Porch & Deck Beam or Girder Construction

Deck beam construction & connections
- Deck or porch girder construction, connections
- Best Construction Practices for decks or porches
- Deck & Porch construction details & procedures
- Poor Porch or Deck Girder or Beam Construction Details Can Lead to Dangerous Collapse of Decks and Porches
DECK & PORCH CONSTRUCTION - home
DECK CONSTRUCTION BEST PRACTICES - separate article
DECK DESIGN & BUILD - article series home
Questions & Answers about how to build & connect deck beams or girders
References

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Deck girders & beams guide: This article reviews the proper construction and connection of beams or girders used to support a deck or porch.

Deck & Porch Support Beams

Figure 13: deck girder to post connections (C) J Wiley, S Bliss

Our page top photo shows an unsafe (incomplete) deck girder construction with only minimal connections between the girder and the post top.

When you find a deck built like this one, it makes sense to check every point where a connection should have been made.

This article series discuss best porch & deck construction practices, including choice of framing materials, decking or flooring choices & installation, how to select and use deck and porch structural and flooring fasteners, actual deck & porch framing construction details & connections, deck joist & beam span tables, how to build leak-proof rooftop decks, construction of covered & screened porches, deck & porch railing construction & materials, choices of finishes and stains for decks & porches, and past & current deck lumber preservative treatments with related health & environmental concerns. This article series includes excerpts or adaptations from Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss, courtesy of Wiley & Sons. Also see our review of that book.

For the strongest connection of beam to post, place the support beam directly on top of the posts, rather than bolting them to the side, so the full load is transferred to the posts.

To keep the post in place and to prevent any twisting or shifting, the connection should be reinforced with steel strapping, a steel connector, or a treated plywood cleat (Figure 4-13).

In general, notching a 4x4 post will leave too little wood for an adequate connection. A double 2x beam can rest on a notched 6x6 post, as shown.

For the strongest connection of joists to the support beam, the joists should sit on top of the beam. For a more streamlined appearance, however, joist hangers are acceptable.

Make sure the hangers and nails are approved by the manufacturer for use with the new types of pressuretreated wood (ACQ or ACZA) and fill all the holes in the hangers with properly sized nails.

In general, nail into the joists with 1 1/2-inch joist-hanger nails and nail into the beam with 10d to 16d common nails, as specified by the hanger manufacturer. Sizes for joists and beams are shown in Table 4-7 and Table 4-8 below.

Deck & Porch Resources, Products, Manufacturers: Where to Buy

See Deck & Porch Products, Manufacturers for our complete/updated listings of manufacturers of porch & deck products, materials, coatings, fasteners, lumber, tools.

Prefabricated Deck & Porch Railing Systems

Avcon Structural Railing Systems www.avconrail.com Thermoplastic and aluminum railings

CertainTeed www.certainteed.com EverNew PVC railing system

Global Dec-K-Ing Systems www.globaldecking.com DEC-K-ING aluminum railing system

DecKorators Inc. www.deckrail.com Decorative aluminum balusters and connectors for wooden railing systems. Also, tempered-glass balusters

Duradek www.duradek.com Durarail powder-coated aluminum railing system and walk-on vinyl decking membrane.

FSI Home Products Division www.railingworks.com Aluminum railing systems

Fypon www.fypon.com Polyurethane railing systems in classic architectural styles

HB&G www.hbgcolumns.net PermaPorch cellular-polyvinyl chloride (PVC) railings and posts reinforced with wood or aluminum; cellular-PVC or aluminum balusters Kroy Building Products www.kroybp.com Classic Manor PVC-railing system

L.B. Plastics www.lbplastics.com Sheerline PVC-railing systems and PVC- post cladding

Royal Crown Limited www.royalcrownltd.com PVC railing system with steel reinforcing

Shakespeare Composites Structures www.armor-rail.com Armor-Rail structural fiberglass (FRP) railing system with turned balusters

Thermal Industries www.thermalindustries.com Dream Rail PVC-railing system with optional tempered glass balusters

U.S. Plastic Lumber Corp. www.carefreexteriors.com Recycled HDPE railing system

Hidden Deck Fastener Suppliers

BEN Manufacturing www.premier1.net/~ben69 Dec-Klips fit between deck planks with prongs into edges; nailed into top of joists; electrogalvanized steel

Blue Heron Enterprises www.ebty.com Eb-Ty UV-resistant polypropylene biscuit fits into slots in edge of decking, screws into top of joist Grabber Construction Products www.deckmaster.com Deckmaster angle bracket screws to side of joist and up into decking; available in galvanized or stainless steel

Simpson Strong-Tie www.strongtie.com DBTC deck ties screw down to top of joist with prongs into edges of decking planks; triple-zinc-coated or stainless steel by special order; disposable plastic driving tool

Spotnails www.spotnails.com Tebo stainless-steel fasteners fit between decking boards with prongs into edges of decking; installed with mallet and proprietary tool

TY-LAN Enterprises Inc. www.shadoetrack.com Shadoe Track angle bracket nailed along top of joist and screws up into bottom of deck boards; available in galvanized, powder-coated, and stainless steel

USP Lumber Connectors www.uspconnectors.com Deck Clip screws into edge of one decking board and locks to next board; requires toenailing one edge of each board

Screen Systems for Porches

One BetterWay www.screentight.com Screen-Tight vinyl porch screening system screws to exterior of porch framing; snap-on facings conceal screws and screen splines; available in white, beige, gray, and brown

Sources of Deck Finishes, Stains, Preservative Coatings

Amteco www.mfgsealants.com/amteco.htm Sealers, preservatives, and deck stains

Cabot www.cabotstain.com Clear sealers and deck stains

Cuprinol, a division of Sherwin Williams www.cuprinol.com Sealers, preservatives, and deck stains

The Flood Company www.floodco.com Clear sealers and deck stains

Penofin www.penofin.com Lightly tinted oil-based sealers and stains

Olympic, PPG Architectural Finishes www.olympic.com Clear sealers and deck stains

Wolman Wood Care Products, division of Zinsser Co. www.wolman.com Wolman sealers and deck stains and DAP Woodlife clear sealers

Deck & Porch Industry Associations

American Wood Preservers Association (AWPI) www.awpa.com

California Redwood Association www.calredwood.org

Deck Industry Association www.deckindustry.org

Forest Stewardship Council www.fscus.org Information on certified tropical hardwoods

Rainforest Alliance, Smartwood Program www.rainforest-alliance.org Information on certified tropical hardwoods

Southern Forest Products Association www.sfpa.org

Southern Pine Council www.southernpine.com

Western Wood Products Association www.wwpa.org

Western Wood Preservers Institute www.wwpinstitute.org

-- Adapted with permission from Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction.

see Codes for Stairs for details about stair building codes and specifications.

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Technical Reviewers & References

Related Topics, found near the top of this page suggest articles closely related to this one.

Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss. John Wiley & Sons, 2006. ISBN-10: 0471648361, ISBN-13: 978-0471648369, Hardcover: 320 pages, available from Amazon.com and also Wiley.com. See our book review of this publication.
Decks and Porches, the JLC Guide to, Best Practices for Outdoor Spaces, Steve Bliss (Editor), The Journal of Light Construction, Williston VT, 2010 ISBN 10: 1-928580-42-4, ISBN 13: 978-1-928580-42-3, available from Amazon.com
Prescriptive Residential Wood Deck Construction Guide, based on the 2009 International Residential Code, American Forest & Paper Association, Inc., provided by reader Mark Morsching from Everflashing.
Mark Morsching, Everflashing, Tel: 800-550-1667, Email: everflashing@gmail.com. The Everflashing product comes in G-185 and Stainless Steel and is intended for use with treated lumber with copper in it. Everflashing produces a variety of specialty flashing products including flashings for use with decks at deck ledgers and deck perimeters.
Summerblue Arts Camp., Two Harbors MN, Lon Church, Director, c/o: Two Harbors High School 405 4Th Avenue, Two Harbors, Minnesota 55616, United States Email: lon_church@yahoo.com

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.

The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 25th Ed., 2012, is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume. Special Offer: For a 10% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.

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Building inspection education & report writing systems from Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd

Manual for the Inspection of Residential Wood Decks and Balconies, by Cheryl Anderson, Frank Woeste (Forest Products Society), & Joseph Loferski, October 2003, ISBN-13: 978-1892529343, $39.00 at Amazon.com or at the InspectAPediaBookstore
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