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If deck
is higher than 6 feet, you might want to hire a professional
builder.
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After
cutting ends of wood and notching your timber, its good to
want to protect it. So apply a preservative to these
exposed ends.
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Pay
attention to your water run off. Decks can be designed for
this laying them out with a slight gradient.
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Deck
boards should be surface dry. Also there should be a gap
between the deck boards, according to the manufacturers
instructions or at least a gap of ¼ inch.
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Make
sure you use screws that are corrosion resistant. Or use
stainnless steel screws when installing your deck boards
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If you
need to attach a ledger board to the wall of a dwelling it
is advisable to leave a gap between to ensure ventilation
and enable the wall and ledger to dry.
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To avoid
splitting boards, always pre-drill pilot holes near the end
of boards .
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To keep
boards dry, its best to lay the boards out on the frame
prior to installing them. This helps to dry them out and
minimizes shrinkage.
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Protect
your wood deck with a preservative in clear or a colored
transparent stain of your choice. This can be brushed on ,
sprayed or apply with a pump sprayer. Then its recommended
to do this on a yearly basis, or a least every 2 years.
Wood will need this type of maintenance and may even require
pressure washing prior to your next application of stain in
1-2 years.
