Hello,
We have just purchased our first home and moved in a few weeks ago (woohoo!!!) and one thing that I need to sort out is deck. We need to stain it and also in last few weeks since we have moved in, it seems that plenty of these nails are sticking out. I and my 6 year old both have hurt our feet a few times and now the only way we go out is while wearing some flip flops.

I was wondering what can I do to fix the problem? The house construction is of 1995 but i am not sure when was the deck constructed. As much as I would like to do it myself I have pretty much have no idea how to fix it.

 

Generally, you hammer the nails back down. If they pop up again, you can put a deck screw between the nails to hold it to the joist.

 

Pull the nail and replace it with a coated deck screw.

 

Not going to do a bit of good to pound them in, there just going to come back out again.
Hellrazor has the right idea.
An impact driver is the fastest easyest way to drive screws.
If this is your fist home your going to need one anyway.
It can drill, drive screws and nuts.
I use mine far more then my cordless drill.

 

Thanks for replying everyone!

I already have a impact driver and I am wondering what size of screw should I put in. Should I get the same size as the nail that I pull out or should i get a slightly bigger one?

 

Use longer not bigger.
3" will work.

 

How thick is the decking? you want to use a screw one size longer than the nail you pull out so if it's an 8 penny nail [2.5" long] you'd use a 3" screw. You can get by with pounding the nails back in but it will likely be an ongoing issue.

Let us know when you are ready to restain the deck and we'll go over the proper prep and which stains should work the best for you.

 

Deck nails will pop, plain and simple, with no other issues, so the short answer is that I agree with replacing them with screws. Concurrently though, there are a couple of other things that I would look at. When you walk around on the deck, does it feel solid? Any areas that feel spongy? Nails popping can be an indication that there is some unwanted settling going on. Also look at the nails that you pull out to replace. Is the body full, or has it deteriorated? If the latter, it is possible that the proper nails were not used, in which case you may want to consider replacing all of nails while you are at it, or at least all of the ones that you can remove without having to remove railings or other features.

 

Thank you everyone.

Time to go and pull out some nails and get my impact driver out!


Thanks Again!