I have a 10’x30′ deck on the side of my house that needs help. It is made of treated lumber, 2″x10″ joists, 2″x6″ deck boards and 4″x6″ posts. The yard slopes and the deck is about 3′ off the ground in front and about 8′ off the ground in the back. It’s probably about fifteen years old, I’ve only lived here for about 8 years. Whoever built it didn’t attach it to the house, and put support posts about a foot away from the house. When they did this they went right into the footer drain and a few years ago I started getting water in my basement from the backed up pipe. I didn’t have the money to rebuild the entire deck, but I did correct the faulty drain. I dug out a trench along the entire length of the house and before I removed the posts over the footer drain I replaced them with a new post about 20″ farther over (away from the house). Then I replaced the footer drain and waterproofed the foundation wall. The deck was never really rock solid, if I stand on the deck and push on the house I can sway the deck a little. I don’t think it’s severe enough to be a safety issue, it just bugs me. The boards on the deck had been finished with some clear finish I think after they had turned grey. I’ve used a number of ‘deck strippers’ and haven’t been able to clean the wood satisfactorily, and pressure washing has really roughed up the grain. I want to re-do the deck next summer so that it will be done right so I’ll be planning my project over the winter. So, I have a few questions. Is it okay to have a free standing deck, or would it be better to have it attached to the house? If I don’t attach it to the house, will more support poles and bracing cure the ‘sway issue’? Since the deck boards are rough, but still thick can I re-use them? A friend suggested that I could pull them, run them through my planer and then have a new clean surface that would take stain well. Finally, if I end up pulling this apart and rebuilding it, should I fasten the deck boards with hand nails, pneumatic nails, or screws, and why?
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Some folks think a freestanding deck is better than attached to the house for a couple of reasons. There's no question that it is not properly attached to the house is a big reason.
Install a couple of knee braces from the posts to the beams. That will take a lot of the sway out.
If all the nails are below the surface, you could rent a floor sander and sand the boards in place. That would be a lot easier than removing the boards, sending them through the planer, then reattaching. Most folks use screws for the deck boards because they don't loosen as readily as nails.
"Put your creed in your deed." Emerson
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
couple things.. you don't say where you live.... coastal ? what state ?
your paragraph is hard to read... use your return key more often
3.... the vertical support sounds fine.. so i would leave that
you can get rid of the sway by attaching it to the house in 4 - 5 locations, that won't change the vertical support, but it will get rid of the ability to "sway" the deck
then you want to think about what to use for your new decking material.... my favorites are the composites like Trex
I like doing all three of the following: Freestanding, attached to the house and diagonal flooring (or alternatively, diagonal bracing underneath). If I had to do without one of these, I'd probably lose the house attachment and use diagonal braces on the columns. When the deck is designed to be freestandint, the house attachment does not really hold anything up, but just eliminates sway, so you can just use lag bolts if you want.
I would also suggest you avoid pressure washing a deck. If the wood is still OK, you could just sand it in place and retreat with a good deck product. Outdoor wood turns gray no matter what you try to do. It's not a question of "cleaning" -- it's just what wood does. If you don't want it gray, you need to paint or stain it.
Like most here, I prefer stainless steel screws for fastening deck boards, but the underside fasteners like DeckMaster are nice too if you don't want to see the fasteners from above.
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
Correct your grade issue, than worry about the deck. Footing drain good, improper slope bad (FHB had a story about curtain drains--good stuff!). Lag screws would be the most effective, just make sure that the rain can't get behind your ledger. Ledgers are about the most probable place to find rot because most of the time they are not flashed properly. Second the greying wood comment. I think an all out replacement would be less time consuming than sanding, scraping, and staining.