Enclosing lower portion of deck - Options?

[Mossyoakglock]

We are going to be closing up the lower portion of our deck soon. Our dogs keep going under there and digging and then track mud and dirt all through the house.

 

I hate lattice but know there are not many other options. The only other option we can think of is to use decking (def more expensive). I know I'll need to make a little door to be able to get under there no matter which material I use. If we use decking I'll need to leave a big enough gap between the boards for proper ventilation, etc.

 

Any other suggestions of what we can use?

[cobrajet84]

you can use the paneling from a vinyl fence too. use the u channel to hold it in place. Lattice is cheapest, IMO decking generally looks the best.

[RyanbabZ71]

How tall is it?

 

 

Ryan

[sahls01gmc]

Like Ryan said, how tall is it? If it's a doorway height above you, have you thought about siding? What kind of siding do you have on your house? Maybe you could match that, and also have a "hidden" doorway made of the same siding material.

[8.1HD/ALLISON]

Chain link fence? Can do the black plastic coated stuff too?

 

Sent from my LGL86C using Tapatalk

 

 

[LongrangeLauber]

Doubt this is the way you wanna go, but if it is tall enough you could turn it into like a shed type structure under there. I know water is gonna drain into it, so that would have to be solved. But if you take care of that then it wouldn't get muddy and could keep lawn equipment or such in there. Just an idea!

[soltys]

Doubt this is the way you wanna go, but if it is tall enough you could turn it into like a shed type structure under there. I know water is gonna drain into it, so that would have to be solved. But if you take care of that then it wouldn't get muddy and could keep lawn equipment or such in there. Just an idea!

That can be taken care up with some clear corrugated roof panels mounted to the underside of the joists of the deck. Screw it tight to the joists on the house side and slope it away using a 1x1 on the end away to slope it from the house. If it's a long enough run - you might need an additional shim midway to support the weight and keep the bows out of it. And since it's not in the direct sunlight, the plastic panels won't become brittle.

[maplesig]

I closed in the bottom of my back porch with cheap fence boards. I wanna say they were a dollar a piece at Lowes.

[Mossyoakglock]

I like the idea of using as storage and panels underneath for drainage.

 

It's not very tall either. The bottom of the left side is maybe 4' off the ground and the right is probably 3'. We thought about using decking and creating a doorway with a door so we can still have access underneath. We don't really like lattice, plus it's a bear to stain/paint.

[cobrajet84]

if you do end up having to use lattice you could buy the vinyl stuff, no painting/ staining then.

[BlackZ71Silverado]

I close the lower part of our deck a few weeks ago for the same reason. New dog likes the mud and would go under there and her covered in it every time she was outside. Used lattice because it was really the only option for it to look right.

[N2Black]

We are going to be closing up the lower portion of our deck soon. Our dogs keep going under there and digging and then track mud and dirt all through the house.

 

I hate lattice but know there are not many other options. The only other option we can think of is to use decking (def more expensive). I know I'll need to make a little door to be able to get under there no matter which material I use. If we use decking I'll need to leave a big enough gap between the boards for proper ventilation, etc.

 

Any other suggestions of what we can use?

I had the same problem as you with my deck and the dogs. I really hate the lattice look because everybody has it. When I had the deck built the builder told me he couldn't close in the bottom because of the slope of the yard. He was full of S*%# so I went with fence board cut down. When I was done I showed him what a dumb &** he was. It really came out nice, it's easy to do and it's cheap. Take a look and you can see the fence board on the bottom of the deck and when the plants grew in it really looks nice. You will have to cut it one board at a time to fit the slope of your ground. I hope this helps and gives you another option.

 

 

[Cowpie]

I would prefer lattice if doing it, so that ventilation under the deck would still be good and keep moisture levels down.