Texas_Ranger wrote:Cut off and do a pegged lap joint. That's not worth saving! +1 on that, also get a galvanized post stand-off to lift it from the deck to stop it wicking up the moisture. You can then cover the stand-off (that might be the wrong term) with a pressure treated base molding
What on earth is going on here?!? Someone managed to write into my post! What kind of crazy bug is that?
My bad Texas, I apparently did exactly what Lily speculated! I fixed it
Freaked me out for a moment I've been known to create new threads instead of replying to existing ones so I'm familiar with the "wrong button syndrome"
Chadzeilenga wrote:Pegged lap joint, I'll have to read up on that. I'm assuming that the dimensions of the original post won't match up with current lumber dimensions.
The lap joint is about the simplest wood joint. You do need to get creative finding a replacement bit, either cutting/planing to size or building up from smaller pieces.
was the post removed? just replace the post? It might be me but shouldn't it sit on top of a support not just the floor. Maybe you could put something underneath to support it if it's very far from the support block underneath. one thing Ive done for wood that's on the ground where I was worried about wicking was to pick up a truck mud flap from the side of the road and just nail a chunk on. The last one I found was sort of thick plastic with ridges in one side and I thought it was fine for that.
Yea, post was removed to replace the porch floor. I put my stone support for the floor under where the post goes. It would swing free due to rott, so it isn't carrying much weight and should be fine sitting on top of the porch floor.
the stone that' sitting on the dirt might tend to sink a little and relieve any weight that the post bears on it but it also looks like unless you had a lot of snow, that little roof is probably well enough attached without the post at all. if it did it's still pretty accessible and you could dig under the stone and put some gravel and cement under it later.
Im hoping the T and G isn't laid super tight together as you might see that wood grow across the grain once the rain gets it wet. if the wood is really dry when you lay it and then it gets wet from snow or wind blowing rain in there, you could see each of those boards grow 1/16" or so in width and combined pressure could make them buckle up?
Maybe you could seal the end-grain on those boards to try to stop them from sucking up too much water. I'd put blopentine on them a few times and let them suck whatever they can through the endgrain. itll help stop them from checking ( splitting at the ends) I guess you could run a strip along to hide all the endgrain but I'm not sure if that would help or not or if it really is going to be an issue. If the boards had cracks between them then expansion wouldn't be an issue and the rain would go through but as it is the water can't really run off. The roof will stop most of it. I could be imagining problems that aren't' really an issue, see what others think? a strip covering the endgrin might stop any more chipping like in the photo but maybe with capillary action it could trap water and make things worse, I'm really not sure if it would help or hinder. maybe a strip about 1/2" x 2" with some appropriate non hardening sealant on it would stop water getting between. you could then round the outrside edge of that strip just a little so it wasn't a hard edge. If you wanted this strip could be just a tad thicker than the floor and it would make it appear that the floor is thicker. Of course the floor is plenty thick for the load it's just mostly a visual thing.
I fiberglassed my front and back deck and it's doing a good job of keeping any water out of the structure and I'm hoping that will prolong it's life. Vinyl decking would do the same but I just don't' really like using it. In my case the deck was made with posts going through the deck so I put cant strips around the posts. they are just triangular strips and I nail them ( with calking) around the posts and put one against the house. You can't bend fiberglass to a right angle but you can run it up the 45 degree angle up the cant strips. Water cant' run down the posts or between the deck and the house. I don't know if you;ld like the look of fiberglass after investing in nice T and G but it's an option if you wanted to do that I could give more detail. I like it on my deck , if it gets muddy or covered in green slime I can hose it off easily. I put a little walnut shells in the gelcoat so it isn't slippery near the door. it's basically an upside down boat. Not really an old house "feature" but it's practicle here as it rains all the time during the winter. you need new wood to fiberglass. I wouldn't try to stick it to old wood unless it's freshly sanded. It won't stick to dirty wood or paint.
Last edited by phil on Thu Dec 01, 2016 5:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The flagstones I used go down 36" and sit on a stone tamped base. I don't expect much movement.
Regarding the T&G, the originals were tight together and had no issues with buckling. Also, I used salvaged wood that had tight vertical grain so I anticipate growth to be minimal. Good suggestions on sealing the ends though. I'm not sure what I'm going to finish it with yet.
