Maintaining your Deck

One of the most common question I get while visiting a possible client who is needing deck repair is why the damage occurred. So I am going to periodically give some of my opinions on different issues people have with an aging deck.

Rotting boards.

Wood rot is the most common deck repair, and there are different areas of focus. Typically wood rot is water related, and by this I am talking about areas where water is able to seep into. Normally water isn’t an issue if the area is open to air movement that promotes evaporation. Where this type of damage is generally found is where two boards are lined up (end to end), where the posts of handrails meet the deck, and where the handrail post meets the top board of the handrail. The reasoning for these common occurrences is due to the difficulty of the property owner to be able to clean out these areas.

Other examples of common wood damage is in between the decking boards that cross near the joists. This is a more preventable instance of damage. This is again tied to air movement. The usual cause of these areas rotting is due to dirt, or plant life accumulating in these areas and forming a sponge like substance that traps water and prevents air from reaching the underlying areas. A great way to prevent this kind of damage is to keep an eye and try to wash off your deck and clean out between the boards at least twice a year (more if your area has more vegetation around the deck).