It has been a glorious weekend, and we spent big parts of it outside. I spent a lot of that time finishing my spring project of putting lattice beneath the deck in the back yard.

We had decided to put lattice under the deck to keep the dogs from going under there. I'm sure some small animal has or previously had a home there, or that they were using that as a covered bathroom instead of the area we want them to use as a bathroom. Regardless, we don't want them under the deck, so we got lattice to block their paths.

We fetched it from the nearby Home Depot, in a comedic strap onto the top of our trailer, as it turned out to be a little too long to fit inside our trailer. We leaned it against the deck where we'd want to have it, as an initial block for the dogs. Then set about figuring out how to essentially cut it in half the long ways, at the actual right heights, and how we'd want it to fit over the bases of the footings. We could allow the lattice to hide the footings, but then either be mounted at an angle or curved, or we could cut around the footings, allowing the lattice to be affixed tightly on the footings as a more solid wall. The lazy in me wanted the former, and a little I wanted to hide the cement blocks. The sturdy in me wanted to do the latter. 

I also struggled with how to cut it, as I don't have a table or the right kind of saw to let machines do the hard parts. The lattice is thin, almost waste-wood, that's stapled together in a hasty diamond pattern. I mean, for lattice it's constructed just fine, but it isn't sturdy like I'd expect a house to be framed, or like I'd built the deck. 

So it sat all summer, with the lattice leaned against the deck. Sometimes it'd tip over because something would make its way under the deck and want to get out, or the wind would blow, or in some cases a tree or other plant would be trying to break through. With winter looming, and a break in weekend activities, all coming together with great weather, I decided this would be the weekend to dig in.

I pulled together some simple tools, and as soon as the kids were away to a friend's house, started measuring and cutting. I took my yardstick and put it as vertical as it seemed to matter, figuring out how far the deck facade is from the ground. The 2x8 facade is attached to the deck frame, which is made of 2x6s, and aligned with the 1x6 decking. So there should be a half-inch or so under-hanging, leaving room for the lattice to be wedged behind the facade. I figured I'd eek the bottom up a half-inch more, to give room for ground fluctuations, and I started cutting. I decided to just use a short box saw and use the deck as a workspace. It's just a little shorter than I'd like, about 20-inches tall, so I had to hunch over more than I wanted. The saw is plenty sharp and strong, and the lattice wood plenty weak and splintery, so it wasn't always pretty cutting, but with a little resistance from a 2x6 resting on top if it, and a firm grip on the hanging bits, it cut pretty cleanly. The kids helped with more weight by standing on the plank like a surfboard as the cutting went on.

The math pretty much worked, and the cut lattice is mostly the right height to fit beneath the facade and not rest on the ground. I didn't cut around the footings at first 'cause I still hadn't convinced myself it was the right thing to do. Resting still on the ground, as we'll attach it after we make that footing decision, the top sits behind the facade, so the effect is there, and there shouldn't be any tipping over from things beneath or the wind or plants, or whatever.

On Saturday, I finished the north-most and south edges of the deck, and got the easy part of the west edge done; there's a little free-standing set of steps that I need to work behind with a bit shared with the part that goes under the east-facing steps. On Sunday I got to the rest of the north-facing side (the deck is kind of L-shaped there, and the steps are in the way) and the west-facing side, which is behind some boxwoods we planted there. I started cutting the west-most side around the footings, as there are planting beds that abut them, and it didn't turn out too bad.

There's still some finishing to put on them, and I need to fasten the lattice to the deck. Finally, the hardest part is done. In a few spots the lattice is bolstered with some left over planks, that had actually been on the ground next to the deck for the last few years. I didn't take too much care to make sure that the ends matched up, as the south and west sides are 16-feet long, but the lattice is only 8-feet. On the west, the boxwood will hide it. On the south, there's a full line of Lillies, at least in the summer.

A little bit more wood work is done. Just in time for the cold weather. Dogs (and other bigger animals) should stay out from under the deck. It might help cut off more light to prevent some of the weeds that still try to grow there. And the eyesore of an incomplete spring weekend project is finally finished.

Everyone is healthy.