Pulp Deck

Pulp Deck

It’s not winter yet! It has, however, gotten a bit cooler (including frost making an appearance most mornings) and it sure does get dark way too early, but….there’s still time to work on the deck, any progress being good progress. We will admit that at some point, working outside in the Northeast becomes a bit challenging, especially if you have to wear gloves and are trying to do some of the more detailed tasks that kind of require full use of hands (plus, being cold to the bone and trying to get anything done is kind of miserable).

And don’t forget, we still have the indoor bathroom renovations to pick back up on, so plenty to keep us occupied over the winter months. All that said, last weekend was full deck work and the start of the outdoor kitchen!

As we brought up previously, we have a nice covered roof portion of the new Pulp Deck, totally dedicated to the outdoor kitchen. Not sure if I mentioned it or not, but we do grill year round, regardless of temperature (okay, maybe not so much when below 30 degrees or so, but, those temps are fewer and farther between these days, especially come dinner time, so, yes, lots of winter grilling).

Now, as we talked about last week, we had a few ideas on the kitchen, and had always planned on some sort of L-shaped counter, grill/prep surfaces, with a “bar” counter/seating side. Tossed some ideas around and then started doing the search on the web. Originally thinking framing out with wood and accounting for various “sections” that would all tie together into one uniform structure. One minute into the search and up popped “the Mashpee” a modular steel framed outdoor kitchen set up from Uniframe Systems. complete with an adjustable section for the grill, and we were sold!

First up, the steel frame is going to last for a very long time, and, as it turned out, the Mashpee size was absolutely perfect for what we had in mind. No brainer, right? The only remaining hurdle was to put it together!

So last weekend, that is what we did. I must admit, it took a little hands on experience with the first couple sections, but at some point, it clicked and we pretty much got into a groove doing the assembly. Definitely had to spend some extra time on the grill section itself, mainly making sure the grill insert (grill came with an insulated insert piece that the grill sits in, you know, to protect everything from the heat of the grill) was tight and flush with the rest of the framing, but all in, a very satisfying assembly process. I should also mention that the base is completely flat on the bottom, which allows for sliding it around as we get ready to build the wall that will be behind it (stay tuned)!

Progress pics adjacent and below. See you next week!