Building an elevated terrace: Wood or steel? Experiences, tips, and costs for DIY

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum and hope I am in the right place. I am planning to build a terrace on my house, about 10 meters wide and 2 to 3 meters deep, later covered with Bankirai decking. The challenge: the height of the terrace varies greatly (between 140 cm and 240 cm), and a solid attachment to the house wall is not possible because half of it is already on an existing concrete terrace. This leaves me only with a freestanding post construction.

Now the question is: Is it cheaper, easier, or better to build such an elevated terrace from wood or rather from steel? I already have an offer for a construction made of galvanized steel – around 10,000 euros seems quite expensive to me. I want to take care of the concrete foundations and laying the wooden planks myself. Who has tips, personal experiences or recommendations, especially regarding construction method, choice of materials, costs, and possible own work?

Thank you very much for your assessments

The height of the terrace varies greatly (between 140 cm and 240 cm), and a solid attachment to the house wall is not possible because half of it already rests on an existing concrete terrace. Therefore, I am left with only a freestanding post construction.

Above all, you first need to illustrate your confusing description.

Hello,

Due to my profession, I am very enthusiastic about steel constructions. They can be easily made rigid in all directions, so no additional fastenings to other existing components are necessary. So completely freestanding. With a galvanized construction, you won’t have any problems for the next 50 years. If you want it to look even nicer, you can even have it duplex coated (galvanized + powder coated in almost all colors, depending on the coater).

At these heights, railings become mandatory. These too can be made in steel, both attractive and above all stable. Are they possibly already included in the present offer?

Wood occasionally requires maintenance. I would be reluctant to crawl under the terrace every 2-3 years to sand and repaint everything.

Regarding the price of the offer, I unfortunately cannot assist you further.

I only know it that way, that at least the vertical supports are made of steel

It's all a question of cost. But without knowing what the existing situation looks like? A plan of the existing structure and the planned project helps a lot. Also, photos are always helpful.

DIY is easier with wood and is certainly cheaper than your offer of 10k.

The information suggests that the house is on a slope. A rough plan is needed first.

A connection to the existing structure is usually also structurally better.

Wood requires care from time to time. I would be reluctant to crawl under the terrace every 2-3 years to sand everything down and repaint it.

But the steelworker is exaggerating quite a bit. With a solid professional basic treatment, that’s not a problem. You want to galvanize too, don’t you? ;)