Deck board spacing or no

[Fueler]

I have my deck project about ready for the deck boards.
I was speaking with a retired contractor who stated he did the 1/8 spacing on his own deck with the treated boards and was not happy. Once the boards dried out he had some gaps he felt were obnoxiously wide.
He said if he had it to do over he would not space treated boards.

Naturally my eyebrows went up and he stated: "I know what you are thinking. That I should know this. I have built a few decks for customers over the years but never had to go back a year later and look at it."

I am wavering between no spacing and using a 1/16" spacer.

Sooo, what is the group think on spacing treated boards or not?

 

[debo1683]

I did mine about 2 years ago with no spacing, and now I have spaces because of shrinkage. I would do no spacing if it were me ...

 

[NYBODYMAN]

Same here. I did mine 2 years ago with 20' treated boards and no spacing and the gaps are perfect.

 

[Hobbit]

No spacing if installed in summer months for me, which in Alabama will give you about a 3/8" gap once they dry out. If installed in winter you might run the possibility of boards bucking up as thy will expand from rain/snow moisture and are not likely going to shrink until next summer. Is this a covered or exposed deck?

 

[Fueler]

exposed

 

[Aspen RT]

Yep, no spacing for me either.

 

[Richard Cranium]

As I remember we used a 16d nail for a spacer on my deck and have had no problems

 

[3dd13]

+1 to no spacing

 

[PugetDude]

The OP is in Urbana, Illinois- home of 110 degrees/95% humidity in the summer. Better leave a space for expansion, it's not Phoenix...

 

[billspit]

I helped my daughter redo her front porch and the mfgs says leave no space. The boards shrink enough to from a gap.

When I redid my deck years ago, I used double dried Cox treated lumber which still had the arsenic treatment. We did use a spacer, and its got some pretty wide gaps in it now.

 

[manwithtools]

The OP is in Urbana, Illinois- home of 110 degrees/95% humidity in the summer. Better leave a space for expansion, it's not Phoenix...

No gap required at installation, treated deck boards will eventually stabilize at around 10 - 15% moisture content. They are probably about 70% moisture content when they are installed. They will never reach that level again, the gaps that will naturally be created by their normal drying will be more than sufficient for any humidity levels (or monsoons) in the future.

Your retired contractor friend is 100% correct, don't put any more space between the boards during installation than it takes to keep the installation straight and parallel. If you add space now it will end up being to big a year from now.

 

[Kevin54]

No spacing here either.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I forget what I did when I built the front porch but the gaps between the side boards are ok. The problem I have is the end gaps that opened up after the boards dried. Some boards literally pulled through the deck screws.

 

[cdestuck]

I know this is not your question but just have to enter my ideas on wood decks. Pressure-treated lumber does last for many years but after only a few years it begins to look like ****. Not only looks but rain starts to raise the grain and other problems. A few years back I got fed up with the look of our deck And ripped all the boards off and replace them with vinyl lumber. If there is anyway you can swing it I would definitely go with either composite lumber or vinyl deck boards.

 

[CNGsaves]

Use better materials . . . "plastic" wood will last longer and look better.

 

[bczygan]

I know this is not your question but just have to enter my ideas on wood decks. Pressure-treated lumber does last for many years but after only a few years it begins to look like ****. Not only looks but rain starts to raise the grain and other problems. A few years back I got fed up with the look of our deck And ripped all the boards off and replace them with vinyl lumber. If there is anyway you can swing it I would definitely go with either composite lumber or vinyl deck boards.

This, and use the best quality stuff you can find.

And when figuring spans for the boards, joists and beams, be conservative. In other words, shorten spans and support more often. It will give you a deck that feels more solid. And use a hidden fastening system.

One more thing. Do not attach to the house.


Bill

 

[PassnThru]

I know this is not your question but just have to enter my ideas on wood decks. Pressure-treated lumber does last for many years but after only a few years it begins to look like ****. Not only looks but rain starts to raise the grain and other problems. A few years back I got fed up with the look of our deck And ripped all the boards off and replace them with vinyl lumber. If there is anyway you can swing it I would definitely go with either composite lumber or vinyl deck boards.

Use better materials . . . "plastic" wood will last longer and look better.

Or better yet - if you don't have a severe slope in the yard go with a patio. If concrete is too boring - there is stamping. Or maybe bricks/stones? Point is - decks are cool - but maintenance hogs even with plastic wood on the top. I've heard problems with warping?
I love wood - but I'll continue to go down three steps to my concrete patio. It's cracked and slightly unlevel (it is over 40 years old after all) but only requires a pressure washing every 2 years or so. And no railing required.
OK - double edit. Just realized my 'patio' is over 40 years old and still works. Don't think many people have a 40+ year old deck.

 

[manwithtools]

Synthetic materials for decks are great - if you don't want to walk barefoot on them in the summertime. They get HOT!

You will also have to adjust your framing to allow smaller spans on the decking, which further adds to the cost of using synthetic. Be sure you calculate that into your total cost. As an example - in most cases floor joists should be 12" on center instead of 16" with typical wooden decking to avoid "give" when it gets hot.

I've torn out 1000 sq. ft. of treated wooden deck recently that was probably 15 years old and was checked, cracked, had raised grain. I'll admit that I did not maintain them like I should have, but I'm not sure how many years that would have added.

I'm now looking to replace them with concrete paver stone patios. It took a fair amount of grade work which I did. The new patios are going to cost $17 a sg. ft., that's considerably more than a treated wood or synthetic deck would cost but I'm hoping it will last well beyond my needs with little or no maintenance.

Each situation is different and if you want wood, I would not shy away from it. Just be aware that it's life expectancy is shorter than synthetic (which has it's trade offs), concrete or stone. Wood does also have some positive aspects as well.

 

[ford33]

I have synthetic decking but pressure treated wood framing and railing in my deck. I like the synthetic decking because it doesn't bend, twist, cup or splinter. It is also feels cooler on my bare feet. My decking is 14 years old and still is in excellent shape.

You still need regular maintenance on the deck and framing. I clean my decking once a year in the spring.

If you can afford it, go with a synthetic deck surface.

 

[jetrep]

Mine was installed two years ago with no gaps. The gaps now are right where they should be if not bigger. If you install with gaps you are likely to end up with quite large gaps with which you will not be happy

 

[rayra]

no space. One summer will take care of that.

 

[gregtwojeeps]

Yep, no spacing. The pic above hurts. Damn I miss my hot tub.

 

[Jackfre]

Using treated lumber I'd say no gaps regardless of the temp/humidity you have. PT lumber is basically "pond dried" to begin with. For my porch I went with 12" center joists and Trex. Looks great two years in.

 

[firemanast]

Treated lumber use no space. You will have a space when the boards dry completely.

 

[WVBrady]

I have had two experiences, both wrong. My first deck with treated lumber, I left no gap. It had no roof and was exposed to the south. It has no gap thirty years later and collects dirt where the boards come together. The second one has a roof protecting it and is also exposed to the south. I left a gap in this one, spacing with a 16 penny nail. After a couple of seasons, the gap expanded to about twice the original amount.

WVa averages 42" of rain per year. In the first case, being exposed to the rain allowed the boards not to dry out. In the second case, having a roof over it but still allowing the sun to hit it caused the wood to dry out.

 

[terry603]

did a new deck this past summer. use PT decking
used a speed square thickness for my spacing.
now, my gaps a wider than I would like... I would consider no gap next time.

 

[Jess]

New PT lumber will shrink and expand seasonally depending on the exposure. I have a deck and wharf that is now over 25 yrs old, so the good CCA treatment. The areas outside of the covered porch expand and contract, where are that part under the roof stays pretty much where it was put. The draw back is that every 3 yrs, I strip, clean and recoat with a waterproofing stain. These days you get the acrylic stuff that doesn't last as long and by the end of the second year in our wet climate, it looks like ****. If I rebuild again, I will look at steel decking and stamped concrete to reduce the ongoing maintenance,

 

[pjboy]

no space here , and i flashed board on house,but put a slight plastic shim under first board at house for drainage then sealed first board with clear silicone against house, then drilled 1/4 inch holes between first and second board from house every so often. for drainage. just a thought

 

[DIC]

Put me down for no gap

 

[RAYJAY]

Use better materials . . . "plastic" wood will last longer and look better.

and cheaper in the long run .......

add up all of the cleaning and treating of the pt wood vs installing and just hosing off the "plastic" wood

 

[thewatusi]

Thigh gap, good

Deck board gap, bad

 

[Fueler]

I got half of the floor done today with no gap. Going fairly well.
Back story.
Outside tile went bad. Concrete steps and sidewalk had to make way to do the repair.
Wife has been mumbling about a deck for a while. Sooooo....

I am not a wood guy and threatened to TIG one together. As with most projects it started out simple and has gotten out of hand. However I am slowly learning how carpenters deal with this twisted, bowed and warped stuff.

The only redeeming factor for me on this deal is I got to justify some new tools.
One sanity saver for me was this Bow wrench.
http://www.bowrenchdirect.com/
Without it I would have ended up with a maddening, embarrassing gap toothed mess.

Another neat tool that works well is this. http://www.starbornindustries.com/smart-bit-depth-setter-product

I also learned that:
1: a 2 man post hole digger is a kick your **** torture tool. Never again.

2: A harbor freight concrete mixer works just fine.....after you throw the assembly instructions in the trash.

3: I designed the whole thing up in CAD. It's good for figuring materials down to the last screw. After that I pretty much threw the righteous plans out the window since actual dimensions were all over the place. chuckle

4: Fasteners by FastenMaster seem pricey but are worth every penny. Got mine at Menards and Home Depot. http://www.fastenmaster.com/

 

[magrahamkp08]

I just did a deck this summer and used a nail to space each board. Now that everything has dried out, its too much space in my opinion.

 

[Illini Pete]

The OP is in Urbana, Illinois- home of 110 degrees/95% humidity in the summer. Better leave a space for expansion, it's not Phoenix...

I just built a deck last fall in Urbana with no spacing and today I have a nice uniform 1/4" between deck boards. The main factor no one has mentioned is how wet or dry the PT lumber is when you build it. My PT yellow pine from Menard's was wet, very heavy. If it is dry and has been sitting around for a while, I'd use something like a 16 penny nail or there about abouts for spacing. The deck boards I used are Menard's 5/4 I think they're called, about 1-3/16 or 1-1/4 " thick.

 

[Illini Pete]

I have my deck project about ready for the deck boards.
I was speaking with a retired contractor who stated he did the 1/8 spacing on his own deck with the treated boards and was not happy. Once the boards dried out he had some gaps he felt were obnoxiously wide.
He said if he had it to do over he would not space treated boards.

Naturally my eyebrows went up and he stated: "I know what you are thinking. That I should know this. I have built a few decks for customers over the years but never had to go back a year later and look at it."

I am wavering between no spacing and using a 1/16" spacer.

Sooo, what is the group think on spacing treated boards or not?

Hey Dave, Thought you lived in Mayview! If your lumber is wet, no spacing. See my later post for my experience in Urbana. You did a valve job on Porsche head for me years ago when you were on N. Cunningham.

 

[Fueler]

I'm still here. My wood came from Menards also and was soaking, soggy heavy.
I went with no spacing. Looked good that way. Had to do some serious bending to some boards to get it righteous.
I got the steps attached about an hour before the first snow.

I guess enough time has passed. The boards are already drying out and shrinking. I see some gaps now but none godawful. I will wait a while longer, tighten down some screws that are now "taller", give it a good cleaning and seal it. Probably mid May. I still have to do the railing for the stairs yet but that is a piece of cake compared to where I started.

Worst issue I had was a simple rash that I thought was from sawdust and sweat morphed into a full blown itchy mess on my stomach, arms and hands.
Doc said it was poison oak. Hands are still recovering.

I still think it was the chemicals in the soggy wood since I work in the yard for years where the deck now is and was never affected.

I will be wearing appropriate gloves and clothing for the next treated batch I mess with.

Illini Pete. Still have the Porsche?

 

[Fueler]

Followup on the starborn industires screw setter. Don't bother. I bought 3 and they all died early.
By that time we had our settings and depth down by eye.

 

[aka Larry]

I've built several decks with no gaps at installation.

 

[manwithtools]

I went with no spacing. Looked good that way. Had to do some serious bending to some boards to get it righteous.

You need a board bender for the next batch of work with that squirrly treated stuff: http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-93-310-8-Inch-Board-Bender/dp/B00002X1WJ

You can use this to take the twist out of joists, bend the deck boards into submission. It works great.

 

[Slednut]

These are cedar, I clamped them together while screwing them down.

BTW, its a cantilevered deck I screwed them from the bottom, no visible screws.