Experienced Deck Builders?

4570Man · Feb 4, 2019

What are you referring to as a screw with no threads on it? I like the screws without threads on the last inch. They pull 2 boards tight together where the screws with threads in the whole length are more problematic.

dalola · Feb 4, 2019

EddieWalker said:
Sounds like you have a good plan.

When you buy screws, be sure to NOT get the new style that doesn't have any threads on them. Look close to the picture in the link and you will see all sorts of extra garbage added to the screw that they claim will help them screw get through the wood, but what it actually does is remove materiel so the screw threads don't have anything to hold on to. Easily half of every one of these things will strip out on you.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Deck-Ma...ad-Wood-Deck-Screws-1-lb-Pack-DM3G1/300884054

No matter how far you have to drive, be sure to get screws with the traditional, normal looking threads. Star drive are the easiest to install, but whatever you do, just make sure not to get those new style screws. They are the worse design ever thought up!!!!

Thanks for the heads-up. I haven't screw shopped for a while, so I'm not familiar with these. Doesn't seem like a great idea....maybe for the volume builders that want to get in/out of jobs faster. I will steer clear of these for sure.

PILOON · Feb 4, 2019

dalola said:
Appreciate all the information, but I'll be sticking with pressure treated for this project. It's the best "value" for what I'm doing. As mentioned earlier, the PT deck on the back of my house is 25 years old, still solid & looks great. I don't mind a little maintenance every couple years.

Bravo!
As I suggested earlier, staple some strips over the joists B4 you deck it.
In that way water that works its way between the decking wont rot the joists, in fact wider gaps even aid the drying process.
The easiest is self adhesive membrane strips but many other products that shed water will suffice.
I have even used black poly usually sold for window and door openings (cut to 3-4" widths).

My own porch deck is poly strip protected and it is 22 years old. Mind U I have good air circulation which helps.
(And at 22 years I have not had to change one board to date, mind U maybe next year a few)

bcp · Feb 4, 2019

EddieWalker said:
Sounds like you have a good plan.

When you buy screws, be sure to NOT get the new style that doesn't have any threads on them. Look close to the picture in the link and you will see all sorts of extra garbage added to the screw that they claim will help them screw get through the wood, but what it actually does is remove materiel so the screw threads don't have anything to hold on to. Easily half of every one of these things will strip out on you.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Deck-Ma...ad-Wood-Deck-Screws-1-lb-Pack-DM3G1/300884054

No matter how far you have to drive, be sure to get screws with the traditional, normal looking threads. Star drive are the easiest to install, but whatever you do, just make sure not to get those new style screws. They are the worse design ever thought up!!!!

The screw photo in the link has left hand threads. ???

Bruce

quicksandfarmer · Feb 4, 2019

bcp said:
The screw photo in the link has left hand threads. ???

Bruce

They have right-hand threads for most of their length then at the top 1/2" of LH threads and 1" of no thread. The idea is that if you are putting them into 2x lumber when the head of the screw touches the top board the LH threads will be right where the top board joins the bottom board and the threads in opposite directions will draw the two boards tight together. As Eddie points out by the time this happens both the LH and the RH thread will have gone through the top board, making the hole bigger.

bcp · Feb 4, 2019

Looks all LH to me, but two different pitches.

Bruce

KennyG · Feb 5, 2019

I wonder if someone reversed the photo. I can't imagine it actually has left hand threads.

Egon · Feb 5, 2019

Fasteners:

[video]https://www.nachi.org/home-inspectors-evaluating-problems-with-fasteners.htm[/video]

EddieWalker · Feb 5, 2019

bcp said:
Looks all LH to me, but two different pitches.

View attachment 590279

Bruce

I made the mistake of buying a big box of these things one time and it's taken me years to find something to do with them. After the first dozen or so, I realized how horrible they are and gave up on using them. It cost me half a day of being productive to drive to Lowes to get some good, old fashioned, deck screws and use them instead of these horrible things.

The picture is a mirror image of what they look like. No idea why, but the threads are all right hand. There just isn't very much thread on them as you can see in the picture, and in between the threads, there are little bits of metal that remove even more wood so what little threads there are, have less to hold onto. It's kind of like drilling a pilot hole that is too big, and there isn't anything left to bite into.

Avoid these things at all costs, regardless of how far out of your way that you have to drive to get good screws. Home Depot has gone all in on these things and there really isn't any decent alternative in my store to buy instead if you are working on an exterior project. They do have some decent interior screws to use instead, just nothing for outdoor stuff.