To sip a summer cocktail, have a barbecue or simply enjoy the outdoors with a good book in hand, there is nothing better than a terrace. In a house or an apartment, there are many construction possibilities, but it is necessary to "test the waters" to define the configuration of the latter and the materials to be provided. Discover these essential points before starting your project.
Various materials can constitute the raw material of your terrace:wood, composite, terracotta, tiles, granite... Each of them has its advantages and its disadvantages and the choice must be made judiciously according to the terrain, the climate, and the your aesthetic and practical expectations. Terracotta slabs, for example, are a porous material that must be protected with suitable products and reserved for hot regions. If you want something more "rustic" that requires minimal maintenance, natural stone (limestone, granite) or even some exotic woods - naturally rot-proof like teak - are ideal. Composite can, for its part, represent an interesting economic alternative:less expensive than wood but just as resistant, without splinters and easy to maintain, it can be installed quickly.
What about the pose? If you have opted for slabs or wooden slats, this will be done on concrete pads in the first case, or on joists in the other. The slats then attach directly to the joists without any special tools and, if they can be interlocked, the installation can be carried out without any problem in less than a day! An autoclave wooden deck (treated against insects and rotting) can be installed quite simply on a concrete screed, hard ground covered with gravel or beaten earth.
On soft ground, the boards must absolutely be placed on studs, which make it possible to recover the irregularities of the ground and to preserve the wood from humidity. In the latter case, it is essential to provide a drainage system:beveled blades and a preliminary layer of gravel will help the flow of rainwater.
It is possible to install, with certain materials, the surface of your terrace in just a few hours:the gratings and the clip-on composite boards allow an "express" installation. Gratings are small slabs of wood or stone, easy to handle and which can be laid with all systems – directly on the ground, on studs or on a concrete screed. The interlocking composite slats, fixed to each other by small fasteners, can be laid on most terrains with the addition of an expansion joint every 4 slats in the event of loose soil or humidity.
