Trinidad Armendariz
Owner and lead designer
Trini draws every plan herself and leads the yard visits. She carries your scope from the first sketch to the dusk photos.
Decks, pergolas and covered patios in Salt Lake City
Build it in the sun. Live on it at dusk.
Alpenglow Deck and Pergola builds outdoor rooms along the Wasatch Front. We plan each one around the hour you will actually use it, and we come back to photograph it then.
- Evening yard visits, by appointment
- A written scope before any work starts
Evening photography
Built in daylight. Photographed at dusk.
When a build is finished we return on the first clear evening, switch everything on and take the pictures. If a light glares or a railing throws a bad shadow, we would rather find it than have you find it.
Sample photos.
The build window
When we build, month by month
A deck built in July began as a drawing in winter. This is the usual year; yours is set at the walk-through.
Walk-through and design
We measure, draw and talk through materials. Evening visits show you the shade you will really have.
Oct–Feb
Permits and material orders
Plans go to your city or county, and decking and railing orders go in.
Jan–Apr
Footings and framing
Once the ground can be worked, the structure goes in.
Mar–Jun
Decking, railings and roofs
The part you can see, built in the long dry days.
May–Sep
Lights, finish and the dusk photos
Wiring is finished, the lights go on and we photograph the work at dusk.
Jun–Oct
Stain and seal before snow
Wood decks get their finish while the boards are dry.
Sep–Oct
Sample content.
Dates move with the weather and with how long your permit office takes.
What we build
Six kinds of outdoor room
Each one starts the same way: a visit to your yard at the hour you would use it.
Deck rebuilds and resurfacing
A tired deck gets a survey of its frame, then new boards, a new frame, or both.
Read morePergolas and shade
Open-beam pergolas and shade structures set where the sun actually lands.
Read moreCovered patios and outdoor kitchens
A roof, a floor and a place for the grill, with the gas and power done by licensed trades.
Read moreLighting, screens and privacy
Low-voltage lights set into the frame, plus slatted screens and wind breaks.
Read more
We visit at the hour you will use it
A deck that looks right at noon can be in full glare at six and in shade by seven. So we ask you for the evening you would actually sit out, and we stand in the yard then. We note where the low sun lands, where the neighbor's window looks over, and where the cold air pools once the sun drops behind the Oquirrh Mountains.
What we mark on the evening visit
Sun and shade marked at the hour you will use the space
Sightlines to neighbors, and where a screen would help
Where a light, a heater or an outlet will want to be
Materials
What the sun does to each deck board
Utah sun is strong and dry. We bring sample boards to the evening visit and leave them in your yard so you can see them in your own light.
Wood
Cedar, redwood or treated pine. Lowest cost to start, and it wants sealing as the sun dries it.
Warm in July sun
Needs a new coat of finish every few seasons
Easy to repair a single board
Composite
Boards made from wood fiber and plastic. Little upkeep, but dark colors get hot underfoot in full sun.
Does not need staining
Lighter colors stay cooler
Fasteners hidden in most systems
Capped composite
A composite board with a shell that resists fading and stains. It costs more up front and asks the least of you.
Shell resists fading
Textures that read as wood
Check the maker's terms for the warranty
Who is in your yard
Four people from first visit to final evening
You will deal with the same few names the whole way through.
Branko Maric
Lead carpenter
Branko runs the framing crew and checks every footing, ledger and post before a single deck board goes down.
Anqi Zhu
Designer and estimator
Anqi turns the visit into drawings and a written scope, and builds the cost sheet line by line.
Nolan Hutchins
Project manager
Nolan schedules the crews and the materials, files the permit and is your contact until the last evening.
After the lights came on
“Trini came at six on a Tuesday, stood on our lawn and showed us where the sun hits at dinner time. The pergola went exactly where she marked it.”
Elif T.Pergola over a patio
“The written scope listed what was not included, and one line was the gas run for the grill. It saved an argument later.”
Gabor N.Deck rebuild
“They came back after dark to photograph the deck and found one rail light pointed at the neighbor's window. It was fixed the next morning.”
Maleny R.New deck
Sample reviews.
Questions owners ask first
What happens at a yard visit?
Trini or Anqi walks the yard with you, measures, checks where the house meets the ground, and notes where the sun and shade fall. Evening visits are the useful ones, because that is when you will be out there. A written scope follows, and the next page of this site says what it includes and what it leaves out.
Do I need a permit for a deck?
Usually, yes. Attached decks, decks more than 30 inches above the ground and anything with a roof generally need one. Your city or county building department sets the rule for your address, so we check before we price. We file the permit and tell you what the inspector will look at.
Is my house built before 1978? What do you do about lead?
Federal rules cover paid work that disturbs paint in homes built before 1978, and a deck is bolted to the house, so it can apply. If your house is that old we say so in the scope, follow the EPA's lead-safe work practices and keep the dust contained. Our firm certification is listed on the license and insurance page, and we give you the EPA's renovation pamphlet before work starts.
Can you build in winter?
Design, drawings and permits run all winter, and that is when most of our yard visits happen. Footings need ground that can be worked, and decking and stain want dry weather, so the building itself runs from spring into fall. The build calendar shows the usual year.
Wood, composite or capped composite?
It depends on the sun, the budget and how much you want to maintain. Wood is the lowest cost to start and needs sealing. Composite needs little upkeep but can run hot in July sun. Capped composite sits between. We show boards in your yard in the evening light before you choose.
Who runs the gas and electric for a grill or lights?
Licensed trades. We frame for the lines, set the sleeves and plan the circuit with them, and they do the gas and the wiring under their own permits. The scope names who does what.
Where we build
The Wasatch Front, from Ogden to Spanish Fork
A yard visit is an evening trip, so we keep to the places a crew can reach and get home from. If your town is not listed, ask: we will say yes or no before we book.
Salt Lake County
- Salt Lake City
- The Avenues
- Federal Heights
- Yalecrest
- Bonneville Hills
Utah County
- Provo
- Mapleton
- Springville
- Spanish Fork
Weber and Davis counties
- Ogden
- South Ogden
- Pleasant View
- Harrisville
- Roy
- Syracuse
We don't build north of Ogden, south of Spanish Fork or in Tooele County. We don't pour patios, build retaining walls or do roofing, and we don't take a job smaller than a day's work.
Contact
Plan a yard visit
Tell us about the yard and the hour you would use it. We write back about a visit, usually an evening one, and about what to have ready.
Phone(801) 555-0103
Hours
- Monday – FridayToday
- 7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Tue and Thu evenings
- By appointment
- SaturdayToday
- Closed
- SundayToday
- Closed