How to Know When Your Deck Needs a Termite Inspection -

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The image above portrays a pre-cast concrete pier. Posts can raise out of pre-cast concrete piers, and piers can move. Posts ought to be linked to their footings so that the posts do not raise or slip off. The image above depicts an appropriate post-to-footing connection. Posts need to be linked to their footings so that the posts don't raise or slip off their footings.

Posts ought to be connected to their footings so that the posts don't lift or slip off their footings. The above image illustrates a sprinkler system keeping a deck post damp.  Solution Can Be Seen Here  that routinely keep the deck wet add to decay. The image above illustrates a downspout contributing to publish decay.

The image above illustrates the indentation left over from the footing hole, causing a puddle. Puddles contribute to publish decay. Wood can decay and deteriorate with time with direct exposure to the elements. Decay is a problem that gets worse with time. Members within the deck frame that have decomposed might no longer have the ability to perform the function for which they were set up.

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The image above illustrates a "choice test." The pick test uses an ice pick, awl or screwdriver to penetrate the wood surface. After permeating the wood, the tool is leveraged to pry up a splinter, parallel to the grain, far from the surface. The appearance and noise of the action is used to detect decay.

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Decayed wood will break directly over the tool with very few splinters, and less or nearly no audible noise compared to sound wood. The pick test can not spot decay far from the surface area of the wood. The image above illustrates a choice test on a deck post. Although deck assessments are visual-only inspections, inspectors may wish to dig around posts and carry out pick tests just below grade level to try to find decay.

Tall 4"x 4" posts twist under load and 4"x 4" posts, even when treated, decay listed below grade too quickly. In all however the most affordable of decks, deck posts need to be at least 6"x 6", and be no higher than 12 feet; 14 feet is appropriate if cross-bracing is used. Frequently, the bottoms of the stringer boards for deck stairs have been discovered to rest on soil, concrete block or rock, as opposed to resting on posts installed below the frost line.