Deck Replacement in Kennebunkport, Maine

Census estimates put Kennebunkport's median home built around 1982, with about 13 percent of the housing predating 1940 and roughly 29 percent predating 1960, on a year-round population of well under 4,000 that swells considerably each summer. The town's defining houses are the early-1900s shingle-style cottages of the Cape Arundel Summer Colony, running from Chick's Creek toward Walker's Point, built as grand seasonal retreats rather than year-round homes. Cape Porpoise, the town's working fishing harbor, holds a more modest mix of older cottages and captain's houses, while Goose Rocks Beach and the town's inland areas add a range of newer, more ordinary coastal homes built through the second half of the 20th century.

Building permits in Kennebunkport go through the Planning and Development Department's Code Enforcement Office at Town Hall on Elm Street. With a population under Maine's 4,000-resident threshold, Kennebunkport is not required to enforce the statewide Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, though the plumbing and general permitting process still applies to every exterior job here. Because the whole town sits on the coast, the Kennebunkport shoreline falls under Maine's Mandatory Shoreland Zoning Act, and the town maintains a separate Flood Hazard Development Permit for construction in shoreland and flood-zone areas, plus added review inside the Cape Arundel Summer Colony Historic District.

Kennebunkport's whole coastline, from Cape Arundel to Cape Porpoise Harbor and Goose Rocks Beach, takes weather directly off the Atlantic: nor'easters bring storm surge and wind-driven rain, and salt air corrodes fasteners, flashing and metal roofing faster here than it does even a short distance inland. Winters bring the usual Maine freeze-thaw cycling, and the shingle-style summer cottages, many built with lighter framing meant for warm-weather use, need special attention to insulation and moisture control if an owner uses the house through a Maine winter. Coastal wind load also matters more here than in most of this service area, given how exposed Cape Arundel and Cape Porpoise are to open ocean.

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.

For a deeper walkthrough of materials, code details and photos, see our full Deck Replacement: When to Rebuild vs. Re-Deck guide.

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