AGING SUPPORT SYSTEM? WHAT TO DO

What is a support system and why does it matter?

You see, in the top pic, a post supporting railing on a second story deck.

This is a support system for those who like to lean on deck railing. Instead of fixing it, I used a potted tree to block access.

Did I hope the tree would teach the post how to heal itself? Hardly, but if it did, I’d market the miracle tree.

But it wasn’t a miracle tree.

Eventually someone would would lean and fall, or the railing would breakdown on its own. Either one is a bad event. Worst case would be someone leaning, falling, and the deck breaking off and landing on them.

And that’s the optimistic results, because I’m such an optimist, a real funny guy with a good support system.

Still, will all hopes and jokes aside, something needed to happen and I nominated myself.

Of course I had help. I had the memory of a DIY guy able to build and teach others how to build. He’s the one who spec’ed my deck before I tore it apart and put it back together.

See, something did happen. The previous owner had eight poodles who used the deck as their poodle pad and all the waste ate the deck in places, like the place I fell through up to my knee. Two stories up.

Now it’s the railing. It’s always something with a support system, let me tell you.

The unwritten rules of wood butchery are as follows:

Replace rot

In this case it would take a wood worker with skills beyond mine to replace the rotten post. The real question was, “Do I need to replace the entire post?”

I used an aesthetic carpentry approach to make it look good and stay strong. It’s the same approach many use for their personal appearance. They see something they want changed on their body, and instead of submitting to invasive surgery, they call someone who can do what’s needed without major downtime.

For example, when someone has lived forty years with a mole they saw everytime they looked in a mirror, they can google Portland aesthetic mole removal, or Portland mole removal, or Ellman surgitron portland mole removal.

Or click this link for drmolepdx.com.

Support System Success

I gauged how much rot to take off by checking the underlying structure. Instead of taking it all off and creating more problems, I grafted a new piece onto the old.

Using a section of large dowel in the center and bracing on the outside corners I made a stronger post than the original.

Happy day.

I put the pieces back together, then painted. The rail never looked better.

Leave a comment to see the finished work.

Inspired by a teacher named Al, I worked my way through the math, the measuring, and a little rain. Hey, it’s Oregon.

Final word: Find the problem, create a plan of action, and execute the plan.

But what’s it look like all pretty and new? Leave a comment.