Building Deck & DIY Platform for a Grill
BBQ Basics: Techniques You Need to Know

Grilling Tips

Weber charcoal grills and gas barbecues give you great grilled results every time because they are designed to give you ultimate control of your grilling temperature and cooking method. Here we explain the secret to great grilling.

Grilling Tips
Direct Method

The Direct Method is similar to broiling. Food is cooked directly over the heat source. For even cooking, food should be turned once halfway through the grilling time. Use the Direct method for foods that take less than 25 minutes to cook: like steaks, chops, kabobs, sausages and vegetables. Direct cooking is also necessary to sear meats. Searing creates that wonderful crisp, caramelized texture where the food hits the grate. It also adds nice grill marks and flavour to the entire food surface. Steaks, chops, chicken pieces, and larger cuts of meat all benefit from searing.

Grilling Tips
Indirect Method

The Indirect Method is similar to roasting, but with the added benefits of that grilled texture, flavour, and appearance you can't get from an oven. Heat rises, reflects off the lid and inside surfaces of the grill, and slowly cooks the food evenly on all sides. The circulating heat works much like a convection oven, so there's no need to turn the food. Use the Indirect Method for foods that require 25 minutes or more of grilling time or for foods that are so delicate that direct exposure to the heat source would dry them out or scorch them.

Grilling safety requires placing your grill on a flat, level surface that remains free of combustible materials that could catch fire should you experience grill flare-ups or your fire produces sparks.
Building a simple deck for your grill can provide a safe location to cook outdoors without worry. Choose from several different decking materials to build a deck that fits your style and level of building experience.
Regardless of which simple deck style you choose to use for your grill, you must prepare the ground beneath the area. You may need to level the surface if you intend to install the deck on the ground rather than install a raised deck.
You can find a variety of snap together decking tiles to use when building a simple grilling deck. These tiles are made from different hardwood and composite materials, such as teak, eucalyptus, recycled woods and recycled plastics.
All aspects you need to remember when thinking about the addition are deciding on the platform and the scale, as well as what you will use it for. While several decks have footings, does that mean that footings are needed for each and every form of deck? Home remodeling contractor in Westhampton, NY shared this importance about deck footings.
They are a significant component during deck construction for those who don't know what footings are because they provide the base that will support your deck. Large decks attached to the house should always have footings so they act to distribute the heavy load of the deck over a large surface of the soil from the surface of a support post so that the ground can support it adequately.
They don't need any kind of footing when it comes to floating decks, which are decks that are designed very low to the ground. You can either use tiny blocks and planks of concrete, or you can use a post set into a pre-formed hole.
The drainage of water under the deck, as well as holding the timber away from the ground, stabilizing the construction and keeping the air flowing under the deck are other explanations for constructing your deck over a concrete base. In general, whether it is higher than your waist or greater than 100 square feet, a deck base is typically used. After a few years, the footings guarantee that the deck will not slip, tip or rot away.
Putting a wooden deck surface over a concrete slab would make it possible for the deck to remain secure without footings being used. You'll want to insert sleepers, which are bits of pressure-treated timber, into the concrete when doing this so that the deck has something to stick to. This approach can also be combined with the gravel one where the wood sleepers are laid on the gravel (a layer of sand must be below it), which will provide additional drainage. Your deck can be completed quickly by nailing them to the deck.
Although ground anchored spikes are widely used for fence posts, some of them are an ideal choice for your deck foundation using modified load plates. These spikes are very cheap, like the deck blocks, and they prove more lateral strength than the block footing of the deck. It takes either a sledgehammer or a jackhammer to mount the spikes, so it's safer to let a professional do it so that you don't risk bending or damaging them. Having to call anyone in can seem like a hassle, but the strength of your deck foundation is significant, and this is a great choice to consider.
An extremely simple alternative that is suitable for these types of decks is ground screw and anchor footings. The installation is incredibly simple, and kickbacks will never be encountered. They can quickly be reversed and moved somewhere else if you strike a rock or something solid along the way. Whatever you decide to pick for your deck, just note that you can choose from many alternatives out there.