Deck Replacement in Brunswick, Maine

Many decks added to Brunswick houses in the 1980s and 1990s were built with pressure-treated lumber, nailed ledgers and shallow footings, and after thirty-plus Maine winters the problems add up: ledger boards that were never flashed and have rotted the rim joist behind them, posts sitting on blocks that heave in spring, and railings too low or too open for today's code. Surface fixes cannot correct those structural issues, which is why a full replacement from the footings up is often the only sound answer.

Cardinal does complete deck replacements, not repairs or staining. The old deck comes off, the house's rim and sheathing are inspected where the ledger attached, and the new deck is built on new footings below frost with a properly flashed and bolted ledger or a freestanding frame. The replacement is reviewed as new work under the 2021 residential code Maine adopted in 2025, so it goes through a building permit with the Planning and Codes Office. On waterfront lots within 250 feet of tidal water, shoreland rules also apply, and enlarging the footprint can trigger limits, so the plan should be checked with the town early.

Census estimates put Brunswick at roughly 9,500 housing units with a median year built of about 1982, so the typical house here is younger than in Portland but the range is wide. Close to one in five units dates from before 1940 and about 31 percent from before 1960, including the houses of the downtown and the Bowdoin neighborhoods. Another 16 percent or so went up between 1960 and 1979, and roughly 27 percent is from 2000 or later. About 71 percent of occupied homes are owner-occupied, and only about half of all units are single-family detached houses, which reflects the apartments, student housing and multi-unit buildings near the college and Maine Street. Seasonal homes are a small share, about 165 units. Expect clapboard Federal, Greek Revival and Colonial Revival houses in the historic districts, and vinyl-clad capes, ranches and colonials farther out.

Building permits in Brunswick go through the Planning and Codes Office at Town Hall, 85 Union Street, on paper or through the online permit portal. Maine's building code moved to the 2021 International Residential Code on April 7, 2025. Much of the historic core lies in the Village Review Overlay District, where the Village Review Board issues a Certificate of Appropriateness for alterations; the town notes that replacing windows, facades and ornamentation with identical styles and materials is not subject to review, and staff can approve minor work not visible from a public way. Waterfront lots within 250 feet of tidal areas also fall under shoreland zoning.

Brunswick is coastal on its south side and inland on its north. Mere Point, Maquoit Bay and Middle Bay put houses in the path of salt air and wind off Casco Bay, while neighborhoods near the Androscoggin and out toward Durham feel more like an inland town. The Portland Jetport, the nearest long-record National Weather Service station, averaged about 69 inches of snow a year over the 1991 to 2020 normals, and Brunswick's own climate table shows roughly 51 inches of total precipitation. Winters swing above and below freezing many times, which works water into clapboard joints, cracked caulk and shingle edges. Nor'easters drive rain sideways into the east and north walls, and the shore points take the hardest wind.

When an old deck is soft, wobbly or pulling away from the house, a full replacement is treated as a new build: the old deck comes off, the footings and framing are built new, and the new surface, railings and stairs go on. That is the only way to deal with hidden rot at the ledger and frost-heaved footings, and it is how Cardinal Exteriors approaches it. It lets you change the size, shape and material at the same time.

• The existing deck is removed and disposed of, and the house wall behind the ledger is inspected.
• Rotted rim or sheathing behind the old ledger is repaired and the wall is flashed.
• New footings go below frost; new posts, beams and joists are framed.
• New decking, railings, stairs and landings are installed in the material you choose.
• Permits are pulled where required and the site is cleaned up.

• Soft or spongy boards and joists
• A ledger pulling away from the house or rust-streaked fasteners
• Posts that have heaved, leaned or rotted at the base
• Railings that wobble or are lower than today's code expects

• Removal and disposal of the old deck
• Repairs to the house wall behind the ledger
• New size, height and shape
• Decking and railing materials
• Footing type and site access

Every job is priced from a free on-site visit. Typical ranges for the trade are on our deck building page, and the details of this service are on the deck replacement overview.

Back to the Brunswick exterior services overview, or see every town on our Cumberland County service areas page.