Hardwood fasteners, advice please

[fagersz]

Hi there,
I have just assembled and leveled the floor frame for my 66 square metre deck. I used recycled hardword, bearers and joists supported by brick piers .
Now I need to fasten the deck and have no experience.
I fear that the hardwood is going to be difficult to nail by hand, so I want a nail gun which I will hire.
Should I nail through the packing I used to level the joist?
Should I skew nail or use pieces of flat metal made for the purpose (don't no what there called)
I'm looking for the easiest method (considering my skill level)
What length nails should I use.
Are nail guns powerfull enough to go through hardwood?

Also, I plan to clean up the cyprus pine T&G flooring I salvaged from my old house to use for the decking.
I understand that I will need to fasten the boards where they meet by hand.
Would it be safe to use a nail gun for the other parts of the board ?

I just thought of something else I've been wondering about:

The deck is going to be covered, the engineers drawing simply places the pergola post above the brick piers. How do I attach posts to a deck floor?

Any help appreciated
Cheers

[SilentButDeadly]

Easiest way to join the frame is Pryda joist hangers (both left hand and right hand types) and type 17 screws driven by a screw gun/cordless drill with a 5/16th driver.

A nail gun won't like seasoned hardwood....trust me on this!! It also won't like cypress - you'll need to pre-drill and screw your floorboards down all the way.

Posts can be attached using a steel U plate (again from Pryda - it's on their website) or you can shape the frame to receive the post...

[MelbMan]

Fagerz if the timber is Merbau you're going to have to pre-drill any holes for the nails and then possibly only for a hand hammer.

Wonder if there is a way to attach the decking without having any visible nails where you walk? Good luck.

[addo]

Wonder if there is a way to attach the decking without having any visible nails where you walk? Good luck.

Skew screwing it from underneath? Better hope you don't overshoot a single hole out of that 3120 to drill (66m² deck on 450 centres, 94mm c/c on boards).

[jmaxwell]

you will never nail down a deck with recycled joists ,as above trust him, i persevered on 45 m2 with nails screwed it down 12 months later. Have two drills ,one to pre drill hole the other to drive the screws makes the job a lot faster . Best screws are a square drive they have a smaller head then a batten screw and finer gauge ,less likely to split cypress as it gets brittle with age .good luck

[Pusser]

Good excuse to invest in an impact driver to drive the screws - i used hex driver screws- regular drill for pilot.

[Dr - 307]

With the square drive screws (stainless 310) I have seen the Otter Brand which I think look brilliant. They have a 10-15mm 'no thread shank' at the top near the head of the screw....like most screws. I have however the opportunity to purchase Chinese Stainless Steal screws, square drive and same gauge but the thread is all the way along the length of the screw meaning no plain shank.
Questions...
1. Chinese screws, good or bad?
2. Thread all the way along the screw or prefer some plain shank at the top?
3. What drill bit size is right for 8-10 guage screws?

Anyone?

[flynnsart]

I would go with the stainless steel screws with a shank, as it will pull the board down snug. Hold the drill bit up against the screw and see that the thread protrudes either side, but not too much. Buy a couple of different sizes and experiment. When you have decided which is best, buy a few of them! If you are going to recycle t&G boards for decking, cut the tongue off, probably would take the groove off too so moisture cant sit in there. Use an electric hand plane.You might need a countersinker to make the heads of the screws sit flush.

I have seen stainless steel deck screws on Ebay.

Donna

[Dr - 307]

Thanks Donna,
Any problems with Chinese decking screws (provided they have a shank)?

[SilentButDeadly]

Thanks Donna,
Any problems with Chinese decking screws (provided they have a shank)?

Hell yeah!! Even the gal steel Type 17 bugle head batten screws (recessed hex drive) will snap if they are driven too hard into timber or the timber is hard and a 4.5mm pilot hole hasn't been drilled. I've done this quite a few times now

And stainless steel is typically more brittle than mild steel....so unless you pre-drill AND be gentle I'll wager that you'll snap quite a few of the little buggers.

[DvdHntr]

Depends on your location as to whether you really need stainless steel or not. You may be able to get away with galvanised if you paint the deck and the screws.

[Dr - 307]

S B D,
You reckon I should go the Otter Brand then in the square drive deck screw?

[Clive McF]

I used screws to fasten a hardwood deck to recycled hardwood joists and even with pre-drilling I can pretty much guarantee that some of the SS screws will snap. Depending on the look you're after and location of your deck, you could reduce the risk by using SS in exposed areas (typically edges) and gal for the rest. Obviously a random mixture of gal and SS will look horrible, but SS in a pleasing pattern can enhance the look of the deck. I used a combination bit which did the pilot hole and counterbore in one go - saved lots of time. In fact with enough drills and batteries, it's not much harder than nailing, and as others have said, works much better.