Levelling a Hillside Deck

I am building a deck on a hillside. How can I make my deck level?

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Nov 09, 2008
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Making a Hillside Deck Level
by: Editor - Rich Bergman

You will have to dig holes and put in proper footings for pouring concrete. This will require some excavation and be careful because it depends on how steep the slope is and also what kind of soil.

Some soils are inherently unstable when rain water builds up and saturates the soil.

Assuming your soils are good, pour your concrete and set in post anchors for the deck support posts. Once it has cured it is time to determine how high each suppport post should be. Likely they will all be different.

To do this you will have to set up a single post standing vertical and run a masonary line or another board from the ledger against the house where the deck will connect to the single post.

The top of the masonary line should be set at the height where the bottom surface of the beam that will sit on the support posts will be.

You should do some basic math and determine the height of the beam, the joists and the deck boards to know where you want the deck surface to mate up against the house and allow for a slight slope away from the house.

Keeping this slope in mind the masonary line should run out from the house and contact the single post. Mark this post.

Use this mark as the level point for each of the other deck posts. Measure up from the top surface of the post anchor on each footing to this level point on the single post.

Cut each deck suppport post accoring to each of these measurements.

Take your time and think this through by writing all of the measurements down on paper and use a sketch to help you out. You can only cut once, so measure twice.

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