Deck 104

Carpentry Techniques

The following topics demonstrate safe carpentry methods. They are useful for decks and for a wide range of backyard building projects.

Hand Sawing

Hand saws cut quickly and cleanly if you keep them sharp and use them properly. Start with a few short strokes backwards. Use your thumb as a guide.Once a notch opens up, use long, smooth strokes. Let the teeth do the work.To cut straighter lines, shut one eye when siting along the blade and layout line.

Hand Sawing To Perfection

When a cut must be straight and clean, use a guide block to hold the saw square and reduce tearout. With a guide block in place, you can usually begin your cut without notching the board with backstrokes.

Power Saw Safety

Make sure that the waste piece from your cut can fall freely. If not, the blade will bind and the saw will kickback. Think what will happen to the boards balance after you make your cut. Use sharp blades so you don't have to strain to cut.

Nailing

Nothing about building is simpler than driving a nail, right? In fact it takes practice to develop a comfortable swing that generates enough power to drive large nails without marring a board. A handle is what makes a hammer so much better for driving nails than a rock in your palm. Acting as a lever, the handle multiplies the force of your blows. A good nailing rhythm uses more wrist action than elbow, more elbow than shoulder. Before nailing on your deck, practice on some scrap wood.

Toe Nailing

Toenailing, or driving a nail through two boards at right angles. With the help of a few tricks it can become quite easy. To start the nail in the first piece, drive it lightly into the wood gradually increasing the angle with each tap. Don't worry about the position of the two pieces until the nail is just through the bottom of the first board. The piece being hammered will move slghtly as the nail is driven, so use a second nail to drive it back into place on the layout line.

Measuring & Marking

When marking with a square, its always more accurate to place the pencil on the mark, then slide your square up to it. If you place the square first, you have to guess just where the pencil mark will be. You might get away with the error on rough framing, but the differences can be as much as an eigth of an inch when your pencil gets dull.

Mixing Concrete

Concrete is heavy stuff, but here is a way to mix it without causing to much strain. Place the bag in the higher end of a wheelbarrow. Add water to the lower end, then use a hoe to pull dry mix down into the water. Don't add any more water than necessary to thoroughly wet the mix. Remember concrete cures by a chemical reaction; it doesn't "dry". Excess water will weaken the concrete.

How To Lift Lumber And Save Your Back

By picking up one end of a board, you lift only part of the weight with your arms and back. Get in the habit of squatting so that your legs will naturally do the lifting as you stand up and walk. Walk your way along the board till your shoulder slides to the center. Lever the rest of the board by using your shoulder as a fulcrum. Your arms don't do any lifting work at all. To put a board down, reverse the process.

Updated:08/06/03 07:41 PM