Home Improvement Project Numero Uno (The Deck)

In addition to painting and re-carpeting the three bedrooms (Things That Need to Happen (Before We Can Go), which we have already done, I identified three large projects that need to happen before we can show the house to potential renters. The first of these is the deck.

Homero borrowed a friend's pressure washer yesterday and spent all day pressure washing the deck. I do mean ALL DAY. Our deck is gigantic; it wraps around three sides of the house and has railings all the way around, as well as built in benches for sitting and admiring the lovely view. It is wide and ample, with plenty of space for grilling or having a nice outdoor party. We don't do those things, however. We use the deck to store recycling bins and a few bicycles and scooters. We leave muddy boots on it. Other than that, we ignore the deck, letting trees and shrubs grow up around it and letting it get slimy and slick. Without straining my memory, I can think of at least four nasty falls people have taken because of the slimy mold on the deck, one of which resulted in three weeks in a leg brace (that was me).

Considering that the deck would, if it were in decent shape, actually be a really nice selling point, I chose the deck as priority numero uno. As we've had a few days of nice weather, coinciding with a slow patch in the shop, Homero decided to talk it yesterday. It didn't rain last night, and today has been sunny and fair, and so the deck is dry today. It looks great! No more slime! No more moss, no more dried on chickenshit! Now we need to buy a five gallon bucket of deck stain.

While he had the pressure washer, I asked Homero to please also wash the RV (which, sitting out in the yard for four years has aquired a thick coating of greenish-brownish slime) and to clean out a few of the empty 275 gallon totes so we can use them for water storage.

Next up: the playroom! As you can see, it needs some serious help.