck took three days, including three trips to the dump. With the help of a borrowed tractor and son Cory, who volunteered as its operator, they removed the rock, plastic vapor barrier and dirt beneath the deck in one day.

Winter rolled around, and the project was put on hold. In early spring, the Hartons designed the patio’s footprint — an arch shape with a herringbone brick pattern. They finished digging out the space and began preparing the base, spreading 7 tons of crusher run (ground stone) and 2 tons of sand — “all by hand, thank you,” he said.

“The Internet showed how to put down plastic pipe before adding the sand, then how to screed [a leveling device] the sand level,” he said. “I rented a compactor, and it’s amazing how the brick just settles in level.”

Another son, Shannon, helped with laying the brick, dusting in the mortar, leveling and landscaping — a two-week project. “I was careful to get a good slope away from the house,” Harton said. “Honestly, I’ve got one low spot near the edge where water puddles a little, but it dries up pretty quickly.”

The cost — $2,500. “We figure we saved at least that much doing it ourselves,” Harton said.

Every morning, the Hartons have coffee on their new patio. “We eat dinner there most every evening, long as the skeeters hold off,” he said.