jackem

When using picture frame corners with composite decking I have seen pictures that show no gap at the mitered corners. Does this present a problem from NOT leaving the gap the manufacturers say to use between boards?

When using the HFS from TimberTech (CONCEALoc's) how large a variation on height (same plane) of the joist's can there be without causing problems with the install.

Jack

BuiltByMAC

Don't know that anyone here would fess up to anything over 1/8" - anything more than that and you'll have waves in the final product that will look bad.
In terms of the ConcealLocs themselves, you'll probably have issues with anything over 3/16" in a 16" span, 1/8" difference between joists might even cause problems. (I don't know, never tested it...)

Ask not the question of how bad a job you can do and get away w/ it, just make the joist tops level and walk away proud.

Mac

Greg Di

The flatter your joists, the easier the install will go. Everytime you have a height variation between two joists, you'll find it much harder to get the boards to slide into the clips.

The best bet is to string the joists in a few places to see where the high spots are and plane them down before you start. It saves a lot of aggravation.

Leave a 1/8" gap at your miter and you'll be OK. There's already a lot of gaps between the deck boards so visually, the gaps at the miters look like they belong.

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Green Machine

I have found that when using those conceloc clips, using a rubber mallet to smack the decking into the clips makes it a whole lot easier. Those things a tight fitting and sometime need a little "push". We had some joists with a MAJOR crown in them, and when we got the decking on, it looked like **** if you eyeballed down the tops. We were building the deck for another contractor so he was very picky. we had to strip the decking off, plane the joists and even had to replace a few of the one with the worst crown before re-laying the decking back down. Pain in the ass. finished product looks great though. i absolutly HATS those conceled clips! Would rather just face screw decking on my place. Even though the concelocs look great, they are a lot of work.

Greg Di

So you never used them before and had a problem with bad joists, yet the clips are at fault?

As a guy who has probably put in 5000 of them with his own hands in 2008 alone, I'd have to tell you that they are very easy to work with and are probably the best out there in terms of final look, ease to work with, and speed.

Next time, check your joists first. A bad joist is going to make even a face screwed deck look like crap. It has nothing to do with the fastener.

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s. donato

i would have to agree with greg here. its not the clips fault that the framing wood had a bad crown that went unnoticed till the deck was on. if i was the GC i would have made you rip it off too. ;-)

i have used some of those clips and really like the system but i can see how it would be a PITA o have to rip something in the middle up.

look at it as a learning experience you will never not check for crowns before decking again ;-) pricey educational lesson but a good one none the less.

Build it Right

Depending on the season leave the gap. To correct framing problems, crown all joists and then cut the crown out (really flat deck). Use 1x4 bridging to keep the sway out, and always mortice your posts and beams.