Best 5 Tips To Reduce Deck Board Cupping
Deck material as composite Trex or Azek TimberTech are great; however, IPE boards are among the most common decking materials used in building and installing a deck. Once installed, however, deck board cupping can become a problem. This can result from how the boards were nailed down. Deck builders who specialize in IPE installation will know how to prevent that situation.
Don’t worry much because this problem can be prevented so that your IPE deck will last longer.
Here are Best 5 Tips To Reduce Deck Board Cupping:
1. Use the Face Mount Screw Method
Decking materials come in different forms, shapes, and sizes. It does not really matter which material you choose for your deck board when you want to prevent it from cupping. What matters is you know how to mount the boards properly. The face mount or top down screw method is ideal. In this method, you use two screws on each end of the board. Two screws must also be used at every joist working from outside the board. In case your boards have already cupped, you need to unscrew and flip them before re-screwing them down.
2. Relieve Tension on the Boards
This can be done by making kerf cuts on the underside of your deck boards. Create these small grooves by using a table saw. This method will relieve the surface tension on the area. Make sure that the blade widths are about 1/8 inch, and are evenly spaced. An example of a kerf cut is to go into half inch size when your boards are about 5/4 inches thick.
3. Decrease Joist Distance
Joists are important while you build your deck. They should not be used if you want to have a quick fix when your boards have cupped after your deck has been installed. It is important then to decrease joist distance. In such a manner, you will be able to secure your boards in more locations, and prevent them from warping and cupping. This also holds the structure more firmly, while solidifying its built.
4. Prevent Splitting by Using Pilot Holes
When boards cup, the next problem you will need to deal with is the possibility of splitting. When this happens, the boards will break and will mean you have to replace them, right away. You can easily prevent splitting by creating pilot holes. Pilot holes can be made right at that spot where your screws go. They can be ideally placed at either of the ends on your deck boards. The pilot hole serves as a guide as to where the screws will be placed.
5. Choose High Quality Decking Materials
As mentioned awhile back, decking materials come in different forms. If you want a deck that will last, it follows that you should choose high quality materials. You have a lot of choices from natural wood to synthetic ones. Whatever it is that you have in mind, you must consider which one of them is made to last longer. This can help prevent deck board cupping, and at the same time ensure you that you need not rework on the project in the near future.
On top of all these things, it is important that you choose the service professional that you are working with. Only the most dedicated team of professionals, like our team at LA Decks, can help prevent your boards from cupping and warping right from the start.
L.A. Decks is a full-service, family-owned deck contractor serving the greater Los Angeles and Orange County area. We understand the complexity that the local area presents for outdoor projects in terms of space and geography better than anyone.
Since 1995, we have been delivering customized solutions that overcome those obstacles and address each customer’s individual budget, taste, and preferences.
Our team strives to improve the lifestyles of our customers, one project at a time. Together, we actualize the visions of our clients into a serene, all-encompassing, and stunning backyard getaway.
We hope to pepper the Los Angeles and Orange County area with these dream backyards, all of which are a product of our team’s open communication, driven planning, and persevering work ethic.