convert existing 2x6 cedar decking to 5/4 composite.
I need to replace the surface lumber on my parents lower deck. The deck was originally built in '69 of redwood, but that had deteriorated over it's 30+ year life and I had to rebuild the deck about 10-12 years ago. We had to use cedar since the cost of redwood was so high, but the cedar has not held up well. This deck sits on the Northeast side of the house, so it doesn't get much sun on it. There are also oak trees and one locust tree that drop a lot of debris on the deck. All this gets between boards and keeps moisture in contact for much longer than it should. I'm sure you get the point. This time we are considering composite decking. The original deck was built before the rough-cut cedar siding was put on the house, so the bottoms of the siding actually sit ON the deck surface. If we replace the 2x6 cedar boards with 5/4 composite, it will leave a half inch gap between the top surface of the decking and the bottom of the siding. Is there a joist cap product that would sit on top of the joist adding the half inch so the composite sits at the same upper level as the wood does now? Why do you think the siding needs to be tight to the deck? all that does is make the siding sit in water when it's wet, and stay that way since it won't dry out. You usually want a space between siding and any horizontal surface so that it can drip off and dry... or at least so that you can get a paint brush in there to coat the bottom edge of the siding! I'd be glad that you will have a gap once you change the decking. While you have the decking off you should probably install a ledger flashing that goes over the framing and behind the siding if you don't already have one there. If you want to make the joists last longer, cover the tops of the joists with 3 wide strips of rubber sheeting or EPDM. Thanks for the fast reply, XSleeper. You presented several thoughts, and they're all valid. I agree that the design of this deck left something to be desired. I'm not trying to protect the PT joists as much as I'm trying to lengthen the lift of the much softer cedar. Several boards have deteriorated badly, enough so that I'm looking to replace the entire surface. The framing is still solid. I can't be 100% certain, but I do believe there is flashing in place along the house. (If not, that will be corrected.) Leaving a half inch gap between the bottom of the siding and the deck would not look right, but I do agree with leaving an air gap. The now 43 year old siding has held up beautifully even where it had been in contact with the decking, but has now shrunk just enough that there is a small gap so water contact isn't a problem any longer. I've stained the siding every 10 years or so, while my parents took care of staining the deck. My dad recently passed away, so it's just my mom in the house now and she won't be staining the deck any more. They hardly used this deck in recent years since I build another deck/gazebo on the other side of the house. However, mom is looking at moving out in a year or two so she's looking at making this deck a selling point rather than an eyesore. I'm still contemplating composite vs cedar, with the composite looking nice but needing much more work to install in this configuration. Composite is also kind of flexible and might not give the the rigid feel that you're used to. It really flexes a lot, especially if you are a heavy guy/gal. This becomes even more noticeable on stairs, which sometimes calls for risers (good idea anyway) or additional stringers. As for the height, you could always rip down some cedar or PT lumber on a table saw and apply it to the top of the joists as a shim. Coating the tops of the shims with a product like Anchorseal or similar would be a good idea, since the rough cut would tend to absorb water. If the gap under the siding is an issue, why not rip down a piece of the decking [whatever you wind up using] and use it to fill the gap...... but maybe with flashing the gap won't look strange. Thanks for that thought on the rigidity. I've already planned on adding additional joists in between the current 24 OC if we go composite, so we'll be at the recommended 12 OC. I neglected to mention that we're in Minnesota and this deck gets a pretty good snow load in the winter, which is all the more reason for 12OC for the joists. I've contemplated the ripped PT shims, which wouldn't be difficult to do. I'd just prefer something like a plastic/composite cap to go on the joists. This would cover the top of the joists to protect them (and not need sealing), and wouldn't have the chance to split or degrade over time as would be possible with the ripped shims. Still hoping someone has seen something like this out there somewhere. If that's your concern, then just rip down composite boards as your shim, using one of the solid composite 5/4 boards. Rip the 5 1/2 width lengthwise into 1 1/2 wide strips, then turn those 1 1/2 wide strips 90° and rip them to your final 3/8 or 1/2 width. If you don't have a table saw, this would be a great excuse to buy one. Now there is an interesting concept. (table saw is NOT an issue.) Since the 5/4 is actually only 1 thick, ripping it in half would lose the 1/8 thickness of the blade, leaving me with two 7/16 sides. That's close enough to the half inch as I could hope for. That idea may be exactly what I do! Thank you sir! Glad to help. Now let me come fishing in one of your 10,000 lakes this summer. LOL I know pretty was the jist of this thread, but no one mentioned the joist spacing. Hopefully it is at 16 oc. Anything more will not be happy with the 5/4 composite. Thanks Chandler, my reply at 5:22 addressed the joist spacing, but thank you for reiterating it (for anyone who is contemplating the same kind of deck remodeling). XSleeper, why wait until summer to go fishing? The lakes are crowded even as we speak! Slid right by it like a seal on a frozen lake. Sorry about that. I was in Chicago during the winter of '93. (-63F wind chill factor) No thanks. Little houses miles out on Lake Michigan. Brant, wait until grass is green. LOL, I've never been into ice fishing, I have chronic cold feet! Larry, I'm picturing those ice fishing shelters blowing across the ice- what a sight! Reminds me of the scene in Grumpy Old Men when the shelter is pushed by the Jeep out onto the lake. They filmed a lot of those movies here in Minnesota. Here's your pushing the ice house scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1v...ture=endscreen lol, thats awesome! thx for the link! Thought you'd like that. Now I'm going to have to go watch those movies all over, again! I've been in an ice house on a large lake north on MSP, MN. It had a furnace, refrigerator, freezer, generator, a dish and several flat screen TVs. When the ice goes out, it is towed to shore and serves as a cabin sitting on block to be base for boat fishing in the summer. Since the lake has a population of 10,000+ on weekends, they even patrol that lake for hookers (not fishermen) that have been known to go door to door. When you can't change the weather, you adapt and make the most of it. Dick I vividly remember growing up a few miles from Lake Winnebago in central Wisconsin. Every Spring, my Pa, in his broken English, would guess out loud how many fishermen's cars would wind up on the bottom of the lake--driving on thin/melting ice in April, even when sober as some of them were, is never a good idea.
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