Waterproofing my deck

hey ya-all, first timer on the forum! i'm in the design stage of building/renovating my coastal dream house! the house is a two storey brick/weatherboard place which i plan to extend. my dilemma is that i plan to extend the bottom storey, making the roof of this a deck. i dont plan to use concrete but use some other material which wont be noisy to walk on from inside (downstairs) and will be totally waterproof. any ideas? someone suggested fiberglass?? not sure whats about and i'm hoping for some suggestions. if needed i can give further details. cheers, taz

Hi TB,

Properly waterproofing flat roofs is a tough job. To be loadbearing is easy, but to keep the water out from underneath is a bit harder.

Fibreglass will be waterproof but has no strength so you still need to support your roof/floor. What are you thinking about putting on the floor? Tiles?
What do you intend to use as a structural device if you don't want concrete?

A deck type floor would be ideal, but it still requires a roof beneath it - which becomes contradictory. You also probably aren't interested in steel because of the noise factor, although this can be addressed.

Good luck on your project.

Earl

hey thanks for the reply Earl. Yeah i'm thinking tiles on the floor/deck. Im not really sure what i will use structurally, i initially thought steel but the noise factor does concern me. if concrete is the best of all options then i guess i will have to use that but if i can get away with an alternative...? perhaps an engineer is the best person to speak to? Food for thought...!

You need to use Compressed Fibre Cement sheeting for the floor and waterproof as per a wet area. Lay a screed with run-off away from the house to which you can then lay your tiles on top.