How to: Teak Deck

Foundation

• 1

  Lay out a perimeter that's 8 feet long and 10 feet wide with wood stakes. Tie string between the stakes, forming a rectangle. Using the right angle, ensure the corners are 90-degree angles. Adjust as necessary.

• 2

  Dig holes 12 inches deep, 8 inches wide. The centers of these holes should be where the stakes were. Add two similar holes in the middle of the 10-foot spans.

• 3

  Place a plastic tube form around the edge of the holes, pushing it firmly into the earth, so the concrete will create a solid shape that protrudes 4 inches out of the ground.

• 4

  Mix concrete in the wheelbarrow by adding water in the proportion listed on the package and stirring in a figure-eight pattern. Pour it into the holes, through the tube forms. Leave the concrete to dry, as listed on the packaging.

• 5

  Drill pilot holes in the concrete footings, using a masonry bit slightly narrower than the masonry screws you will later use. Drill holes that correspond with the predrilled holes in the post anchors. Using masonry screws, mount the post anchors on the concrete footings.

Frame

• 6

  Cut four 2-by-6 beams of southern pine to 10 feet, and four beams to 8 feet. Nail all the beams together in matching pairs, so there are two 10-foot laminations and two 8-foot laminations.

• 7

  Place the beams in the post anchors -- the 10-foot sections in the 10-foot spans and the 8-foot sections in the 8-foot spans. Hammer nails through the pre-drilled holes in the post anchors into the beams.

• 8

  Cut 2-by-6 beams to 7 feet, 8 inches. Attach these joists to the frame, using the metal mounting brackets. Put the bracket over one end of the joist, and position the joist at the proper spot on the frame. Install one joist per every 16 inches, measuring from the center of one joist to the next.

Decking

• 9

  Cut 5.5-by-2-inch teak boards to 10 feet long. Attach them to the frame, perpendicular to the joists, by putting three nails in either end and two nails at each point where a board crosses a joist. Start from one side of the frame and work your way over, keeping the boards tightly aligned.

• 10

  Cut a straight line along the edge of the deck where the decking boards end. Using the circular saw, cut off the ends of these boards to create a perfectly straight edge.

• 11

  Sand the deck with the power sander, starting with a coarse-grit sandpaper and moving to a finer grit. Finish the deck with a sealant made to prevent water damage, and in a color you like.