Irreversible mistakes when installing decking. I began to teach my neighbor, but he stopped talking to me

Installation of decking is not difficult. Everyone can handle such work. But many make mistakes that lead to damage to the material. A complete replacement of the coating is required within a year. To prevent this, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with the problems in the work.

There are 2 types of decking (decking) for sale: seamless and seam. The seamless board looks beautiful, without holes. Grass does not grow between the boards and insects do not climb through the holes. Such a coating is more convenient for shoes with high, thin heels. Small objects are not lost in crevices. But the disadvantages are much more serious.

Experts advise against mounting a seamless terrace board outdoors. The accumulation of water under the flooring leads to deformation, damage to the material. You need to do ventilation and take care of the water drain under the decking. When the temperature drops, the WPC board expands, narrows / expands. Therefore, it is so important to make gaps and slope under the flooring (1 lm - 1 cm).

It is important to level the surface before installing the board in order to avoid uneven surfaces and deformation of the flooring in the future. You need to fix the boards strictly in one direction. On the lamellas you will see the direction for correct installation.

It is better not to save money and buy logs from WPC, instead of logs from wood. WPC boards and wood logs have different expansion coefficients. What can happen to a board if you use a regular wood? The temperature drop will tear the composite out of the log, rip the boards off the mountings.

Too hard fasteners or vice versa - not tightened. If the fasteners are not properly tightened, then over time the flooring looses and creaks. Conversely, rigid fasteners cause cracks in the board. If this does not happen during installation, then it will definitely happen during operation. You cannot fix the boards on one log and terminal. When joining (along the length), the edges of the boards should lie on a separate log, and be attached to a separate fastener.

The distance between the lags must be respected. Some decide to save money and make lags at a considerable distance from each other. As a result, the load on the decking increases, it will sag, deforming under the weight.

If the board is laid transversely, then the distance should be 40 cm. If the laying is longitudinal, then the distance between the lags is 50 cm.

I saw how a neighbor laid boards directly on the ground, without logs and alignment. Told him how to do it, he just waved it off. As a result, shrinkage of the soil occurred in some places of the terrace and all the work was in vain (the flooring was deformed).

After that, the neighbor stopped communicating with me.