Decks & Patios in Burbank, CA
Decks and patios beside older Burbank houses, planned around old wiring, pipe and rim framing that only show once the wall is opened up.
Cloth-wrapped wire stapled along a rim joist, or a galvanized line clamped to it, changes what a Burbank deck can bolt to. A lag screw driven into that band can nick a cable or crush a pipe, so the first look comes from the crawlspace or the basement side, before any fastener is chosen. What turns up decides whether the deck hangs from the house or stands on its own posts.
When old wire has to move first
Wiring from the early days of electric service sometimes runs through the exact band of framing a ledger needs. If we find it, a licensed electrician reroutes or retires the run before anything is fastened there, and the wall gets patched and flashed once the cable is out of the way. Where the circuit has to stay put, the better answer is a frame that stands on its own posts and beams a short gap off the house. That adds footings and a beam to the scope, and the written quote shows the line so you can compare the two.
Pipe and sill surprises
Galvanized supply pipe rusts from the inside, and a hose bib that feeds through the rim band may be what keeps a corroded elbow from coming apart. We shut the line off, look at what is behind it, and replumb the short section if it is tired. The sill plate gets an awl test as well, because a soft one will not hold a bolt. A bad section is cut out and sistered before the deck goes on, which keeps the old house's bones sound under the new boards.
Decks & Patios in Burbank: common questions
Water gets turned away before a single bolt goes in. A peel-and-stick membrane laps up the sheathing, the ledger rides on spacers where the old siding is uneven, and a metal cap flashing slips under the course above. Fasteners are last. If the wall hides wire or pipe that has to stay, a free-standing frame skips the joint altogether.
Yes, when the structure under the trim is sound. Rot gathers at post bottoms, stair stringers and the first boards by the wall, and those can be cut out and spliced with matching stock. Columns, brackets and rails that are still straight get kept and refinished. Whatever cannot be saved is rebuilt to the same profile.
Most raised decks do, and the city's building department does the reviewing. Our office prepares the drawings and files them. A low platform at grade may skip the process, so the answer turns on height, size and whether the deck touches the house. We confirm which case applies at the walk-through.
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