Wood for decking (questions)

Ron-P

As most have seen (in my other thread) the pics of my patio cover / raised deck, my question is, what to use for the decks flooring?

At first I was thinking solid wood deck with plywood of some sort. But now I'm thinking I'd rather go with slats with a .25 gap between the slats. The wood needs to be able to support weight between the joists (approx 15" between) yet not super heavy. The deck is 10'x10'.

Any suggestions?

WilliamM2

I would use the recycled plastic decking boards. It's quite expensive, but you will never have to replace or stain that deck again. Never use plywood for decking, there will be no way for the water to run off, and it will puddle when it rains.

Ron-P

I really need to keep the cost down so real wood, would be best. My last patio cover lasted 12+ years before I demoed it, and that was because I was tired of having it, not so much due to weather damage.

I'm just over $100 on cost for this one so far and the floor is the last expense so I want something a bit less expensive. It will be stained and water sealed so it should last a very long time.

I thought about using redwood planks. Outdoor durable and lightweight. But, I haven't given any thought to it beyond that.

WilliamM2

To each his own. My goal for the last 20 years has been to make the outside of my home completely maintenance free. Vinyl siding, plastic decking, vinyl windows, vinyl covered doors, etc.

I figure in 20 years or so I may not be able to do the maintenance myself, and I may not be able to afford to pay someone else to do it.

Midnite Mick

If you plan on finishing it anyway why not just use regular 2x4's or 2x6's.

polkatese

Ron, in our previous townhouse, I did a raised deck with redwood in the backyard. It was sturdy, sitting on top of posts. But, it was high maintenance deck, need to be stained at least once a year. The sun just butchered the look. It looks great for about 3 years, and then it wasn't so. We stayed in that house for 7 years. The next owner ended up demoed it and put back grass. My advice would be don't. It just did not look good after a few years.

Midnite Mick

Any wood you use is going to need maintenance. Even cedar will turn grey and ugly.

jimmydep

Redwood or Cedar would be great choices for natural wood, a pressure treated board would be the cheapest, but my preference would be a composite planking because it's mostly maintenance free.

Systems

If you are set on wood stay with redwood as it stains the best. Pine is not an option on deckboards, trust me. This is what I've used on outdoor redwood for a finish and has really held up great.

http://www.penofin.com/products-verde.shtml

HHStuart

Trex isn't all that expensive for that size. I think it would be worth at least checking it out.
No splinters, no cracks, looks just as good 10 years later.

AudioGenics

if you have very young children the composite decking is a great choice.
(splinters) plus low maintenance.

kcoc321

+1 for using composit decking, IF you can swing the cost difference. Nice thing is it will never rot or split and has no waste, per se.

I used 5/4x6 as a comparison.
Depending on what 'grade' you are considering, it is about 1.38x ($51/sf [5/4x6 tight knot cedar] vs $68.89/sf [Fiberon Cedar PS 5/4x6-12 Grvd Fiberon Pro-Series Decking]
compared to tight knot cedar (the online lumberyard I use does not list redwood)
BUT it is almost half of Clear cedar [$122.67/sf 5/4x4]. And that is not taking into account waste to cut out imperfections in the cedar.

Retro152

Ron, as others have posted here, a composite, Trex, and all the other "knock-off's" is your best bet for some real nice extended longevity for anything exterior. I have been in the trade for just over 25 yrs, and have been stubborn and steadfast regarding anything as i regard inferior to good ole' mother nature. Sadly, she just cant compete with "Stepmother nature" technology.:rolleyes: Know you listed budget constraints. Look into Alaskan 5/4x6 yellow cedar, layed it down on my dads' deck about 16yrs ago, and its been holding its own, save for a few replacements and a bi-annual powerwash and a fresh coat. Pretty durable. Caution: Give them a good space between, 16 penny nail or the like. Good luck.




Pat.

geoffr

If your budget is limited, put a "wanted" ad in CL for people taking down or rebuilding their decks. you can reuse the wood decking (you'd probably get wolmanized) by turning it over. Look in the yellow pages for deck builders/refurbishers, call them and ask about demo'd decking. I know folks who have done this.

Jstas

Honestly? If you want cheap, 1x6" pressure treated wood boards. To space them, nail down your first board where it needs to be (don't use screws, they won't let the boards flex and they will split, crack and warp). Then, take some of your framing nails (usually 16 penny galvanized) and tap them in to the joist up against the first board so they don't move. Slide your next board up against them and nail it down. Take a scrap piece of wood and put it under the hammer head and pry the nails out. Tap them in again at the face of the last board and continue until the deck is complete. Clean up, wash up and go get a beer. You can stain/poly it later, the pressure treated lumber won't get destroyed by the weather nearly as fast.

The TREX stuff is spiffy but it gets HOT in the sun. To the point where you can't touch it without severe discomfort and pain.

If you want pretty, cedars and redwoods are nice but they are expensive. Pressure treated boards would be about 1.75 to 2.50 a board foot. Cedar would easily be double that if not more and redwood is about 6.50 a board foot last I saw but likely more. TREX would be between cedar and pressure treated, Honestly though, doesn't look nearly as good as real wood.

John30_30

5/4 x 6" treated pine. H-D and Lowes both carry it, it's roundovered. Use galvanized screws and countersink them in, not nails. And space them, like Jstas said. A pencil thickness for spacing is handy. Nails will pull loose over the years due to wood movement, even if a nailgun is quicker.

Cedar will rot over time, and I personally feel logging redwood is sacrilegious.

Ron-P

Thanks for all the comments guys!

I want to avoid using 2x6's and the like due to the weight. I'm not worried about wear or keeping it looking pretty. I am after and old, beaten up, distressed look. So, nice looking boards are not needed. I will stain them a very dark brown, the color is called espresso, same color I used on my Tiki Hut and other backyard decor.

I will check the cost on the Trex but it does have that plastic look, which I do not like.

To each his own. My goal for the last 20 years has been to make the outside of my home completely maintenance free. Vinyl siding, plastic decking, vinyl windows, vinyl covered doors, etc.

I am the exact opposite. I do everything real (other then my vinyl windows). All my siding is real wood, decks, my Tiki Hut, patio fencing is all real wood, doors and so on. The maintenance I don't mind (love working outdoors) and it looks so much nicer and natural. I hate that plastic look of Vinyl.

Gadabout

Just a comment on the spacing for pressure treated wood....

Last deck I built I used no spacing on the boards as they were all pretty wet still. I put the deck in in April / May. I let the boards dry till August. By then they had spaced nicely to 1/4" and applied the stain. Now the Texas sun is hotter than in a lot of places and this method might not work for all.

Stain was applied in 3 coats over the course of a week (sprayed on and then rolled). The deck was pressure washed each spring, let dry and then a thin coat of stain was applied. I drove past the old house the other day and the deck still looks pretty good for being 10 years old.

Scott

shawn474

If your joists are 15" apart, I would NOT recommend the composite decking. Especially on hot days, that material will flex under its own weight. The recommended joist spacing is 10-12" for composite decking. (I have built and installed no less than a dozen of these types of decks.) They are great due to the maintennce free aspect, but are VERY heavy,

I would just got with 5/4" decking boards and seal them well.

Just my 2 cents.

Shawn

muncybob

Gadabout wrote: »

Just a comment on the spacing for pressure treated wood....

Last deck I built I used no spacing on the boards as they were all pretty wet still. I put the deck in in April / May. I let the boards dry till August. By then they had spaced nicely to 1/4" and applied the stain. Now the Texas sun is hotter than in a lot of places and this method might not work for all.


Scott

This worked for me up here in PA last summer. Most lumber yards here, their PT wood is very wet. We laid the deck boards as close to each other as possible and they shrunk to a nice fairly uniform spacing. Last summer was so wet here I never did get around to staining but I will soon I hope. Has anybody had any experience with the brand name "DEFY" wood stains/sealers?

mhmacw

5/4's is good stuff. id look for 10 footers though. you can find them if you look a bit and no butted seams will pay dividends over time and look a lot nicer.

John30_30

Gadabout wrote: »

Just a comment on the spacing for pressure treated wood....

Last deck I built I used no spacing on the boards as they were all pretty wet still. I put the deck in in April / May. I let the boards dry till August. By then they had spaced nicely to 1/4" and applied the stain. Now the Texas sun is hotter than in a lot of places and this method might not work for all.

Scott

Yup, if it's summer time and as humid as it's going to get. That's more for the "advanced" remodeler.

Hillbilly61

I redecked 15 years back with PT pine. The deck is still going strong. If your floor joists are 2X10s or 2X12s on 18" or less centers, don't sweat things going with 5/4" decking wood. My only mistake was using the 1/4" spacing when placing the boards. Almost all wood bought from HD or Lowes are wet and shrink up quite a bit as they dry out.

I now have 1/2 or so spacing. If I had to do it again, I'd set the initial spacing at 1/8" inch ... basically the width of using cardboard to provide the necessary air circulation to allow the wood to dry out.

Also, when placing each and every board, look at the grain pattern from the end of the board. It will likely be circular. Lay the board where the circular grain pattern has the top of the circle to the surface of the deck. All boards will tend to cup a little bit in weather. By doing so, the top of the cup will on the surface and drain water better (instead of ponding it to allow better absorption into the board).

Plastic boards are very good too. They tend to be much heavier and there are fewer standards (reference an earlier poster stating that they will get soft in the sun). Also, some plastics are very sensitive to UV degradation and board will "decay" not from water, etc, but from sunlight. A lot of this stuff is made from recycled plastic. The key is to know for sure what the board manufacturer is indeed using.

I-SIG

John30_30 wrote: »

5/4 x 6" treated pine. H-D and Lowes both carry it, it's roundovered. Use galvanized screws and countersink them in, not nails. And space them, like Jstas said. A pencil thickness for spacing is handy. Nails will pull loose over the years due to wood movement, even if a nailgun is quicker.

Cedar will rot over time, and I personally feel logging redwood is sacrilegious.

I second the use of screws over even the spiral nails. Put a nailer in between all your joists where you want and drill pilot holes and put in 2 screws/board/nailer. The screws will help prevent cupping and the trapping of even more water, especially if a pilot hole allows a little relief for th ebaord.

Wes

John30_30

I built this monster 22 years ago. The painter gal is my little sister.