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Kaminskiy Care and Repair repairs loose boards, wobbly railings and soft spots so the deck feels solid again, and most repairs take one visit. In Clark County a deck needs a permit unless it is small, low and freestanding. We build every repair to pass that inspection. We serve Salmon Creek and the surrounding Washington communities.
Creek lots and newer subdivisions. Decks that never dry and stairs sinking into wet ground lead the Salmon Creek list.
A Salmon Creek deck gets water from two directions: forty inches of rain from above between October and May, and creek-bottom ground below that stays damp into summer, so the stair stringers and the post bases sit in wet soil for months and the boards near the water turn green by November. Up on the North Salmon Creek streets the 1980s and 1990s builder decks have reached the age where the boards cup, the lagged rail posts loosen and the ledger line shows a stain on the siding. We replace the boards, sister the joists, lift the posts onto standoffs, rebuild the stairs on footings, through-bolt the railings, flash and bolt the ledger, then clean, brighten and seal. When the ledger is past saving or the deck has moved, an engineer looks first; a new deck is a permitted build.
AFTERBEFOREEvery one of these is a scoped repair for a Kaminskiy-certified technician who comes up I-205 from our Vancouver office on NE Park Plaza Drive, with the stringers, the posts and the ledger probed before a price is written.
Priced and on the calendar during the first call.
A written quote you approve before anyone drives out.
One crew, the whole list, warranty in writing.
A one-year workmanship warranty, in writing, on every Salmon Creek deck and balcony repair.
Water from two directions. From above, forty inches of rain between October and May on the boards, the railings and the ledger; from below, creek-bottom ground and a crawl-space climate that keep the stair stringers, the post bases and the frame under the deck from ever fully drying. Boards near the water go green, stringers on dirt rot from the bottom cut, posts on a slab wick water up from the concrete. Damp wood near the creek draws carpenter ants and dampwood termites; a licensed pest company treats them, and we rebuild what they and the water took.
Push the top rail out, then sideways. If it moves, the post connection has failed: a notched post, a lag bolt that rusted through, or a post gone soft at the deck line. On the 1980s and 1990s builder decks the posts were lagged, not through-bolted, and on a composite deck the wood post under a composite sleeve can rot out of sight. We through-bolt the connection with hardware rated for the load, replace any post that has gone at the base, and set the balusters to code spacing.
Washington has no balcony inspection law; what applies in Salmon Creek is Clark County's permit line, because Salmon Creek is unincorporated. Under the county's list a freestanding deck no more than thirty inches off the ground needs no permit, under the state residential code an ordinary repair in like materials needs no application, and minor repairs such as rot repair are filed under the county's alteration and repair permit. A rebuilt frame, a new ledger or a wider footprint is on the permit side, and a deck or balcony that has moved gets an engineer's look before we start. We tell you which on the call.
Get the stairs off the dirt and onto footings once; after that it is maintenance. Clear the gaps and sweep the post bases each fall. Scrape and treat the green on the creek side in spring. Keep the downspout above the deck discharging away from it. Reseal the wood every two or three years, before the finish goes gray. Push on each rail post every spring and flag the ones that move. A soft tread found early is one visit; a soft beam found late waits for a dry window and an engineer.
The lowest and dampest streets, where the decks, the stairs and the post bases near the water and the trail sit over ground that never quite dries. The boards go green and soft at the ends, the stringers rot where they meet the soil, the posts rot at the base. We replace what has gone, lift the posts onto standoffs, rebuild the stairs on footings, keep every sound board and name a ledger problem before the deck is touched.
Family streets from the 1980s and 1990s with cedar builder decks off the slider, railings lagged into notched posts, ledgers from before the flashing rules and stairs to the yard on dirt. The boards cup, the rail gives, the ledger line stays wet. We reboard, through-bolt the railing connections, flash and bolt the ledger, rebuild the stairs and match the stain.
Association streets from the 2000s with the least exposed wood, often composite decking over a wood frame with wood stairs and wood posts. The composite is fine; the wood under and beside it is not. Stringers rot at the bottom cut, posts rot at the base, the frame under a slick north corner goes soft, the ledger flashing was skipped. We rebuild the wood parts, reset the composite boards, reflash the ledger and put the materials in writing for the board.
Call 360-347-2002 or text a photo of the bottom stair, a post base and the siding under the deck. Most Salmon Creek deck repairs get a range on the call and a date for the look within days.
A technician probes the stringers, posts, boards, joists, beam and ledger, leans on the railings, checks the height off the ground and writes the scope: what we rebuild, what the county permits, what an engineer has to see, and the price.
Frame, posts and stairs first, then boards and railings, then flashing and fasteners. If the frame under the deck is worse than the look showed, we stop and call before going further.
Once the wood is dry enough, the deck is cleaned, brightened, sanded and stained or sealed. The one-year workmanship warranty is printed on the invoice.
Washington makes no exception for small jobs: anyone paid to construct, alter or repair a house, a deck tread included, must be registered as a contractor with the Department of Labor and Industries, with a bond and liability insurance behind the registration, and it is a crime to offer or do the work without it. Kaminskiy Care and Repair is registered with the department, bonded and insured, and every technician is Kaminskiy-certified and background checked. Lights on the deck are a licensed electrician's work and a failed beam or ledger is an engineer's, and we name both on the call.
Salmon Creek is unincorporated Clark County, which means the county issues the permits. On its list a small freestanding deck no more than thirty inches off the ground and not serving the exit door needs no permit, while minor repairs such as rot repair are filed under its Alteration, Repair and Specialty permit. The state residential code the county builds on asks no application for an ordinary repair with like materials, never the cutting of a beam or a load-bearing support, which is how a replaced board, a reset post, a rebuilt tread or a re-bolted railing reads. A rebuilt frame, a new ledger, a replaced beam or a wider deck is the job we ask the Permit Center on Franklin Street about first, with the permit in the written scope when one applies.
The ground is the Salmon Creek rule. Stairs on dirt and posts on bare concrete rot on a schedule here, so when we rebuild them they go onto footings and standoffs, and a downspout dumping beside the deck gets extended away from it. Standing water under the deck or in the crawl space is a drainage contractor's job, and we say so. The newer streets have associations with exterior standards; a deck repaired and stained to match rarely needs a form, a new railing style, a change of decking material or a different stain color sometimes does, and we put the materials in writing for the board.
Up I-205 from our office. Your Salmon Creek crew dispatches from our Vancouver office on NE Park Plaza Drive, open every day 8 to 8, so most calls are on the calendar within days. Call 360-347-2002, text a photo, or send the form.
Reviewed by Sergei Kaminskiy, founder, November 7, 2026.
Can't find your answer? Call 360-347-2002 and ask us anything.
Call 360-347-2002We answer in under three rings, price a board, railing or stair repair from a photo on the call, and usually have a technician from our east Vancouver office at the house within days, creek side or subdivision. Most of those are one visit. A frame, post or ledger repair gets a look, a written scope and a dry window.
Repair first. New boards, stairs on footings, posts on standoffs, through-bolted railings and a real seal bring most Salmon Creek decks back for far less than a rebuild, as long as the joists, the beam and the ledger are sound. When they are not, we show you where the probe went in and say so; a new deck is a permitted build and we explain what that takes.
For a repair in like materials, no. Clark County's list leaves a low freestanding deck alone and the state residential code asks nothing for an ordinary repair in like materials. Because the county files rot repair under its Alteration, Repair and Specialty permit, a rebuilt frame, a new ledger or a replaced beam is where we check with the Permit Center first, and we tell you which yours is on the call.
It depends on how far the damp ground reached into the stairs, the posts and the frame. Text a photo of the bottom stair, a post base and the siding under the deck and you get a range on the call; after the look you get a written scope with the boards, footings, hardware and finish priced before anything is cut. What you approve is what you pay.
Yes. One year on the workmanship, in writing, on every Salmon Creek deck and balcony repair, by Kaminskiy-certified technicians, from a company registered, bonded and insured with the Department of Labor and Industries.
More than you would think. We scrape and treat the green, replace the boards that have gone soft, get the stairs off the dirt onto footings and the posts off the concrete onto standoffs, open the gaps so the deck drains, extend the downspout away from it and seal the wood once it is dry. The deck will still live in a damp place, but it stops drinking from the ground. If water stands under it, that is a drainage contractor's job, and we tell you so.
All of Salmon Creek, including Klineline Pond, the North Salmon Creek streets, NE 134th Street and the subdivisions toward the university, plus Felida, Hazel Dell, Ridgefield, Battle Ground and the rest of Vancouver. Call 360-347-2002 to confirm your address.
Tell us what the deck or balcony is doing. We'll call you back with a price and a time. Calling is still the fastest way: 360-347-2002.
Priced on the call, rebuilt solid, warranted in writing.
We answer in under three rings, 24/7.No price games. You get a clear written quote before any work begins, backed by our workmanship warranty.
