Deck and Porch Repair

Deck and porch boards, rails, and steps repaired, plus full rebuilds and new decks, from one carpenter in Buncombe County.

Serving Swannanoa · Black Mountain · East Asheville · Oteen · Asheville and Buncombe County

Over 40 years of experience
One carpenter, start to finish
Free written estimates
Based in Swannanoa

Rob Stimson Carpentry repairs, rebuilds, and builds decks and porches in Black Mountain, Asheville, Swannanoa, and across Buncombe County. Rob has been a carpenter since 1985 and has worked here since 1991, and on a deck he will tell you which of those three you actually have.

The work covers deck board replacement, railings, pickets, and handrails, stair treads and steps, porch floors and columns, rot repair and sealing, and new decks and full rebuilds. Rob gets underneath before he prices anything, because the boards on top rarely tell the whole story. If the framing underneath is unsafe, that gets repaired or rebuilt. If it is only the boards on top, those get replaced. Debris removal varies by town: the Town of Black Mountain trash service picks up construction debris, and where a town does not, the landfill trip or a dumpster shows up as a line item on your estimate.

Estimates are free and getting under the deck costs you nothing. The price is in writing before he starts, and if the framing opens up worse than the estimate covered he stops and writes a change order rather than adjusting the total at the end. The person who quotes the job is the person who does it.

Joists, beams, posts, footings, the ledger where the deck bolts to your house, and anything built new need a permit in your name, and Rob takes that work. He does not do plumbing, electrical, roof surfaces, gutter cleaning, or garage doors.

How it works

What happens after you get in touch.

Tell him what it feels like underfoot

Spongy in one spot, or moving across the whole thing. That difference usually points at surface boards versus what is holding them up.

He gets underneath it

Free, and it is the only way to see the joists, the posts, and where the ledger meets your house. The boards on top rarely tell the whole story.

You choose, then he prices it

Repair or rebuild, laid out with the number in writing before he starts.

Questions

Questions about decks

How do estimates work? +

Rob comes out, looks at the job, and gives you a price before any work starts. Estimates are free. If it turns out to be something he does not do, he will say so on the phone first rather than driving out and wasting your afternoon.

Does Rob do plumbing or electrical work? +

No. He is a carpenter, not a plumber or an electrician. He will swap a light fixture or a switch for the same kind of thing, but he does not run new wiring, add circuits, or move pipes. If that is what the job needs, you need a different trade first.

What areas does Rob serve? +

Swannanoa first, since that is home, then Black Mountain, East Asheville, Oteen, Fairview, Montreat, Ridgecrest, and Asheville. Further out is possible depending on the job. Just ask.

Do I need a permit for my project? +

Not always. Replacing boards, rails, treads, trim, siding, and like-for-like doors and windows on a single-family home in North Carolina usually needs no permit. New decks, new openings, and structural work do. When one is needed, it goes in your name as the property owner, and Rob tells you what the job needs before it starts so nothing is a surprise. He does the work and coordinates around the inspections. Plumbing and electrical are a different trade entirely, not a permit question.

Do you build new decks, or only repair? +

Both. Repairs, full rebuilds, and new decks. New construction and structural work need a permit, which goes in your name as the property owner. Rob tells you that before the job starts and builds the deck either way.

Will the new boards match? +

New wood next to old wood looks like new wood. Where it makes sense he will sand and seal the whole deck after so the patch is not the first thing you see.

Where the line is

What needs a permit, and what doesn't.

Rob would rather tell you now than find out in your driveway.

No permit needed

✓ Decking and walking surfaces
✓ Railings, pickets, and handrails
✓ Stair treads and steps
✓ Porch floors and columns
✓ Rot repair, sanding, and sealing

Needs a permit first

The permit goes in your name as the property owner. Rob tells you what the job needs before it starts, then does the work and coordinates around the inspections.

◆ Joists, beams, and posts
◆ Ledger boards and house attachment
◆ Footings and framing
◆ New decks and full rebuilds

Boards, rails, and treads are a repair and need no permit in North Carolina. Joists, beams, posts, ledgers, footings, and anything built new do. Rob does both, and he tells you which one you are looking at before you commit to either.

Not his trade, at any size: plumbing, electrical, anything on a roof surface, gutter cleaning, garage doors, and lawn and yard work. He will usually know who to call.