Following our blog post in September with some basic tips and advice for building a deck, we’re going a little deeper with what is required for building a deck or outdoor structure near the coast or in a corrosive environment such as around pools; and in particular, salt water pools.
How close are you to the Coast, and what type of coastal environment is it?
- What type of environment?
- Breaking Surf?
- Sheltered Coastal?
- Fresh Water?
- Distance?
- Breaking Surf:
- 0-1kms?
- 1-10kms?
- 10kms+?
- Sheltered Coastal:
- 0-100 metres?
- 100m-1km?
- 1km+?
- Fresh Water – if subject to frequent wetting and drying.
This chart and our Timber Connectors Icons page will assist you to determine if you’re in a coastal environment and which type of steel brackets you should use for your decking project.
Are you building a Deck around a Pool – do you need to use stainless steel brackets and fixings?
The short answer is yes if you have a saltwater pool and the decking is going to get wet or even splashed from the pool. If it isn’t a saltwater pool, but the decking is going to constantly be getting wet from the pool the ‘Fresh Water’ rules apply – eg frequent wetting and drying of the brackets/metals – as this speeds up corrosion. Again you can read more information on this on our Timber Connectors Icons page.
Stainless Steel is more expensive – should I bother?
If you’re building a deck and you want it to last, you should ensure you use materials that are suited to and are easy maintenance in the environment you’re building your deck in. Galvanised brackets and posts supports will corrode in corrosive environments such as coastal and around pools. Trying to rectify and replace corroded brackets a few years down the track will far exceed the initial cost of installing Stainless Steel in the first place! You also have to bear in mind that corroded brackets don’t providing the correct strength, so you’re running the risk of structural failure as well. Our previous articles about Material Corrosion, and the differences between the two grades of stainless steel may be of further interest.
VUETRADE have a large range of quality timber connector brackets and post supports in both Galvanised and Stainless Steel for all your decking applications.
