When laying decking, how much gap should be left between each decking board?
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upto you, 5-10mm will be more than enough to allow for an expansion in wet weather. make sure you treat them well and they will expand less.
1/4 inch
3cm
Enough for the rats to get out and sunbathe
1/4 in. to 3/8 in.
rule of thumb is anything wider than 1/8 of an inch = trouble.
About 5mm. Best to get a normal 10mm spanner and hold the flat side of it to boards and push boards against it as you screw them down.
It doesn't matter, so long as the gap is not so great you will fall down it. What is important is to make sure you use the boards the right way up so they do not become slippery.
about an inch i think.
If you are using new pressure treated lumber i recommend butting it tight. when the wood dries out you will have your gap.
Depends upon the decking material:
Wet wood (fresh pressure-treated) - 0 gap, as the wood dries, it will shrink and leave a nice gap.
Dry wood or solid composite materials - 1/8" or so. A nail placed between planks works as a nice spacer. (Remove the nail after the next plank is fastened.)
Vinyl and moulded composites are generally self-spacing, check your directions.
Depends on the climate. If youre in hot Arizona and your using new raw lumber, Use very little if, any gap. in a few months it will shrink a good 3/8" inch (2x6 or 2x8 doug fir)
Otherwise 1/4" gauge cut from 1/4" plywood will be enough to clear debris that gets trapped. Also use only screws, no nails. Torque head (square socket) screws instead of philips will save your back.
6mm is the standard.
You can buy cheap, plastic "spacers" for this job that go between each plank from most suitable (DIY) shops.
When i lay decking i use 6" wire nails, lay the first board then on every joist/cross member gently knock a 6" wire nail in just a couple of mm so it will be easy to pull out again, (you should have some of these left over from making the sub-frame) then but the next board up to the nails and fix that board, remove the nails and repeat process, i must say that the gap between the boards is of personal preference but i found this to be the easiest and quickest and the most uniform way of doing it, some people use small piece of ply wood but these are hard to get out of between the boards.
Good luck.....
Enough to let dust through when sweeping up (OK, sweeping down then). Approx 2mm should do.
DO NOT LEAVE A GAP! as the wood dries, it will make it's own gap. you want to push the boards togather as tight as you can before nailing them. ALSO, look at the end of the board. you want the grain to be shaped like a rainbow.not like a U. that way, when the wood starts to warp, it wont roll up on the sides and pull the nails loose. it will roll up in the middle if it rolls at all.
oh, I thought they were supposed to be tongue-in-groove (no gap).
Well it depends. If there isn't enough time to let the wet treated lumber cure I say none at all. Because in a few weeks the wood will shrink. If you decide to use the new composite decking boards, or if you let the wet treated lumber stack dry for a couple weeks, I'd say a 1/8 to a 1/4. Whatever suits you. The best way to do this uniformly is to buy a pack of shims and every time you nail a board down use the thick end of it as a spacer on each end of the board.
between 5 and 10 mm i use a pair of bolster chisels but you could use a 6 inch nail or something similar remember to use weed control under your deck or better still get a contractor in to do the job
depends on the moisture content of the decking, with air dried stock moisture content 18% I'd say 6mm gap, green timber moisture cotent over 25% leave a 2-3mm gap , kiln dried timber moistue content around 12% leave a 8 mm gap
I am assuming you are referring to laying pressure treated lumber to deck with such as 5/4 " or 2" x 6"'s. If that is the case do not leave a gap. In fact I clamp my boards after I lay my first pass, and pull them together tight with long bar clamps before screwing them down. When the pressure treated lumber dries it will leave about 3/16" gap which is sufficient. Have fun building you're deck and good luck!
You have to leave at least 6mm (1/4 inch) for expansion and swelling
The easy way to do it is to use a decking board on edge for the gap, this will ensure that all the gaps are the same and you don't have to measure, and is very quick and simple.
just enough so all the ladies don't lose their heels down the gaps.
The diameter of the nails which you're using to nail the decking down with. Use nails as spacers. Simple and effective.
as said above 5-10mm
This is a good site for decking advice-
http://www.ultimatehandyman.co.uk/diy/de...
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