This is the year of the deck at my home. I've scheduled the time off and I'm ready to build. However, I need your help on several things. How do I connect the deck posts to the deck? How do the posts connect to the concrete pier, or do they just rest on the concrete?
Should the posts be buried in the soil? How do you calculate where to place the concrete piers so the posts are centered on them? Can you just come over and help me do all this? --Catherine R., Uncasville, Conn.
I'd love to help you, but you know what happens next, right? "Tim, you helped Catherine with her deck, so surely you can help me install my water heater." I'm going to do my best to answer your questions and I urge you to visit my AsktheBuilder.com website where I have an entire category titled Deck Construction.
I'm hoping your deck is a small one and not too high off the ground. That's a good beginner's project, especially if the deck is just one level and a rectangle or a square. As decks become more complex, you need quite a bit of carpentry experience to ensure everything comes out as it should.
AN OUTDOOR ROOM
When I first got into the building business, decks were just starting to explode in popularity. It makes sense, as people love to be outdoors and a deck can be an excellent outdoor room if designed properly and outfitted with shade structures or even screening.
One of the coolest decks I ever built was the platform for a gorgeous screened porch for an older woman. The vaulted ceiling and the wood floor made for an ideal spot to spend all day and night.
As the deck industry exploded, one or two manufacturers responded by developing engineered metal connectors that allowed carpenters and homeowners to safely and securely connect the parts of decks so they don't fall down. Deck collapses are a real concern, they happen annually, and people get killed or severely injured when decks suddenly fall to the ground.
GALVANIZED METAL
You're going to use approved galvanized metal connectors sized to your deck lumber to connect the vertical posts to the outer beam that supports your deck joists. The most common connector is a plate that has two tabs of metal that point up and two that point down, creating shapes of the letter U.
Special corrosion-proof fasteners are used to connect this metal bracket to the post and beam. These brackets come in various sizes for the different sized posts and beams. You'll find them online, at home centers and at lumberyards that sell lumber for deck construction.
As for joining deck posts to the concrete piers, you should use similar metal connectors. There are several types of metal post bases, but they all connect to the concrete pier and to the wood post. Once again, you'll size the metal post base to the wood post that you're using.
You don't want the deck posts to just rest on the concrete pier. Wind uplift, shifting soil, garden tractor accidents, etc. could cause the post to shift off the pier, which could contribute to the deck collapsing. Connecting the post to the concrete pier anchors the deck to the earth.
In my opinion, it's not a great idea to bury the deck posts in the soil, even if they're resting on concrete piers. I've seen lumber that's treated for ground contact succumb to rot and insect infestation. Keeping the treated lumber above grade allows it to dry rapidly, thus extending its useful lifespan.
PLACEMENT
The placement of the concrete piers that support your deck posts is very critical. I learned long ago from a fellow carpenter a fairly easy way to place them perfectly each time. Once again, if your deck is low to the ground, this will be very easy to do.
I've found it best to create the actual outline of the deck using the deck lumber. This means you'll connect the ledger board to your home using all the approved flashings and internal metal connectors ensuring this board will not pull away from your home.
You then attach the two end joists that extend out from the house and cap those with the band board joist that runs parallel with the ledger board along the house. You now have a square or rectangular box. Suspend this box in the air with temporary posts made from 2-by-4s or 2-by-6s. Make sure the box is level and square.
To square this box, lay flat 2-by-4s on the top of the box that extend from the center of the end joists to the ledger board and to the outer band board. These should be oriented roughly at a 45-degree angle across the top box.
When the diagonal measurements from one corner to the opposite corner across the box are equal, the box is square. Making sure the measurements are the same, put two nails at each end of the flat 2-by-4s.
You can now suspend an old-fashioned and reliable plumb bob from each corner of the box to the ground. These two points on the ground can be used to help you calculate the exact position of your concrete piers based on the deck plan you're using. Let me know how it works out!
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