In the fall of 2017 and early summer of 2018, I laid decking and can conclude that after the warm dry summer:
1. Many boards have warped significantly.
2. They move up and down when I walk on the floor because the edges stick up (the edges bear most of the weight due to point 1).
The decking is from Byggmax 28x145 and screwed with stainless steel screws (A2). The decking was very wet from impregnation when it was laid, liquid was pressed out at almost every screw. We laid the "nice side up," not happy or sad emoji. Most boards had an unattractive side, so there wasn't much to choose from.
A little additional info:
I made a template for where to place the screws and it happened to be 28mm from each edge - I see that on the other side of the house where the craftsmen laid the decking it's a bit less, varying roughly between 18-22mm.
Questions:
* How do you place the screws? Closer to the edges than I did?
* Is there a good way to get the decking to stop moving - would it, for example, work to sand it down so it's flat (no protruding edges)?
* Would it have helped to place the screws closer to the edges or would the wood still have warped and pulled out the screws (or would the screws have dug through the board perhaps)?
1. Many boards have warped significantly.
2. They move up and down when I walk on the floor because the edges stick up (the edges bear most of the weight due to point 1).
The decking is from Byggmax 28x145 and screwed with stainless steel screws (A2). The decking was very wet from impregnation when it was laid, liquid was pressed out at almost every screw. We laid the "nice side up," not happy or sad emoji. Most boards had an unattractive side, so there wasn't much to choose from.
A little additional info:
I made a template for where to place the screws and it happened to be 28mm from each edge - I see that on the other side of the house where the craftsmen laid the decking it's a bit less, varying roughly between 18-22mm.
Questions:
* How do you place the screws? Closer to the edges than I did?
* Is there a good way to get the decking to stop moving - would it, for example, work to sand it down so it's flat (no protruding edges)?
* Would it have helped to place the screws closer to the edges or would the wood still have warped and pulled out the screws (or would the screws have dug through the board perhaps)?
It's difficult. Screws closer to the edges increase the risk of cracks or the screws breaking. I don't think sanding down the decking will help. Anyone with experience on the forum? Such wide decking might have been better suited with a thickness of 34 or 45mm.
They're HECO 4.2x55 Stainless A2, so I don't think they're too bad. I'm aware there's a difference between stainless and those with just corrosion protection, but rusty screw heads are so... ugly, the craftsmen used "gold screws" but they rusted after 3-4 years. I live on the west coast a few kilometers from the sea, and there's quite a bit of salt in the air sometimes, so stainless feels right...Nyfniken said:
During really cold winters, I've heard the occasional "gunshot" from the deck, and I assume those are screws breaking.
A thought - these screw systems where you fasten the screw on the edge to avoid visible screw heads, could that help me? For example, https://www.heco.se/deckingtool
Of course, it's a troublesome solution to add such screws after having fastened the decking in the usual way first, and it's probably doubtful if I can force down the decking that has cupped, but maybe I can hold it in place so it doesn't move at the edges and then sand a few mm to make it flat?
Of course, it's a troublesome solution to add such screws after having fastened the decking in the usual way first, and it's probably doubtful if I can force down the decking that has cupped, but maybe I can hold it in place so it doesn't move at the edges and then sand a few mm to make it flat?