Having a deck inspected professionally can cost a homeowner somewhere around $200 to $300. Montgomery County, Maryland, is offering its residents to do it for free.
The county said it is providing free residential deck maintenance inspections during the month of May as part of an effort to raise awareness about building safety and the importance of adopting updated building codes.
It is being done through the county’s department of permitting services.
“It is important to keep up with preventive maintenance at home to ensure you are in a safe environment,” Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich said.
The program is capped, with free inspections given to only the first 300 homeowners who sign up.
“We encourage you to take advantage of this free service to learn firsthand from an inspector about how to assess the condition and safety of your deck for you and your visitors,” Elrich said.
Homeowners across Montgomery County can sign up, although the free inspections do not extend to Gaithersburg and Rockville because those areas have their own permitting departments and protocols.
To request a deck maintenance inspection by phone, homeowners can contact the county’s central call system at MC311 or 240-777-0311 starting Monday.
Homeowners can also schedule an inspection online by visiting the permitting services website and submitting a service request.
On the description section of the online form, residents should note they are requesting a deck maintenance inspection and will need to include the property address and contact information.
Requests cannot be anonymous.
“Building safety is important 365 days a year,” said Rabbiah Sabbakhan, director of the county’s department of permitting services. “These free deck maintenance inspections take less than 15 minutes.”
Once on site, the inspector will check the support structure of the deck, fastener conditions, ledger attachment and overall condition of the deck.
