You'd expect to see rotting wood in
the bases of columns that are centuries
old. But I was recently on a project
in Chattanooga, Tenn., where I
had to replace columns that were only
27 years old. Decay had started to
show up 15 years ago. Faulty
installation caused the column bases
to rot prematurely.
You can slap columns in place and
forget about them. But sooner or
later—probably sooner—you'll be
reminded that a little more care with
installation would have saved lots of
trouble. Here are a few of the techniques
I've developed for installing
columns that will last. These methods
are good for hollow columns up to
about 15 feet tall.
Preparation
Repair the porch deck and pedestal
structure