[Dave01]

I'm a new poster, and would like some feedback on a friend's deck that he recently had built on the back of his house roughly 10-12 feet off the ground. The ledger connection to the house looks to have lag screws, however, I expressed some concern to him over the floor joist support beam nailed to the outside of the 6X6 posts. The beam looks to be a 2X8 nailed on each side of the post, with the joists sitting on top. I have attached pictures.

There are no lag screws or through bolts on the horizontal beams. The builder also broke the inner beam into 2 sections as the picture shows.

The 6X6s are cut off at floor level, so not sure why the builder didn't secure the support beam on top of the posts. Then there is a screened in portion topside that ties into the roof of the house. Should he have some cleats or vertical 4X4s attached under the horizontal deck support beams, or lag or through bolts to strengthen the connection? It's a decent size deck IIR -- maybe 12X16 at least.

Would be interested in any feedback for him on next steps.

Thank you!

 

[SPS-1]

https://www.awc.org/pdf/codes-standards/publications/dca/AWC-DCA62015-DeckGuide-1804.pdf


.

 

[Nealtw]

I would sister anther between the post and nail them together with 3" HDG nails. 3 nails 16"OC.
then add a 2x4 to both sides of the posts so the beam is supported to the pier.

 

[Drachenfire]

That deck in no way meets code. Its a safe bet it was never inspected.

Left as is, that deck poses a significant risk to life and limb, especially if a large number of people are on it.

 

[Dave01]

Thank you, gentlemen, for the informative replies. Neal, I will discuss doing just as suggested with my friend and I'm sure he will appreciate the insight and problem solving. Thank you for sharing your experience and expertise.

Best regards

 

[Nealtw]

Thank you, gentlemen, for the informative replies. Neal, I will discuss doing just as suggested with my friend and I'm sure he will appreciate the insight and problem solving. Thank you for sharing your experience and expertise.

Best regards

Do we dare ask how it is attached to the house and whether they did the flashing properly?

 

[Dave01]

That deck in no way meets code. Its a safe bet it was never inspected.

Left as is, that deck poses a significant risk to life and limb, especially if a large number of people are on it.

I'll make sure he is aware, and remedy discussed with the contractor. In the mean time, I'm sure he will keep traffic off of it.

 

[Dave01]

Do we dare ask how it is attached to the house and whether they did the flashing properly?

My untrained, amateur eye did see lag bolts, and saw that they also ran 4X4s underneath the ledger cemented into the ground and against the brick exterior. I could get more pictures when I'm over again. But, the first visible layers of the onion are not inspiring confidence.