Glen & Kris Denning → Home Improvement → Deck < Previous Next >
Once the sonotubes were completed, we moved on to the beams and joists. A pair of beams were constructed by laminating four lengths of 2" x 10" pressure treated wood. The two halves of the beam are separated by ½" pressure-treated plywood to ensure water doesn't collect between the beams and cause rot. The lamination is accomplished with 3" stainless nails and polyurethane glue. Stainless nails are required because the pressure-treated wood is highly corrosive and would have caused the nails to fail in a few years.
The first picture shows a painted beam attached to a sonotube with a heavy-duty post connector. The beam is held off the sonotube by a 1" spacer built into the post bracket. Atop the beam is a joist, secured with a Simpson H2.5 hurricane strap and stainless nails.
The second picture shows all the joists attached to the beams. A string was used to align the ends of the joists before they were secured. We continued by installing the rim joists and blocking between the joists. Finally, we coated everything with a solid stain.
The next step in our deck project was to install two sets of steps and all the railings.