How to Set Posts for a Deck

After the footing has been set in place you can add the support posts for the deck frame.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Post Anchors/caps
• 2-by-4 Scrap Lumber
• Pencils
• Circular Saws And Hand Saw
• Common Nails
• Levels
• Multiuse Screws
• Safety Glasses
• Variable-speed Drills

1. Cut posts 1/2 foot to 1 foot longer than your targeted finished height.
2. Place the post on top of the footing. (This type of footing is sometimes called a pier.)
3. Check that it is plumb, which means straight up and down, on two sides, using a carpenter's level.
4. Use a level to mark post height even with the bottom of the joists. (If the joists will sit on the top of the beam, add the width of the beam as well.) Mark a line on all four sides of the posts.
5. Cut along the lines with a circular saw; finish removing the top portion with a handsaw.
6. Treat cut ends of pressure-treated wood to protect them from rot.
7. Add a post cap to the top of the post. (Post caps are prefabricated metal brackets that fit over the top of the post and use a U-shaped bracket to help hold the beam in place.)
8. Set the post in the post anchor. The post anchor is the metal bracket that the bottom of the post is set in on top of the concrete footing. (See "How to Install Footings for a Deck," under Related eHows.)
9. Brace the post with a scrap 2-by-4 tacked about midway up the post and nailed to a stake set in the ground. Use a single nail to allow the braces to pivot.
10. Check that it is plumb on two sides with a level.
11. Nail or bolt the post to the post anchor.
12. Add additional nails to braces to hold the post until the beam is set in place.
13. Repeat for all the other posts.

Tips & Warnings

• You are now ready to install the beams and joists.
• A solid deck must slope slightly so it will drain. Allow a drop of 1 inch for every 8 to 10 feet by setting your beam height an inch lower at the 8- or 10-foot point.

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