Slide the next board up against the clips. © 2021 The Taunton Press, Inc. All rights reserved. Install double joists and use four clips, two per board, where you have a butt joint. away from the house to allow water to drain. Home Outdoors Yard & Garden Structures Deck & Patio. Do not slot the center hole on each board. Create a deck with hidden fasteners instead of face-nailing it, and you'll get a smooth, clean finish. Pro tips and tricks to make your deck build or remodel go smooth and efficient. How to Calculate Trex Decking Cost for Your Project, Get the Look: Deck Details You’ll Want to Copy, How to Select the Best Trex Decking Colors for Your Outdoor Space, From Bland to Grand: A Deck Transformation, We are no longer supporting IE (Internet Explorer), Parts of Your Home Prone to the Most Winter Weather Damage, First-Timer’s Guide to Pouring a Concrete Patio, Do Not Sell My Personal Information – CA Residents. Butt the … Azek Decking vs Trex: Which is Best for You? If you are considering installing composite decking somewhere, aside from settling on a color, shape, and size for the decking, you will be faced with another tough decision – do you install the decking using screws or hidden fasteners? Unlike the field decking, the border can’t be attached with hidden fasteners and must be face-screwed through pilot holes that are then plugged. Place a square against the edge of the post. Then, slide the groove of … Step 4: Drive a deck screw through the countersunk hole. Cortex hidden face fasteners work as follows: First, use the special driving tip included with the system to automatically put the Cortex screw at a precise depth. 1 Box covers 50 square feet and … In pursuit of the perfect deck, all Trex ® decking lines come with a hidden installation option. This reduces the amount of water that can wick into splits in the wood where preservative may not have penetrated or be as fully concentrated. Unfortunately, the deck width of 16 ft. was set before the decking was ordered, and it was only available in 12-ft. lengths. To see how we built this entire deck, read the article: Composite decking boards are able to expand and contract with the weather, so it is important for you to take note of and act on the correct spacing allowances when installing your composite decking … Get complete site access to expert advice, how-to videos, Code Check, and more, plus the print magazine. We placed the first board 1/2 in. Composite decking will expand and contract in extreme climates. After the following board is placed, the fastener screws can be tightened. Composite material expands and contracts along the length of the board with temperature changes. Draw lines on each side of the post on to the board. when using a compatible grooved edge hidden fastening system. A tell-tale sign of a potential problem with the ledger board attachment is the … Wood plugs will next be installed into the holes to hide the deck screws … An elegant upgrade to traditional stainless steel and composite deck screws. Don't leave a gap when two board ends butt together. We are no longer supporting IE (Internet Explorer) as we strive to provide site experiences for browsers that support new web standards and security practices. Next, securely drive a deck screw down into the countersunk hole into the joist below. After all the boards are installed, snap a chalk line and trim the ends to the desired length. Veranda Hidden Fasteners can be installed in just four easy steps: 1. Fasten the deck board with composite decking screws along the edge closest to house; drive one screw into each joist. To minimize waste, and for looks, we used the former option. Become a member and get unlimited site access, including the To install composite decking with a hidden fastening system, start at the house by face-screwing the first board. Build a Grade-Level Deck: Install Decking, Adding Fascia and Other Decorative Elements, Laying Out, Cutting, and Installing the Stringers, Installing Treads, Risers, and Stair Railings, Expert insights on techniques and principles. Rather than installing screws through the top of every deck board, clips are attached to the framing boards first. grooved deck boards. Leave the screws a little loose so that the leading edge of the fasteners easily engages the groove of the next deck board. Fasten all the clips between the two boards securely using a drill (not an impact driver). ENVISION Composite Deck Screws and EverGrain Composite Deck Screws are color matched deck screws … To keep from marring the look of the deck, we used Trex Hideaway hidden deck fasteners, which allow you to put the decking … To notch around the railing post, slide a deck board up next to the post. Pre-drill in the slot of the deck board with an 1/8" drill bit. Check the decking specifications and local building codes for joist spacing. Depending on the shape of the deck, the first board can start at the house or at the outer rim joist. A single-board border encloses the field decking. It’s also a good idea to eyeball the decking to keep it straight. Hundreds of articles and videos by top deck-building pros on how to design and build a beautiful, sturdy, and safe deck. We used composite decking from GeoLam for the deck featured here. This design makes Trex Hide-away hidden fasteners easy and quick to install when compared to other hidden fastener … Begin by fastening … Decking Board Spacing. Drill 1/8-in. Complete DIY projects like a pro! (All Ipe Clip ® fastener kits, 175 count and above, have extra stainless steel deck screws included in them for starter boards.) Use starter clips to fasten your first board or surface screws and plug the holes. There are important measurements to keep in mind when installing composite decking, and those are the spacings. We used Fiberon’s Horizon decking on this job, but I also like the capped products made by Trex, Azek, and EverGrain. Trex Hideaway Hidden Deck Fastening System: This ¼” self-spacing connector clip with 1-5/8” screws is designed to install between Trex grooved composite decking … Install blocking between each joist every four to six feet to reduce movement up and down and twisting of the joists, using exterior screws. On the inside edge of the starter board, install deck clips at every joist into the groove along the whole length of the board. I generally order decking in lengths that minimize waste for a given deck size. We recommend our users to update the browser. To shed water, cap all single joists with 3-in. Drive screw into the slot so it’s flush with the bottom of the groove. This left us two options: install full-length boards with a 4-ft. piece alternating left and right, or use two 8-ft. pieces cut from full length boards. Sign up for eletters today and get the latest how-to from Fine Homebuilding, plus special offers. To keep the decking parallel, we measured the distance from the last board to the rim beam every few courses. tape. In warm weather, install without gaps. Next, screw a hidden fastener clip into the groove on top of each joist. To notch the depth, use a spacer or deck clip to create the gap between boards. Become a member and get instant access to thousands of videos, how-tos, tool reviews, and design features. To avoid showing a groove, we had to rip one edge of the darker boards used along the perimeter. Decks Project Guide. If available, use a board locking tool to help you hold the board tight. Fasteners For ease of installation, hidden fasteners fit into the slot on each side of the deck board to eliminate pre-drilling and provide a fastener-free deck surface. To find out more about installing with the hidden fastening systems, take a look at the composite decking installation instructions, where you’ll find diagrams showing the proper locations of the clips … The fastener design securely attaches decking boards by holding the edge of the decking board. When using grooved-edge boards, our hidden deck fastening system installs between the deck boards, fastening them to the joists with no visible deck … Installing decking with a hidden fastening system creates a clean, smooth surface. We have hidden deck clips available to fit all of our board systems, in 304 stainless steel, 304 stainless steel with black powder coating and TPO plastic. Draw a line on to the board between your two other lines. Start your subscription today and save up to 52%. The Complete Guide to Building a Grade Level Deck, Plus, watch the video series: Build a Grade-Level Deck. The first board you install, the starter board, is the most important one. toward the ends of the boards. No Lag Head Screws. If screws aren’t your thing, there is always the second option of a hidden fastening system for composite decks. Gap the Decking in Cold Weather Composite … Here’s how to install hidden deck fasteners in composite decking with the Cortex hidden … Hidden Fasteners. Don’t worry — the buildup and generation of static electricity … Fasteners must be spaced so that no part of the fastener is within 3/4" from the end of the board and 1-3/8” from the edge of the board. … • Designed for solid composite, PVS, and mahogany decking • Automatically gaps decking ˚⁄˝˙" for a consistent beautiful ˆnished look • 25-year warranty • Available in 50 square foot boxes screws included ˇe TigerClaw˘ Hidden Fastening Systems have been speciˆcally designed for installation into so˜wood, Composite… Don ’ t Be Shocked by Static Electricity first, then filled in the slot of the boards. Included color … decking board Spacing attaches decking boards along the border first, then filled the. Tips and tricks to make your deck build or remodel go smooth and efficient n't leave gap. Envision composite deck screws are the traditional choice, there are many reasons why hidden fasteners … Tutorial on composite. 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