November, 2008

Selling the Re-Deck Project

New deck projects are nice, but there’s money to be made replacing old decks, too.

By Bob Heidenreich

When you’re selling a re-decking project, whether that be replacement or simply repair, there are several very important factors to consider:

First, you always have to inspect the substructure of the existing deck. You need to decide, “do these people really need a whole new deck, or can we just re-deck the surface?” If you decide that you can just re-deck the surface, be cautious. A lot of times, customers decide they want a new deck because they’re tired of the maintenance for the cedars or whatever wood they currently have and they’d like to switch to a low-maintenance composite.

But you can’t just take off a wood deck and replace it with composite materials on that same substructure.

Success is in the details
Some of the things you have to watch for are your joist spans, for instance. If the original deck was built with the joist
spans 24 ins. on center, you can’t just put a solid composite on that surface. You have to add additional joists, so you need to build that cost into your project. If you’re working with deck contractors, always remind them of this.

And a re-deck project is always a good time to update or replace flashing. Many decks were built years ago with no flashing or improper ledger connections. Bidding a re-deck project is the time when you need to take advantage of those additional sales opportunities.

Make sure older decks are upgraded with the proper flashing; make sure they’ve got the proper hangers; make sure that they’ve got the right attachments to the house.

If a contractor or homeowner comes in and simply says, “well, this composite is $2 a ft. and I need 200 ft.,” you have to remind them of all the other products they may need for that job. Maybe that project is actually going to need $1,600 in product by the time they’re all done.

And always, always make sure that your customers are reading the ES Reports for the products they’re using. The ES Reports are the instructions on the Internet for that particular manufacturer’s products. (You can find these reports at the web site, www.icc-es.org.) It’s not uncommon that those instructions will disagree with the manufacturer’s published documents. The ES Report instructions always override any other documentation. They’ll tell you the type of fasteners that are allowed and the type of joist spans required. And a lot of warranties on various decking products become void if you don’t follow the published ES Report.

It’s really hard to go back to a customer to whom you’ve given a bid of $1,000 only to discover that you need to beef up the joists, and now you need to ask them for another $500 or $600. Read the ES Reports first. If you can bid a product knowledgeably from the start, and you’re bidding against other people, if you can confidently point out all the other issues that need to be addressed in the re-decking project, it improves your credibility tremendously.

And here’s another tip: We’ve found that spring is the best time to talk to potential customers about re-decking, and so we offer free deck inspections in April. We inspect for proper flashing, and for proper attachment of the deck to the house. We ensure that the posts and the structure are capable of supporting the loads that they’re intended to carry. We look
for joists that are rotted or that don’t meet code. Create a checklist with these items on it, and just about any salesperson with some training can identify these issues and you’ll look both very professional and be able to gain more work through the process.

(There’s only one caution with this idea: If you know that there’s been a recent storm in an area, and you suddenly receive a number of requests for deck inspections, it may be that the homeowners are seeking dollar amounts for an insurance issue. In that case, we tell them we’re happy to do the inspection but we charge $200 for it, and offer a $200 credit toward the purchase of any further product.)

BOB HEIDENREICH is the owner of the 30- employee Deck and Door Co., in Apple Valley, Minn. He has been selling decking and home improvement projects for 26 years.