Thread: Deck problem.. bad weather

Hi all

I’m just wondering if anybody here has any experience with building decks.

My problem.

I built a 7m by 7m deck all treated pine "Bearers, joists and deck boards"
I have laid just over half of the deck boards down and it’s looking good, i have allowed a gap of about 3 mil and have had to adjust the gap in a few spots to correct a few issues but overall am happy with it.

Now we have had beautiful 28 degree days while laying the first half and yesterday it’s decided to Poor rain, when i got home last night i noticed the boards have swollen quite a bit, some to the point where the gap has gone completely.

I assume that the gap will return once a get a couple of good sunny days to dry out then i can oil it.

But i still have the last half of the deck laid out ready to be nailed down and am worried about the what to do with the gap being that the boards are wet.

The Weather for the next week doesn’t look that great and the next 2 days are overcast with odd showers. Saturday is looking like 24 and no rain.

So should i try and nail it with a smaller gap or no gap and hope it opens up a bit when its dry ... or should i wait until late Saturday afternoon and see if its dried out enough with the one day of better weather on Saturday then use the normal 3 mill gap ... or leave it for a week until i get good weather... this I’m now a fan of but if it best..

Any suggestion would be appreciated.

Thank you

Ben