Deck Replacement in Standish, Maine

Many Standish decks were built during the town's growth from the 1970s through the 1990s, and pressure-treated decks from that era are reaching the end of their life. The warning signs are soft boards, posts set directly on the ground or on shallow blocks, railings that flex, and a ledger nailed to the house without flashing, which lets water rot the rim joist behind it. On lake camps, decks also take seasonal moisture and snow load year after year.

Replacing a deck from the footings up fixes those problems instead of hiding them. The old structure comes off, the ledger connection is rebuilt with flashing and proper fasteners, footings go below the frost line, and the new framing, railings and stairs are built to current code. A replacement goes through Standish Code Enforcement, with footing and framing inspections, and on lots near Sebago, Watchic, the Saco or the Presumpscot, shoreland zoning rules may limit enlarging a deck that already sits near the water. Cardinal builds full replacements in composite, PVC, pressure-treated or cedar, and does not do deck repairs, patching or staining.

Census estimates put Standish at about 4,900 housing units, with a median year built of 1980. Roughly 17 percent of homes date from before 1940 and about 28 percent from before 1960, while about 22 percent went up between 1960 and 1979 and roughly 23 percent since 2000. This is a town of owners living in detached houses: about 91 percent of occupied homes are owner-occupied and about 86 percent of all units are single-family detached. Around 950 units are held for seasonal use, many of them camps and cottages on Sebago Lake, Watchic Lake and the town's smaller ponds. The town's own 2006 comprehensive plan notes that many seasonal owners come from out of state and use their places on weekends all year. The oldest houses cluster along Route 25 at Standish Corner, and the town allows individual mobile and manufactured homes on house lots.

Building permits in Standish come from the Code Enforcement office at the Municipal Building on Northeast Road. The town requires footing, framing and final inspections, and the permit holder must call for each one; permits run two years. For bedroom windows, the office lists the residential code's egress rules: a sill no higher than 44 inches and at least 5.7 square feet of net clear opening. Lots within 250 feet of Sebago, Watchic, the Saco or the Presumpscot fall under shoreland zoning, which has its own application through the Planning office. Standish Corner has a local historic district, so ask the Planning office first.

Standish is inland, but more than a quarter of its area is water, and that shapes how houses weather. Lakefront homes on Sebago take a long open fetch of wind across the water, and the lake region is known for sudden weather changes in every season. Away from the shore, homes sit in woods and fields where shade keeps north walls and roofs damp. Winters are cold: at the Portland Jetport, the nearest long-record station, snowfall averages about 69 inches a year on 1991 to 2020 normals, and January lows average near 16 degrees. Repeated freeze-thaw cycles work water into siding joints, deck boards and roof edges, and heavy wet snow on shallow porch and camp roofs is a recurring load every winter here.

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 Standish exterior services overview, or see every town on our Cumberland County service areas page.