How to Install Pressure-Treated Decking

Start with the longest, most visible section of your deck platform and lay out several of the deck boards perpendicular to the deck joists. Keep at least 1/8 inch of space between the boards to allow for movement, since wood swells in the summer months when the weather is warm. Nail the boards down in place with the hammer.

Split the boards across the top of any joists so that the boards that butt up against each other lengthwise share a single joist and can be nailed into the same joist together. Never leave a piece of wood hanging over a joist. After you have nailed down the piece on the adjacent joists, cut the piece off as required where the nearest end rests on a joist.

Set the depth of the circular saw’s gauge to the depth of your pressure-treated deck pieces. As the piece sits on top of the joist, simply run the saw across the deck planking and cut it across the center of the joists. Install your next piece of wood so that both of them are nailed onto the same joist.

Make cuts on a miter saw, if that is your preference. You can measure for and mark the pieces with a tape measure, carpenter square and pencil, then place the deck planks on the tray for the miter saw. Hold the wood in place with your off hand. With your main hand, pull the trigger on the miter saw and pull the blade down into the wood to cut it off.

Rip down longer cuts with the circular saw. Rip cuts are any cuts which run down the length of a board, rather than across its width. Mark the piece of planking with a pencil and tape measure on both ends and then snap a chalk line between the two marks. Run the blade of the circular saw along the board using the chalk line as a reference.