We've said for years (literally), "We should clean up the backyard." Well, we finally did something about it.

Monday:





Tuesday:







Wednesday:








Thursday:







Still a walkway on the far side to finish (tomorrow), then install a pergola on the squared (near) end next week.

Plan now is to add a fence and gate(s), then a small BBQ island and then next spring take out a couple of trees and some brush and re-landscape the back 1/3rd of the yard (not shown).

 

I am not sure that is a little upgrade. Really nice looking upgrade Bearcat. Love the fire pit.

Hope​​​ everything is well with you and your family. We need to get you to a meet with the OGs like we used to do at TMac.

 

It certainly turned out to be more 'construction intensive' than I realized it would be.

I'm up for Taco Mac. I've still got my pint glass from last time.

 

looks solid. I like it.

 

Looks Great!

 

 

Yeah. I think it's going to last a while.

Just got the cedar delivered to clean then stain over the weekend.

 

Very nice!

It's always good to see your TL mowing around the streets..i see it every so often.

x3 for taco mac.

 

Hey Eric ....


Not much happening today. Finished the walkway, which terminates at the nominal gate-in-the-future-fence. With that, the patio itself is complete. Also received a load of Western Red Cedar I'm prepping (clean, light sanding, stain) this weekend. Should go up early next week.

Friday:

 

Digging it. Fire pits are always a good choice.

 

nice work, jim!

 

looks good!!!

 

That looks awesome!

 

Hey Vinny ....

 

Got all that cedar prepped this weekend. Raining today. Hoping it goes up tomorrow.

 

Where did you order the cedar from? Can't wait to see your pergola.

 

Wow dude, that is a major upgrade...looks amazing!

 

Not what I expected when I saw 'little' & 'clean up'. Very nice!

 

Matthews Building Supply. Pergola goes up tomorrow.

 

Thanks.

I seriously didn't realize it would be that extensive. I thought it would be like a YouTube time-lapse .... then they dug a 2 foot deep trench through my backyard .... .

 

You can still do a YouTube time-lapse it just might be 5min long now instead of 60 seconds.

 

Finished ....









.... except for furniture.

.... and a BBQ.

.... and a gas line.

.... and ....

 

Very nice. An outdoor kitchen/grille is in my future as well.

 

Looks great. Can't wait to see the outdoor kitchen finished.

I am with 00TL definitely wan't an outdoor kitchen.

 

what a transformation...

 

Nah, we're not going to do that. Not 'full blown' anyhow.

Some patio furniture, a grill 'island' with basically just a grill and a bit of serving/prep space. That's it.

 

Bearcat, we appreciate your input. We'll convene and let you know what you will do with your money and home. Standby.

 

You sound like my wife .... but more diplomatic.

 

haha...she's got you by the balls...diplomacy is out the window!

 

This is similar to what I meant, a built-in grill with a counter between a column & the wall of the house, under the back patio.

 

I end up having to replace burner tubes and deflectors in my grille every few years because I use it so often. I don't think a built-in is a smart thing for anyone that grilles a lot.

 

My current gas grill is something like 7 years old, cheapie from WalMart. Cooks hot on one of the burners, but otherwise still works great. No rusting or excessive wear on the burners/shields.

 

As long as you buy a mid range grill or above that is built in you should have no problem aquiring parts for years. My parents have had one that is 12 years old that is a built in and we can still get parts for it.

 

I have a weber. I don't really see companies with that reputation and longevity that make the built-ins. It's just scary to think that you'd have to start screwing around with brick or something one day because you can't get a replacement tube or something.

 

What we're looking at is not really 'built in' to the hardscape. It's put into a built frame that has a facade applied that matches/blends with the hardscape. That becomes a 'grill island' that is set (and potentially movable) on the patio.

 

looks great! curious how did you secure the posts to the patio for the pergola?

 

Before installing the pavers they put in concrete footing where the posts go. The footings were 24" x 24" x 24" deep (basically poured into and around the retaining blocks). The 24" x 24" allowed room to move the posts a bit this way or that way for alignment. Each post came with a hardware bracket that attached to the post and anchored into the footing. Those brackets are covered by cedar trim at the bottom of the post (you can see the bit that is un-stained in the last pic).

 

ah ok makes sense! from the pics it seems maybe they were bolted to the interlock, but I figured you would have a more secure option. Well done! I grew up doing interlock landscaping. I love working with stone. Don't miss the concrete saw and having dreadlocks at the end of the day from all the dust.

 

Kinda like this one?

https://www.weber.com/US/en/grills/s...t-in-gas-grill

I'm with you on the Weber thing but there are definitely lots of high end grills that come in built in form. The market for them is just too high for companies to not be in it.

What you don't want though is a cheap built in. That's a recipe for disaster.

 

It's not important how much money you spend on it... just that you'll be able to get replacement parts for it in 10+ years