It is not the best connection to the posts and it is over spanned.
For the post connection you could notch those posts and put a 2x beam under the deck
Or to fix both problems you could add a beam with new posts 2 ft closer to the house and just cut the old posts off at the deck.
Or for just a little help you could just add a 2x4 or 2x6 to the posts with lots of screws to add support for the rim.

 

Curious what you mean by “fixed deck”. Never heard that term.

Bottom line … the joist are too small. Max span for a 2x8 at 16” oc is a little less than 12 ft. I don’t see the 2 ply 2x8 beam you mention.

The construction is neatly done … just too small members. I bet there is a little bounce when you walk on it.

 

Fixed to house, not free standing.

 

and, how are those posts in the ground ?

 

Thanks for all the responses. I had a feeling it was under sized.

One of the pictures shows a 2 ply beam running parallel to the joist. Perhaps this is not a beam but rather a 2 ply rim joist?

Fixed meaning meaning fixed to house. Not free standing / floating.

yes the deck definitely has a noticeable bounce to it.

The post are cemented in the ground.

 

The post are cemented in the ground.

"in" the concrete or "on" the concrete. and above the ground or dirt touching the posts ?

 

The post are in the ground with cement poured around them.

 

ok. that promotes stability, and also promotes rot. check the bottoms closely. probably ok, but you will feel better if you "know". also check to see if the concrete is cracked.

 

guys, how would you fix the "bounce" ?

 

Also it looks like the ledger board it bolted direct to the Brick veneer?

 

On the theory that almost anything is better … a double 2x10 on 3 @ 4x4 posts half way between the house and the end of the deck.

Better would be a double or triple 2x12 on 3 @ 6x6 posts.

 

Sistering what? He might not like the additional beam and posts, but he will like it even less when the deck collapses under load and his homeowners insurance takes a big hit. Or somebody dies with a splintered 2x jammed in their gut.

 

sister joists. i am certainly not a span expert, so my idea of 2x12 may be overkill, or not.

 

You night have the answer.
2x10 max span, some one can double check but I think is 16ft
If the joists were sistered with 2x10.
He then could install a 2Ply 2x10 beam next to the posts. and add 4x4 next to and bolted to the posts with the 4x4 sitting on the concrete at the ground.

 

Safety is most important to me. After finishing the basement I’d like to use the space under the deck for a patio. Adding 3 posts would be a nuisance. Replacing the 2x8 joist with 2x12 would span 16’ but seems like a lot of work and cost.

I think I could live with moving the post to 12’, having a 2’ overhang and cutting the deck back to 14’.

Would love to hear other options. I’ve wondered if adding additional joist between each so that joist is 8” oc would help or sistering each joist with another 2x8.

 

I just posted a suggestion, which I think would be about equal to shortening the deck.

 

with the spans, we have to remember the loads. decks like this can have a lot of people on them.

the posts, it may be overkill, but adding another right next to, as close as possible, will do the job, not get in the way, and would actually look nice. just an idea.

 

these here, absolute must imo. i would do 1 every 3rd joist = SAFETY

As long as the posts are good and set in concrete it is not likely to want to lean away but some would make it safer after the new are sistered.
We do 16 ft span in bedrooms and double in kitchens with 2x10s.
I think sistered to 2x8 it would be good. and putting the beam inside the old posts would shorten the span to 15'3"

 

Sandy clay loam soil but bedrock is about 12-18 inches down.

 

I said 4x4, 4x6 would be better the end rim has a sag so getting the beam up and straight would take some effort and trickery.

 

Y’all are nuts. You’re looking for the cheap easy solution because you don’t like the facts. No matter how much you want the existing 2x8 joists to work … it won’t work with the existing column locations. The only way to make 2x8 work is to shorten the span, but even then it won’t make 16 ft overall even with cantilever. You need two rows of columns, or larger joists.

 

Y’all are nuts. You’re looking for the cheap easy solution because you don’t like the facts. No matter how much you want the existing 2x8 joists to work … it won’t work with the existing column locations. The only way to make 2x8 work is to shorten the span, but even then it won’t make 16 ft overall even with cantilever. You need two rows of columns, or larger joists.

Ed no need to be rude, I did ask some one to check and we do use 2x10 for 16 ft in floors
But what do you get with 2x10 sistered to a 2x8? Would that give us more.
Or we change the suggestion to 2x12

 

Neal … didn’t mean to be rude. But its like asking “how can i push 30 amps down a 16 ga 100 ft extension cord, cuz i already have the cord and don’t want to buy a new one”?

2x10 @ 16” is good for 14 ft. Closer. But thats a lot of lumber to buy and install.

 

The unfortunate part is … the deck looks like someone took time to do a neat job. They just missed a couple of important details.

Looks like “A” are standard deck screws … inappropriate for the application. “B” should be nails or screws rated for the application. I don’t recognize the heads … are they acceptable for shear?

 

If I am seeing it correctly, the outer end looks like it has 5-2x8s supported by 1-2x8. Half of those 5 is supported by the house, the other half by the rim joist. I would have them supported by 3 on the outer end. And the posts are not under the supported member. It could have a punching shear failure like the pool deck on the high rise in FL.

 

Without getting into a bunch of engineering mumbo jumbo, to make the rim joist/beam be able to carry the same uniform load as the sistered 2x8 joists, you would need to triple the 2x8 rim, or replace it with double 2x10's. Because of its much higher allowable stress, a single 1.75x9.5 LVL would also have adequate capacity. I don't know if exterior rated LVL's are available where you're at (or anywhere), though.

 

I was looking at span tables in the IRC and spans are dependent on species (PT-SYP #2?), spacing, live load and dead load. At my NY house we have a 50 PSF ground snow load which equals a 35 PSF roof snow load. Depending on where you live you could have a substantial snow load with drifting or no snow at all.

 

. Depending on where you live you could have a substantial snow load with drifting or no snow at all.

I wonder if the 50 psf snow load would be offset by zero people load. Maybe not … folks crazy enough to live where you get that much snow probably don’t hesitate to go out on the deck in all weather.

 

You could put beams 2 foot in from house and deck edges leaving 12 foot span. That would also leave 12 foot space that is stil full height under deck. Use lateral ties to the house or just leave current bolts. That would give you a freestanding deck attached to the house, but the house side beam would block the view from the window.

 

Little bounce can be lived with. Front single joist holding all the floor joists has a middle post which helps. You can add another on the opposite side of the posts. Not ideal and not to current codes but lots of it done in past and used as such. Your deck will not fall because of it but it will have less life. In nj and standard deck may be used as much as 40 years with all lumber cracking and loose joints but depends on user's sensibilities. Newer decks with copper treatments may not last as long as well as shorter fastener/hardware lives because of the corrosion. You can add corner braces to reinforce the deck to post movements.
Use it for 20 and rebuild. Since you have the inside open, replace the carriage bolts for heck of it with double dipped bolts against corrosion if you're not sure how those bolts were treated against corrosion. Next deck, add flashing and let it into the brick joint. Ledger should be tight to the house and not on a veneer brick but the fact is it is standing and maybe the bricks aren't standing against air. Posts are buried in ground as well. 4x4 treated fence post buried in the ground has a max life of about 20 years, as a kind of reference. Surrounded by concrete, it may rot litlle faster.
Lots of maybe's, so better to think shorter life and future replacement. For 16' deck, beam can be closer to the house and some of the floor joists cantilevered. 2x10, I think, is rated up to 14' and deck cantilivers can be up to 24".