Deck Replacement

[NW-Bound]

Here is another photo showing the deck, but viewed from the other side of the house. It was still unfinished when this photo was taken, as you can see.

 

[NW-Bound]

Could be a shrew. Mouselike, but with a pointed nose.

I intentionally did not identify the animal to see what would be offered as its identity.

I could not tell what it was until I sprayed it with water to run it off. It flew off!

It was a very small bat. It returned a few months later, and this time I sprayed it with chlorine using a garden sprayer. Will see how long till it comes back.

 

[nphx]

And along the perimeter of the house, the siding was put on top of the deck. Arghhh!

toe kick saw - from harbor freight?

 

[NW-Bound]

No, I did not have nor use one. I did not want to cut the old board ends, but remove them completely to stick the new ones under the siding. You can see that in the photo in post #76.

So, I managed to remove all the screws while trying to mess up the siding as little as possible. A bit of touch up with new stain will cover up the nicks and scratches.

 

[trapperjohn]

Does anyone have experience with concrete deck tiles as a decking surface? I'm not talking about the thin matts that you can put over existing deck surfaces. Rather, these tiles (from what I've read) are about an inch thick, concrete, but with some beautiful finished surfaces, 24x24 or 16x16, and able to support 1000 lbs per tile. Supposedly impervious to water, mold, stains, etc. They also won't char or burn like wood, trex, or composite if you have a nearby fire pit that throws sparks.

To install, you only have to glue the tile directly to the joist with an exterior-type glue. If I understand correctly, you have to add a "sister" joist alongside each existing joist to provide more glueing surface. No screwing required.

They're expensive and get very hot in direct sun, but are truly maintenance free.

I'm thinking of replacing our 25 year old deck surface with them, but I don't know anyone with any experience using them. No local hardware or lumber store supplies them, so I would have to pay for shipping. And I'm not sure I want to take on the project, but I don't know anyone with any experience installing them.

 

[Hermit]

Does anyone have experience with concrete deck tiles as a decking surface? I'm not talking about the thin matts that you can put over existing deck surfaces. Rather, these tiles (from what I've read) are about an inch thick, concrete, but with some beautiful finished surfaces, 24x24 or 16x16, and able to support 1000 lbs per tile. Supposedly impervious to water, mold, stains, etc. They also won't char or burn like wood, trex, or composite if you have a nearby fire pit that throws sparks.

To install, you only have to glue the tile directly to the joist with an exterior-type glue. If I understand correctly, you have to add a "sister" joist alongside each existing joist to provide more glueing surface. No screwing required.

They're expensive and get very hot in direct sun, but are truly maintenance free.

I'm thinking of replacing our 25 year old deck surface with them, but I don't know anyone with any experience using them. No local hardware or lumber store supplies them, so I would have to pay for shipping. And I'm not sure I want to take on the project, but I don't know anyone with any experience installing them.

If you do this project, be sure and let us know. It would take a major frame rebuild to work on my deck frame. They make double joist hangars for the sister joists. I suspect those are needed for the extra weight also. I have bracing in between the joists to try to keep the treated wood from bending and twisting so much which is typical of treated wood. The bracing and joist hangars would have to be redone. In other words, completely rebuild the deck frame. I would worry about having a flat enough surface for the tiles as well as the added weight on the ledger board. Tiles on a floor are put on a bed of mortar so the imperfections in the flat floor are not so much a concern. With just glue, I don't know how you would work that.

 

[tfudtuckerpucker]

If you do this project, be sure and let us know. It would take a major frame rebuild to work on my deck frame. They make double joist hangars for the sister joists. I suspect those are needed for the extra weight also. I have bracing in between the joists to try to keep the treated wood from bending and twisting so much which is typical of treated wood. The bracing and joist hangars would have to be redone. In other words, completely rebuild the deck frame. I would worry about having a flat enough surface for the tiles as well as the added weight on the ledger board. Tiles on a floor are put on a bed of mortar so the imperfections in the flat floor are not so much a concern. With just glue, I don't know how you would work that.

That would be my biggest concern. Here's some good info for paving a deck with stone.

 

[Hermit]

That would be my biggest concern. Here's some good info for paving a deck with stone.

Wow! That is a "money is no issue" project.

 

[trapperjohn]

They make double joist hangars for the sister joists. I suspect those are needed for the extra weight also. I have bracing in between the joists to try to keep the treated wood from bending and twisting so much which is typical of treated wood. The bracing and joist hangars would have to be redone. In other words, completely rebuild the deck frame. I would worry about having a flat enough surface for the tiles as well as the added weight on the ledger board. Tiles on a floor are put on a bed of mortar so the imperfections in the flat floor are not so much a concern. With just glue, I don't know how you would work that.

Good points. There's a couple videos online that show how to install these tiles. The tiles are made especially for decks, not for ground installation or interiors.

In the videos, each sister joist was nailed to the side of the original joist. They did not use double joist hangers. The sister joists are truly just to provide a wider gluing surface.

You have a good point, though, about making sure that the joists are level so that the tile surface is flat once done. The videos I saw were always using new construction. And they used a chalk line to make sure that all of the top edges of joists were level. If I did this, I supposed I would have to do the same, and plane down any edges that were too high.

Hermit, I couldn't tell from your quote ... did you already have these tiles on your deck, or are you just interested in my experience if I do it?

 

[Hermit]

...

Hermit, I couldn't tell from your quote ... did you already have these tiles on your deck, or are you just interested in my experience if I do it?

I was just interested. I am going in town today to order Trex decking.

 

[NW-Bound]

I found another photo, this one showing the cross section of the Trex Transcend and the top layer that makes it more expensive than the lower grade. I cannot recall if the mid grade has a top layer.

I bought some inexpensive no-name brand at Home Depot to make the floor of my trailer, and it is uniform throughout with no top coat. Even so it cost around $200 for that 4'x8' trailer. Composite decking is expensive!

PS. Look how good those joists are. I think they are a better grade of wood than the decking boards. Still, I pampered and treated them well with Thompson sealer before installing the Trex boards. I am not going to work on this deck anymore before I die. Still have the front deck to do later though.

 

[gerntz]

The geniuses who built our deck decided to lay the decking 45 degrees to the joists.... makes it a PITA to shovel in the winter or even sweep but it is what it is. If/when we replace we'll put the decking perpendicular to the joists.

The idea of shoveling a deck escapes me. By that I mean we don't use ours when it's cold enough to be shoveled - except to grill & then I put boots on.

It's a good thing they didn't put the decking in parallel to the joints.

 

[Bamaman]

We have a 36' balcony/deck with a screened porch underneath at our lake house. Due to leaking from above, I tore off the deck 2 years ago and reframed the floor joists-- 1/4" per foot going downhill away from the house.

Exterior 3/4 inch tongue and groove plywood was installed over the joists. I screwed 1/4 inch concrete Wonderboard over the plywood and taped and put thinset in the seams. Then I painted the plywood with Redgard, an elastomeric coating. A German membrane (like the orange Schlaeter sheets used in bathrooms) was then installed with thin set mortar. Finally, I put down large porcelain tiles with--more thinset mortar. After grouting the cracks, the floor is waterproof and it just looks great.

My balcony has now been screened in, and it's technically a roof deck. You cannot use ceramic tile in such situations because it's somewhat porous and subject to cracking. But in our MidSouth climate, my porcelain tile has worked out well. We use the downstairs screened porch all the time, and the ceiling is white vinyl soffit material--looking great.

Now I've got to tackle that 28' deck with 5/4" x 6" decking at my main house. I am truly thankful for air compressors with framing nail guns and battery powered drills and decking screws.

 

[NW-Bound]

... The geniuses who built our deck decided to lay the decking 45 degrees to the joists.... makes it a PITA to shovel in the winter or even sweep but it is what it is. If/when we replace we'll put the decking perpendicular to the joists...

... It's a good thing they didn't put the decking in parallel to the joints.

Ah, but if all you do is to lay the boards at 90 deg across the joists, you will have a boring deck like mine instead of an interesting design like this one from the Web.


PS. The Trex catalog shows some benches, cabinets, and planters, etc..., made from composite material. Weather proof so you can just hose it down every so often, or take the pressure sprayer to them. Pricey though!