Our Process
How every project works
Same process. Every time. No exceptions.
From the first phone call to the one-year inspection, every project runs the same way. That’s intentional. The process is how we control quality – and how we make sure nothing falls through the cracks. No surprises. No handoffs to people we don’t control. No cutting corners on the things that matter most – which are almost always the things you can’t see.
I arrive at your property, introduce myself, and ask you to show me what you're working with. We walk the deck together - I want to hear what you want and what's been bothering you. Then I get quiet and start looking.
I walk the deck from the top: I'm checking the boards, the railing, the connections, the flashing at the house. Then I go underneath. I'm looking at the joists - their spacing, their condition, whether they've been painted instead of stained (painting traps moisture and causes rot). I'll shake the railing without saying a word. If it moves, you already know what that means.
I'll take measurements and photos. I'll show you pictures from other projects so you can start picturing what's possible. I'll point out things that could be improved - not to upsell you, but so that when the quote comes, nothing surprises you. I try to spend about fifteen to twenty minutes on the deck and leave time for a real conversation about options.
We use three measurement tools depending on what the project needs. For a quick read, a physical tape measure is fast and familiar. For more detail, a laser distance meter captures precise point-to-point dimensions and saves them with photos. For complex builds, we're now using a LiDAR 3D scanner - it takes thousands of laser measurement points, accurate to within an eighth of an inch within a thirty-foot radius and a quarter inch out to four hundred fifty feet. Scanning a deck takes two to three minutes. It syncs directly to an iPad.
Once we have the measurements, we produce an accurate, itemized quote - not a ballpark. For more complex projects where you want to see the design before anything gets cut, a detailed rendering is prepared after contract signing so we're building exactly what you approved.
Once you've signed off, the shop gets to work before we pull up to your property. If it's a metal railing, it's been laser cut from a SolidWorks CAD file to exact tolerances, laser welded, primed with epoxy, and painted. If it's a wood deck, every board is planed to a true inch-and-a-half by five-and-a-half, checked for defects, and pre-stained on three sides with a penetrating stain. By the time we show up, we're installing finished material - not raw lumber that still needs to be processed at your home.
Depending on the project, up to half the work is done before we arrive on site. That's what keeps the install tight and the timeline predictable.
If there's demo, we handle it - and everything goes in the dump trailer the same day. Once the existing structure is out, we assess what's underneath before we touch anything else: rot at the ledger, joist spacing, structural issues that weren't visible from the top. We take pictures, show you what we found, and walk you through your options. Our goal is for you to feel better about the project once you see what we're doing to fix it.
Then we build from the ground up: footings, posts, framing, ledger with full flashing, joists with butyl tape, fascia, planks, railing. One crew. One point of contact throughout. I've spent years doing exterior framing at a finished carpentry level - the seams are tight, the lines are true, and nothing leaves the shop or gets installed until it's right. What surprises most clients is how hard the crew works and how precise the details are, right down to the things you'll never look at again once the deck is done.
One year after we finish, we come back. We walk the deck top and bottom and inspect our workmanship - even if you haven't noticed anything. I want to know if our work is holding up. If something isn't right, we fix it.
At that visit we'll also talk through the maintenance program if you're interested in keeping the deck in top condition long-term.
Free. No obligation. We come to you.
Flathead Lake — Cedar & Aluminum
Railing detail
Mountain property build
Don't take our word for it.
Here’s what our clients in Northwest Montana say about the process – and the results.
"They always over delivered."
I had a deck addition project and the guys at Rocky Mountain construction did an amazing job. They are very thorough and multiple times Peter and his team could have taken short cuts to make the job easier on themselves but they always over delivered. We had trouble finding the right contractor for the job and I am so glad I went with them. I have already recommended them to several friends looking to get similar projects done.
Wes, Kalispell
"Their attention to detail was great."
Had them build me a deck in my backyard. Their attention to detail was great. Walk me through their entire process. Make sure I had everything that I wanted and show me the differences would highly recommend them.
JOhn, kalispell
"The best work ethic I’ve seen in a long time."
This company is amazing! Not only is their workmanship superb, but the entire crew takes pride in doing a job well done. The best work ethic I’ve seen in a long time. If I could give them 10 stars, I would!!