Composite and cedar decks framed to carry Missoula snow loads, with flashed ledgers, footings below frost and railings that pass inspection the first time. One crew handles design, permits and construction.
A deck in Missoula has a harder job than a deck in most places. It carries a winter of snow and then rides the freeze-thaw cycles that heave shallow footings out of the ground by spring. Constructive Brothers builds decks for that reality. We pour footings to 42 inches, which clears the city minimum with room to spare, and we size joists and beams for the local snow load rather than the generic span tables printed on a box-store handout. Ledgers get flashed and through-bolted to the rim joist, never lag-screwed into siding. The result is a deck that still feels solid after its tenth winter in the Rattlesnake or Target Range.
We build in whatever material suits the house and the budget. Trex and TimberTech composites cost more up front and never need staining, which matters when smoke season and early snow shorten the window for maintenance. Cedar costs less and looks right on the older homes in the University District and the Slant Streets, provided you accept a stain every two or three years. Either way the frame underneath is pressure-treated lumber with joist tape on every top edge, hidden fasteners where the decking allows, and 36-inch guardrails with balusters spaced under 4 inches. You get a fixed-scope quote before we dig, and the same crew stays on the job until the final inspection is signed.
Most Missoula decks run $12,000 to $45,000 depending on square footage, composite versus cedar decking, railing style and how many stairs or levels the grade requires.
Tell us about the project. A carpenter, not a salesperson, will get back to you within one business day.
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Shallow piers heave in Missoula's freeze-thaw cycles and leave a deck racked and wobbly within a few winters. We dig every footing to 42 inches, bell the base where the soil is loose river gravel, and set galvanized post bases above grade so the posts never sit in water.
A deck rated for 40 pounds per square foot is fine in Phoenix. Here we design the joists, beams and hardware for the heavier ground snow that piles up against the house all winter, and we tape the joist tops so meltwater does not rot the frame from above.
Most deck failures start where the deck meets the house. We cut back the siding, install a proper ledger with Z-flashing and a peel-and-stick membrane behind it, then through-bolt to the rim joist with structural screws on the spacing the inspector expects. No lag screws into stucco or vinyl.
We will tell you honestly whether Trex, TimberTech or cedar makes sense for your budget and how much upkeep you are willing to do. A composite deck on a 1920s Northside bungalow can look wrong, and a cedar deck on a busy family's south-facing lot can become a chore.
We walk the yard with you, check grade, sun exposure and where the door lands, then measure the house and note utilities. You leave with a sketch and a straight answer on material options.
You get a written quote that lists decking, railing, footing count and stair details so nothing is vague. We draw the plan, submit it to the City of Missoula or the county, and schedule the footing inspection.
Footings go in first and get inspected before a single post is set. The frame follows, with joist tape and hardware installed as we go, and the decking goes down once the frame is square and level.
Guardrails, balusters and stairs go on last, checked against the 36-inch height and 4-inch spacing rules. We call for the final inspection, haul off the scrap, and walk the finished deck with you.
Based in Missoula. One crew and one standard of work from Frenchtown to Hamilton, up the Blackfoot and over to Seeley Lake.
Carpenters who frame additions, garages, ADUs and full remodels from the mudsill up, sized for Missoula snow loads and detailed so the framing inspection is a formality rather than a fight.
Learn more →Bedroom additions, second stories, primary suites and mudroom bump-outs for growing Missoula families, built on frost-depth footings, tied into the existing structure correctly and finished so the seam between old and new disappears.
Learn more →Full residing and targeted exterior repair for Missoula homes: LP SmartSide, James Hardie fiber cement and cedar over a proper drainage plane, plus rotted trim, fascia, soffit and window flashing fixed by carpenters who know where the water got in.
Learn more →Free on-site walkthrough. A fixed-scope quote in writing. Work that passes inspection the first time.
Send us a few photos and a rough idea of the project. You will get a real number from a real carpenter, usually within one business day.
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