Clean Construction / Decks / Medina, Ohio
Wood and composite decks for Medina — Victorian-era homes near the Square and newer subdivisions alike. Footings below frost, honest materials advice, permits pulled through the city.
Medina is two towns wearing one name. There's the historic core around Public Square — Victorian homes with real trim, real proportions, and real quirks in the framing — and there's the newer Medina of subdivisions off Route 18 and the north end, where builder-grade backyards are waiting for someone to finish the job. Brad builds decks for both, and they are not the same deck.
Near the Square, the deck has to defer to the house. That means proportions and railing details that don't look like a catalog bolted onto 1890, and a ledger connection made carefully into framing that predates modern code by a century. On the newer builds it's the opposite problem: the house is fine, the yard is a blank — the deck is the move that makes the backyard worth using.
Medina winters are the same argument for doing it right: every footing goes below the 32-inch frost line onto undisturbed soil, and materials get priced honestly — treated frame with composite decking is the configuration most Medina clients land on once the maintenance math is on the table. Permits run through the City of Medina Building Department, and Brad handles the whole exchange.
Northeast Ohio frost drives 32 inches down, and the clay-heavy ground around Medina will heave anything sitting shallower. Every footing is dug below the frost line and poured on undisturbed soil — then inspected before a single post goes up.
Most deck failures start at the house connection. Brad opens up the connection point, flashes it correctly, and through-bolts to actual structure — or builds the deck freestanding on its own footings when that's the honest answer for your house.
Clay lots don't forgive bad water planning. Before the layout is final, Brad looks at grade, downspouts, and where roof water actually goes — so the ground under your deck stays solid instead of turning into a spring swamp.
The permit runs through the City of Medina Building Department, and the job gets inspected at the stages the code requires. Brad handles all of it — drawings, application, inspector on site. The paper trail protects you when you sell.
More projects, including additions, patios, and retaining walls, in the full portfolio.
Size, height, wood or composite, rough budget if you have one. Vague is fine — "we want somewhere to eat outside" is enough to start the conversation.
He looks at the house connection, the grade, the soil, the door heights, where the sun lands in the evening. This is where a deck stops being a rectangle on paper and starts being your deck.
Framing, decking, railings, footings, permit — line by line. Wood and composite priced side by side if you're deciding. Nothing buried, and money is settled in the contract before anything starts.
Permit pulled, footings inspected, frame up, decking down, railings on, final inspection passed. Brad is on site through it, hands on most of the work. Most decks take one to two weeks of build time.
In most cases, yes. Attached decks and most decks of any real size need a building permit, which runs through the City of Medina Building Department. Brad handles the permit application, drawings, and inspections as part of the job — you never deal with the counter.
The Residential Code of Ohio requires footings to bear below the frost line — 32 inches in this part of the state. Every Clean Construction footing goes below that depth so the deck doesn't heave when the ground freezes. Shallow footings are the most common failure on older decks in Northeast Ohio.
Pressure-treated wood costs less up front and takes any stain, but wants cleaning and re-sealing every couple of years. Composite costs more up front and is essentially wash-and-go. Most decks Brad builds run a treated frame with composite decking — but he'll price both honestly at the site visit and let the numbers talk.
Most residential decks run one to two weeks of build time once the permit is issued and materials land — longer for multi-level builds or extras like covered sections and built-in benches. You get the schedule before work starts.
It depends on size, height, material, and railing choices, so Brad doesn't quote blind and you shouldn't trust anyone who does. He walks the site, then you get a written, itemized estimate with every line explained. The site visit and the estimate cost you nothing.
It needs more care, not less possibility. Work on historic-district properties can carry extra review beyond a standard building permit, and the design itself should respect the house — railing profiles, skirting, and proportions matter more on an 1890s home than on a 2005 colonial. Brad sorts out what the city requires for your specific street before the design is final, and builds so the deck looks like it belongs.
Fill this out or call him directly. Either way you're talking to the person who builds it.
Brad will call you back the same day. If it's urgent, call him directly at 440-315-4438.