I have a Q for builders and carpenters regarding desking shims:
I am replacing some old boards on my deck and this original material
was NOT 5/4 so its true thickness is 0.75 (3/4"). The original
material was Port Orford not sold anywhere near me any longer. So I'm
trying to find some decking that will fit reasonably well. Research
brought me to some cedar boards that are only 11/16" thick which when
installed are lower than the adjacent original boards.

So, long story short, does anyone have any idea what material I could
use to place between the joists and the replacement decking so bring
it up to the level of the old decking?

Ive been scouring the home improvement web sites without much luck.

Ideas? Thanks.

You only need to shim it up 1/16"? That doesn't seem
like enough to notice. I suppose you could use 2
layers of tar paper, just for good measure. But I
wonder about the cedar. I've never heard of cedar for
decking except as 4/4 (full inch). I wouldn't expect
3/4" to be strong enough. What's available here in
3/4" is mahogany or fir.

"BobMCT" wrote in message
...
|I have a Q for builders and carpenters regarding desking shims:
| I am replacing some old boards on my deck and this original material
| was NOT 5/4 so its true thickness is 0.75 (3/4"). The original
| material was Port Orford not sold anywhere near me any longer. So I'm
| trying to find some decking that will fit reasonably well. Research
| brought me to some cedar boards that are only 11/16" thick which when
| installed are lower than the adjacent original boards.
|
| So, long story short, does anyone have any idea what material I could
| use to place between the joists and the replacement decking so bring
| it up to the level of the old decking?
|
| Ive been scouring the home improvement web sites without much luck.
|
| Ideas? Thanks.

On Mon, 19 May 2014 15:24:31 -0400, BobMCT
wrote:

I have a Q for builders and carpenters regarding desking shims:
I am replacing some old boards on my deck and this original material
was NOT 5/4 so its true thickness is 0.75 (3/4"). The original
material was Port Orford not sold anywhere near me any longer. So I'm
trying to find some decking that will fit reasonably well. Research
brought me to some cedar boards that are only 11/16" thick which when
installed are lower than the adjacent original boards.

So, long story short, does anyone have any idea what material I could
use to place between the joists and the replacement decking so bring
it up to the level of the old decking?

Ive been scouring the home improvement web sites without much luck.

Ideas? Thanks.

Plastic / nylon shims

https://tinyurl.com/pep2opf

On Mon, 19 May 2014 18:36:40 -0400, "Mayayana"
wrote:

You only need to shim it up 1/16"? That doesn't seem
like enough to notice. I suppose you could use 2
layers of tar paper, just for good measure. But I
wonder about the cedar. I've never heard of cedar for
decking except as 4/4 (full inch). I wouldn't expect
3/4" to be strong enough. What's available here in
3/4" is mahogany or fir.

"BobMCT" wrote in message
.. .
|I have a Q for builders and carpenters regarding desking shims:
| I am replacing some old boards on my deck and this original material
| was NOT 5/4 so its true thickness is 0.75 (3/4"). The original
| material was Port Orford not sold anywhere near me any longer. So I'm
| trying to find some decking that will fit reasonably well. Research
| brought me to some cedar boards that are only 11/16" thick which when
| installed are lower than the adjacent original boards.
|
| So, long story short, does anyone have any idea what material I could
| use to place between the joists and the replacement decking so bring
| it up to the level of the old decking?
|
| Ive been scouring the home improvement web sites without much luck.
|
| Ideas? Thanks.

Buy 5/4 and have it planed to match the old boards. Cedar is a bit
hard on planer blades due to the silica content so don't do it on your
best friend's cabinetry equipment- - -

On Monday, May 19, 2014 12:24:31 PM UTC-7, BobMCT wrote:

As others have said, I would use something other than cedar but to answer the question:

Try some formica. It'll last forever I don't know how thick it is but 1 or 2 layers ought to be close.

Harry K

BobMCT wrote:
I have a Q for builders and carpenters regarding desking
shims:
I am replacing some old boards on my deck and this
original material
was NOT 5/4 so its true thickness is 0.75 (3/4"). The
original
material was Port Orford not sold anywhere near me any
longer. So I'm
trying to find some decking that will fit reasonably well.
Research
brought me to some cedar boards that are only 11/16" thick
which when
installed are lower than the adjacent original boards.

So, long story short, does anyone have any idea what
material I could
use to place between the joists and the replacement
decking so bring
it up to the level of the old decking?

Ive been scouring the home improvement web sites without
much luck.

Ideas? Thanks.

BobMCT wrote:
I have a Q for builders and carpenters regarding desking
shims:
I am replacing some old boards on my deck and this
original material
was NOT 5/4 so its true thickness is 0.75 (3/4"). The
original
material was Port Orford not sold anywhere near me any
longer. So I'm
trying to find some decking that will fit reasonably well.
Research
brought me to some cedar boards that are only 11/16" thick
which when
installed are lower than the adjacent original boards.

So, long story short, does anyone have any idea what
material I could
use to place between the joists and the replacement
decking so bring
it up to the level of the old decking?

Ive been scouring the home improvement web sites without
much luck.

Ideas? Thanks.

Opps, hit send to quick.
Don't know your config, but I'd just put it down and rent a
floor sander and feather out the boards adjacent to the new
ones.
You'd never feel or see the difference
A floor sander will take 1/16 off just lookin at the deck

thanks for all the suggestions. I did find some plastic shims at Home
Depot that I cut in half and doubled up then stapled to the top of the
joists. That brought the cedar up to the level of the adjacent
boards.

If I EVER get to rebuild this deck I will most definitely go with
synthetic materials.

On 5/20/2014 9:28 PM, BobMCT wrote:
thanks for all the suggestions. I did find some plastic shims at Home
Depot that I cut in half and doubled up then stapled to the top of the
joists. That brought the cedar up to the level of the adjacent
boards.

If I EVER get to rebuild this deck I will most definitely go with
synthetic materials.


Consider wood like IPE that will easily last 50+ years with no treatment.

On Tue, 20 May 2014 22:33:04 -0400, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

On 5/20/2014 9:28 PM, BobMCT wrote:
thanks for all the suggestions. I did find some plastic shims at Home
Depot that I cut in half and doubled up then stapled to the top of the
joists. That brought the cedar up to the level of the adjacent
boards.

If I EVER get to rebuild this deck I will most definitely go with
synthetic materials.


Consider wood like IPE that will easily last 50+ years with no treatment.
The synthetic material is less expensive than IPE though.

| If I EVER get to rebuild this deck I will most definitely go with
| synthetic materials.
|
|
| Consider wood like IPE that will easily last 50+ years with no treatment.

The plastic stuff is ugly, and I wonder about
whether it might be a problem to get rid of in
a few years. It's considered "green" because it
reuses polyethylene and sawdust, but it also
doesn't break down. I suspect it's going to end
up being like arsenic in PT wood: Seemed like
a good idea at the time, but in retrospect... what
were we thinking?

I've used ipe on a deck railing. It's durable, but
it's checked a bit. And since the grain is so tight
it doesn't take stain well. Like purpleheart and other
exotics, it looks great the first year, looks beat up
the second year, and after that it's just an ugly gray.
It might last a long time, but it's not very attractive
for most of that time.

On Wednesday, May 21, 2014 7:18:33 AM UTC-4, Mayayana wrote:
| If I EVER get to rebuild this deck I will most definitely go with

| synthetic materials.

|

|

| Consider wood like IPE that will easily last 50+ years with no treatment.



The plastic stuff is ugly, and I wonder about

whether it might be a problem to get rid of in

a few years. It's considered "green" because it

reuses polyethylene and sawdust, but it also

doesn't break down. I suspect it's going to end

up being like arsenic in PT wood: Seemed like

a good idea at the time, but in retrospect... what

were we thinking?



There are all kinds of building products that don't break down.
Around here, NJ, unless they are toxic, they are no harder or
easier to dispose of than wood. They all go in the same landfill.
I don't see the arsenic comparison at all, it's not toxic.





I've used ipe on a deck railing. It's durable, but

it's checked a bit. And since the grain is so tight

it doesn't take stain well. Like purpleheart and other

exotics, it looks great the first year, looks beat up

the second year, and after that it's just an ugly gray.

It might last a long time, but it's not very attractive

for most of that time.

Many would say you could apply the "what were they thinking" line
to IPE today. It comes from rainforests that are being cut down
and damaging the environment today.
I think that probably has a lot more validity than alleged future
disposal problems with Trex that don't exist.

| There are all kinds of building products that don't break down.
| Around here, NJ, unless they are toxic, they are no harder or
| easier to dispose of than wood. They all go in the same landfill.
| I don't see the arsenic comparison at all, it's not toxic.
|

No one really thought arsenic PT wood was a problem, either,
but VT banned it from disposal. Then it was banned altogether.
A similar thing could happen with Trex, not because it's toxic but
because it's so environmentally unsound and that means expense.
As regulations get more restrictive about landfills and costs of
rubbish disposal increase, there could be added fees for things
like Trex. Possibly not, but it's not farfetched. The whole idea
of Trex never made much sense in the first place. Trex started
out as very expensive plastic wood that was allegedly "green"
because it recycles milk bottles. It's actually as problematic as
plastic bags for landfill. And it's ugly. And it's expensive.


| Many would say you could apply the "what were they thinking" line
| to IPE today. It comes from rainforests that are being cut down
| and damaging the environment today.

Yes, that's a good point, though I think most exotic
woods now are coming from farms. The whole trend
toward exotics doesn't make a lot of sense to me, in
any case. I know someone who put purpleheart on his
deck and loved it. It was gorgeous. But he had to
strip it every Spring and then put a thick sealer coat
on it. Finally he gave up. That was 10-15 years ago.
Now it's punky in spots, with barn red stain on it. It got
too ugly and dark to use anything but solid color deck
stain. Exotics are generally similar that way: They're very
dense and resinous. They hold up well to weather but
don't take stain well because they're not porous. Then
they end up ugly, dirty gray after the first couple of years
of weathering.

I usually use mahogany or fir 1x4 for a nice look, with
a solid or wood-tone stain. My own deck is 4/4 x 6 PT.
It's not as elegant as 1x4, but it will last indefinitely. I
just have to recoat the solid color stain every 2-3 years.

It's all a matter of personal preference and taste, but
we all tend to follow trends without giving it much thought.
And these days trends change so fast it's hard to know
the longterm results. So I figured it's worth raising the issues
that are not in support of the current trends.

Apropos of that, I have a job next week for a condo
development that was built in 1983. They used MDO
panels trimmed with pine for a "PoMo" look on the front
of the building, to break up the siding with more interesting
design elements. Sort of pseudo-Tudor. That's become a
common trend. I see high-end houses now using a similar
technique to make the exterior look more interesting.
I've already replaced much of the pine on these condos
twice, and some of the MDO has been replaced. The water
collects on the pine board edges and then eventually gets in.
People think MDO is impervious because the surface is
plasticized, but it's not at all durable with water exposure,
and with modern water-based paints used on it, there's no
protection against moisture, especially on horizontal edges.
Similar design elements done 100 years ago with solid fir
or other durable wood, and finished with oil-based paint, are
still holding up.

On 5/20/2014 11:19 PM, wrote:
On Tue, 20 May 2014 22:33:04 -0400, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

On 5/20/2014 9:28 PM, BobMCT wrote:
thanks for all the suggestions. I did find some plastic shims at Home
Depot that I cut in half and doubled up then stapled to the top of the
joists. That brought the cedar up to the level of the adjacent
boards.

If I EVER get to rebuild this deck I will most definitely go with
synthetic materials.


Consider wood like IPE that will easily last 50+ years with no treatment.
The synthetic material is less expensive than IPE though.


Less expensive up front is not always the best value though.