My version of Covid Backyard Renovation 2020

BEFORE SHOT: My condo consists of a small 15 x 15 foot fenced in patio that was neglected by an elderly woman who lived here before me. I had little interest in sitting out there so I decided to renovate in late Fall....smart.

What I had budgeted to be a 2 weekend project, of course, went into all week in between the two weekends and took me 30 hours by myself to complete. When all I got done the first day was priming the fence, I knew it was a typical underestimated project. I used an oil-based primer with latex on top because I wasn't about to sand that whole freaking fence. I am banging on the oil to help.

MONEY SHOT (PROJECT COMPLETE)I left the cross boards and posts bare, which required me sanding the old surface away to stain them. I wanted a strong contrast between the green and leather/wood color. There is still sawdust in this photo that needs to be wiped away. Budget was $1,000, but it was almost twice that at the end (Deck Tiles & Rocks).

The design centered around these - deck tiles. I had never heard of these before until September. They each are 12" composite (wood is available but maintenance) that have "teeth" around the perimeter that locks in to the others. I had 110 in total and I was able to lay them all down in 30 minutes. They require no gluing onto the surface and can be laid on concrete or brick without any problems. They do not slide at all. There were $25/boxes that were out of stock, and if I had just power washed the concrete, of course my budget would have been more reasonable.

I haven't finished spray painting the chairs black yet, but I plan to Sunday after the rains come.

The rocks were the issue with my budget. I originally calculated it would take about 1,200 pounds to cover the approximately 120 sq ft, but I got 800 instead to keep from my budget going too high. The deck tiles and rocks were the heavy part of the price. These deck tiles came 10 to a box approximately $50~. The rocks were $20-22 per 20-pound bag. I could have gone cheaper black rocks, but those risked being just normal river rocks that were painted black.

In the Spring, I plan on buying 4-5 more bags to fill the areas around the fence that I couldn't quite get covered completely.

Now here is the interesting part of my tale. I wanted to add string lights, but I don't have an exterior outlet nor did I want to spend money to get one installed. So I got a socket from Lowe's that had 2, non-ground wire outlets that would allow for LEDs. The problem was I had no cover to block rain from shorting out the outlets. So I modeled up a cover on the computer and then 3D printed it to simulate an exterior sconce or lantern (I will paint the edges black this weekend). The cut outs on the side are for the plugs. Don't worry, the rain is fine with the plastic I used. The sun will eventually fade the paint but I can repaint.

Here was the problem - I didn't account for the LED plugs to be 3 inches long. I was hoping they would fit mostly inside there, but that is not the case. However, after testing, the plugs are just fine and are safe with the connection part well covered.

I attached 2 hook screws into the lantern so I could take up the excess cables to remove the slack.

This was my original concept to have string lights above the head because I wanted it to feel "enclosed" sort of. But I realized I needed 2 more strings to really feel like an overhead and it just didn't feel right in general (I couldn't have 4 anyway because of the outlets).

So I added hook screws to the right fence and laid the other one along the cross boards on the left. This was taken before I painted, but this is really just to show the final lights. Yes, the lights on the right angling down and not running to the building leaving a gap on the fence bugs me too. I will probably add another hook soon so it does. I hope you enjoyed seeing these and perhaps inspires you to try your hand at your own renovation!