Michigan winters and humid summers put heavy stress on wood decks. Splintered, rotting, or spongy deck boards compromise your family's safety. Here is how to replace them.
Wood rot spreads. If you leave a soft, spongy deck board unattended, it traps moisture against the supporting joists beneath it. Replacing a single board today can prevent having to rebuild the entire deck substructure next year.
Dry rot is caused by fungi that thrive in damp, unventilated wood. It often starts where boards meet or where screws have rusted.
Method: Press the tip of a flathead screwdriver into any dark, cracked, or suspect spots on the wood. If the screwdriver sinks easily into the fibers without resistance, the wood is rotten and must be removed.
To pull a board without damaging the neighboring ones, you need a pry bar and a cat's paw tool (nail puller).
Method: Back out the screws securing the board to the joists. If the screws are rusted or stripped, drive a flat pry bar under the board directly over a joist and pry up. Use a reciprocating saw (sawzall) with a metal-cutting blade to slice through any stubborn nails or screws underneath.
Once the board is out, check the wood framing (joists) underneath it. If the joist is soft, you cannot screw the new board into it.
Method: Perform the screwdriver test on the joist. If it is solid, apply joist tape (a butyl adhesive barrier) along the top edge of the joist to protect it from future water penetration. If the joist is slightly rotted, you can sister a new, treated 2x8 board alongside the damaged area to provide structural screw backing.
Vetted handymen in our network handle deck board replacements, railing reinforcements, sagging gates, and minor wood steps repairs.
See Carpentry & Deck ServicesUse pressure-treated lumber (typically Southern Yellow Pine) or cedar, matching the width and thickness of the existing boards (standard is 5/4-in x 6-in).
Method: Measure twice and cut the new board to fit. Leave a 1/8 to 1/4 inch gap between the board ends to allow for wood expansion. Secure the board to every joist with two **3-inch polymer-coated deck screws** or stainless-steel screws. Drive the screws slightly below the wood surface.
Tell us about your deck repairs and we'll match you with a vetted carpentry handyman.