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My partner and I just started our own construction company about 6 months ago. We each worked for different companies before this. The guy I worked for would run deck boards tight claiming that after time they are all going to shrink up and have gaps, so per-gaping the deck boards would just result in even bigger gaps after time. The guy my partner worked for would always gap the deck boards with a carpenters pencil claiming this left room for expansion and contraction then the gap would always stay about the same. Any suggestions? This is on redwood decks.
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In my experience, leaving a gap led to the gap growing larger as the wood shrunk. I have since installed deck boards tight and have had no problems.
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every deck and every material has a little different answer..
we gap PT 5/4 x 6 with an 8d nail...if there is no gap dirt and debris will accumalate...
dry material like luan and square edge fir we gap with an 8d finish nail....almost like we gap with whatever the fastener is..
trex.. you HAVE to gap with a 16d or run the risk of buckeling...
on a deck you want the debris to pass thru along with the water...
on a porch you want the water to run off so the porch is framed with a pitch and the boards are laid tight....
anything that is laid level should be gapped for it's ultimate equilibrium of moisture content...(what it will shrink or expand to after it has been installed)
b but hey, whadda i no ?
*Eric:Mike is right about different materials and situations. Also do you want a gap? I say yes in most situations. My experience is with construction heart grade redwood that was pretty wet. I gapped the 2x6 decking an 8d and when the wood seasoned I had gaps of 3/16" to 1/4" maximum. This was just what I was shooting for. The deck sits low and I wanted air circulation. It does collect leaf debris in the gaps but I found this slick deck flossing tool. It's kind of a blunt hook on a stick... works great.
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My partner and I just started our own construction company about 6 months ago. We each worked for different companies before this. The guy I worked for would run deck boards tight claiming that after time they are all going to shrink up and have gaps, so per-gaping the deck boards would just result in even bigger gaps after time. The guy my partner worked for would always gap the deck boards with a carpenters pencil claiming this left room for expansion and contraction then the gap would always stay about the same. Any suggestions? This is on redwood decks.