Screw Pattern For Deck Boards

Length x width in feet and inches total length of your deck s perimeter board size.

Screw pattern for deck boards. Electric screwdriver to fasten screws. Decking railings and stairs. Should you use screws or nails for deck. Predrill the ends of the boards.

Spirit level carpentry pencil corner square. If you plan to use screws try these solutions. Screws are notorious for splitting deck boards. Nailing or screwing your deck boards down is more about personal preference than anything else although screws are more prone to split deck boards than nails.

We like the pam deck screws best since we can use a longer driver to zip them down very efficient. Pre drill the ends of the boards to avoid splitting using two screws where each decking board and joist intersect. Wooden deck screws. Drill machinery and wood drill bits to make pilot holes.

In terms of fastener lengths use 3 inch screws or 12d nails for 2 x 4 or 2 x 6 decking and 2 1 2inch screws or 10d nails for 5 4 x 4 or x 6 decking. This style will add another 10 to 15 waste on top of normal waste. This means using two screws on each end and using two screws towards the outside of the boards at every joist along the way. Stainless steel deck board screws should also be used near salt water.

Choose your straightest board to be your first piece of decking as it will go right up against the house. Professional builders using standard 5 1 2 inch wide deck boards attach them at each joist with screws set one to two inches from each edge of the board. Image via family handyman. 2 4 or 2 6 decking.

Circular saw to cut the wooden boards. The job will go quicker if you scatter boards for 10 to 15 rows of decking across the joists first. What size screws for decking. They tend to push the wood fibers apart rather than tear through them like nails.

Most decking screws are 8 gauge and while 2 1 2 inches is the minimum length needed to hold decking boards to the joists 3 inch screws are commonly used to provide extra holding power against the upward pressure of shrinking or warping boards. Doing this will help keep the boards firmly in place and won t give it the freedom to warp or cup. In order to use these decking patterns you need the following. The exact measurement doesn t matter as much as uniformity of spacing for appearance s sake.

Even boards that look good initially can get little cat s eye splits later as the wood dries. Even so it depends on screw placement never within 1 4 inch of an edge user skill tools used drill battery charge high or low speed and type of wood.