Deck Wizard
The Deck Wizard creates a deck from a shape you draw on the canvas. Draw the deck outline first, then configure elevation, boards, and wood style in the sidebar.
Deck WizardThe Deck Wizard turns a shape you draw on the canvas into a fully detailed deck surface — complete with individually rendered boards, optional picture-frame border, accent strip, and a choice of eight wood finishes. Draw the footprint first using any of the supported shape tools (rectangle, rounded rectangle, circle, polygon, or bezier curve), then configure the deck in three wizard steps: Elevation, Boards, and Wood Style. A live 3D preview updates as you make changes so you can judge the result before committing.
Step 3 — Wood Style
Choose a wood finish from 8 preset cards: Fresh Pine, Pressure Treated, Oiled, Aged Grey, Aged Mossy, Painted White, Painted Dark, Charred. After selecting a preset, two fine-tuning sliders appear: Weathering (0–1) and Moss Coverage (0–1). The wood style applies to all wood roles in the deck (surface boards, skirt boards, border).
For a deck with rounded corners, choose the Rounded Rectangle shape tool and drag the corner radius handle after placing the rectangle.
Set the deck elevation
In the Elevation step, toggle Elevated on to raise the deck above grade. Enter the height using the Height field — the 3D preview lifts the deck platform in real time. When elevated, a Skirt Boards checkbox appears; enable it to add a solid perimeter fascia that conceals the substructure. Choose Horizontal or Vertical board orientation for the skirt using the two-button selector.
Choose the surface finish
In the Boards step, the Deck Surface section offers two modes. Solid Color uses a color swatch — pick from the built-in wood tone presets or open the full color picker for a custom shade. Material assigns a photoreal wood texture from the material catalog; when a material is active, the individual board-line settings are hidden because the texture already depicts boards.
Configure board width, direction, and seam pattern
With Solid Color selected, three board layout controls become active. Board Width offers standard decking sizes (metric: 9 cm – 20 cm; imperial: 3½" – 11¼"). Direction chooses between Auto (boards aligned to the longest deck edge) and Perpendicular (boards running across). Seams has three options: Staggered (natural random offset), Fixed Offset (repeating brick pattern), or Straight (continuous full-length boards).
"Auto" direction gives the most natural look for irregular shapes because it always runs boards the long way.
Add a border and accent strip
Below the seam controls, set Border to Picture Frame to add a perimeter band of boards that frame the main deck field — this is the classic Ipe or composite deck border look. Set Accent Strip to Perimeter Band to add a second contrasting line just inside the border. Both options are independent, so you can use border-only, accent-only, or both together.
Pick a wood finish
The Wood Style step shows eight finish presets: Fresh Pine, Pressure Treated, Oiled, Aged / Greyed, Aged with Moss, Painted White, Painted Dark, and Charred. Click a card to apply the preset to every wood component — surface boards, border, and skirt boards all update together. After selecting a preset, adjust the Weathering slider to add wear and the Moss Coverage slider to introduce organic patina.
"Aged / Greyed" or "Aged with Moss" work well for naturalistic garden designs. "Painted Dark" or "Charred" suit modern minimalist gardens.
Apply the deck
Click Apply at the bottom of the wizard sidebar to commit the deck to the drawing. The deck entity appears on the canvas and in the Layers panel. To edit the deck later, select it and choose Parameters from the inspector — the wizard reopens with all your settings intact. For per-component material overrides (for example, a different wood color on the border only), select the deck and open the Structure Edit workspace from the Inspector.
Board width and gap presets use real-world decking lumber sizes — metric (9 cm to 20 cm wide, 3 mm to 10 mm gap) and imperial (3½" to 11¼" wide, ⅛" to ⅜" gap). Choosing a realistic board width at design time avoids rework if the client requests a material specification later.
After placing the deck, select it and open the Structure Edit workspace from the Inspector to override individual component materials — for example, give the picture-frame border a darker stain while keeping the main field boards lighter.
Switching the deck surface from Solid Color to a Material hides all board-line configuration (width, direction, seams, border, accent strip). If you switch back to Solid Color your previous board settings are restored, but any material selection is cleared.
Frequently Asked Questions
The wizard sidebar didn't open after I drew the shape. What did I miss?
The wizard sidebar only opens when the footprint shape is fully closed. For polygon and bezier shapes, click the starting point to close the loop. For rectangle and circle shapes the sidebar opens as soon as you release the mouse. If the shape still appears open (dashed outline), try clicking directly on the first anchor point.
My board lines disappeared when I picked a material. Is that a bug?
No — this is intentional. Photoreal photoreal wood materials already contain photographic board detail, so drawing separate board lines on top would double up the visual. Switch the Deck Surface back to Solid Color if you want explicit board-line control.
How do I add a classic picture-frame border to the deck?
In the Boards step, set Border to Picture Frame. For a double-frame look, also set Accent Strip to Perimeter Band. Both work only when Deck Surface is set to Solid Color. The border and accent strip pick up the same wood finish as the main boards in the Wood Style step.
How do I make a raised deck with hidden framing?
In the Elevation step, toggle Elevated on and enter the platform height. Then enable the Skirt Boards checkbox that appears below the height field. Choose Horizontal for a traditional horizontal-siding look or Vertical for a modern board-on-edge fascia. The skirt boards inherit the wood finish applied in the Wood Style step.
Can I edit the deck after I've placed it?
Yes. Select the placed deck on the canvas, then click Parameters in the Inspector panel. The Deck Wizard reopens with all your original settings. You can change the board layout, elevation, or wood finish and click Apply again. For individual component material overrides (surface vs. border vs. skirt), use the Structure Edit workspace accessible from the Inspector.