Here's the deal - I live in a three story townhouse in the middle of a city with my wife and 15 month old daughter. Off the 3rd floor, there is a small deck on top of a two story addition that's about 9' x 7', then there's a metal ladder from there up to a roof deck that's roughly 15' x 26' (the footprint of the original house). We have no back yard (just a narrow paved area big enough for a garbage can and bike) so really want the decks to be functional space, but right now they aren't for a few reasons:
-The railings on both decks need to be replaced. They are metal but very spindly and unstable, and only 36" high (I'd prefer 42"). Our daughter could easily fit through the gaps in the one on the roof and the one on the small deck is so minimal that the vertical members are black bungee cords. I kid you not.
-The decking on both decks is shot. Lots of boards are rotted out, splintered, moldy, etc.
-The metal ladder between the two means it's basically impossible to get our daughter up and down without strapping her into a carrier, and you need both hands so carrying a tasty beverage up (with or without a baby) is difficult.
-The framing on the main roof deck looks good, but not so much on the small deck. A couple of roofers have told us this for a variety of reasons.
So, I'd like to get new wooden railings, new decking, new framing on the small deck, and with our configuration, it looks like a spiral staircase is our only option to connect the two. Pressure treated lumber is fine with me - I just want it functional, not fancy or built to last 50 years.
So far I got one quote:~ $19k for all this ($7.5k re-deck main roof, $2.6k small deck total replacement, $4.8k spiral stairs, $4.3k railing). I'm pretty handy and so is my wife but most of this work is beyond us and hard to do with a toddler around. We also don't own a car (yeah for biking and walking and saving money!), so it would be an expense for us to rent one to haul off materials, bring in new stuff, etc.
Obviously $19k is a huge amount of money and I'm not going to spend that. I'm getting other quotes and trying to see if there is anything I can safely DIY. Thoughts? Suggestions? I see Home Depot and Lowes carry prefab sections of fence and have decking services. Does anyone have experience with this?