Maybe you had your deck up for a couple of months. Maybe even a couple of years. But now – all of a sudden – your deck squeaks, pops, and cracks every time you step on it. What’s the deal?
Well, it turns out that after your deck has had time to acclimate it tends to dry out a bit. This means that the boards shrink, the screws don’t bite as hard as they did before, and now your deck is a little creaky. You can fix that squeak pretty easily, though.
In the rest of this detailed guide we run through everything you need to do to stop the squeak once and for all!
Why Do Deck Boards Squeak?
There are a couple of different things that can cause your deck boards to squeak, including (but definitely not limited to):
- Drying out (and it doesn’t take long for it to happen) can lead to shrinkage, shifting, and squeaking
- Swelling up, either from humidity or long-term water exposure, can also cause squeaking
- Deck boards that start twist, cup, or splinter can begin to squeak as well
On top of all of that, you might be dealing with squeaky deck boards that “misbehave” simply because the fasteners that were used weren’t the right ones – or not enough construction adhesive got applied to each individual deck board (on top of each joist) to really lock them down.
When you get right down to it, though, the reason that deck boards squeak – or make any noise they aren’t supposed to, really – comes down to the deck boards not being locked quite as securely into place as you’d like them to be.
Thankfully, though, this makes the problem relatively easy to resolve.
Tips and Tricks to Eliminate Squeaking
Each deck boards squeaking situation is going to require a unique approach to fixing it – especially if you are after a permanent fix.
Here’s a quick rundown of some of the most popular methods to eliminate deck boards squeaking once and for all.
New Fasteners
One of the simplest ways to stop the squeak for good is to pull out old fasteners (one at a time) and put new – usually thicker – hardware in its place.
We talked a moment ago about how deck boards can shrink as they dry out over time. That shrinkage is going to happen around your screw holes as well, pulling away some of the material that the screw used to bite into.
This leaves these fasteners a little loose and a little sloppy, causing the boards to wiggle and move while you step on them, generating that squeaky sound but also causing these screw holes to get larger and larger – and the fasteners less effective.
By backing old screws out of their spot and replacing them (again, one by one) with larger hardware – and deeper hardware – you can generally get a better bite on wood that is seasoned in place.
You won’t have to worry about much wiggle, much squeaking, or much movement after that.
Reseal Your Deck
If part of the reason that your deck is misbehaving (squeaking and changing dimension quite a bit) is because of a bad finish you might need to scrape the old one off and start from scratch.
A quality sand, stain, and seal job is going to do a whole lot for your deck – and not just from a purely aesthetic standpoint.
Properly applied finishes dramatically extend the life of your deck boards. We are talking double or triple the life that they would have had otherwise.
A poor finish (or a solid finish improperly applied, without enough time to cure correctly) is going to still be pretty porous. The water will be able to move into the boards, swell them up, and then when humidity changes you’re dealing with even more shrinkage than you would have otherwise.
Don’t be afraid to sand down, strip, and remove the old finish and then start from scratch all over again.
You’re not only get a second crack at changing the way your deck looks but you’ll also be eliminating squeaks and prolonging its life all at the same time.
Shims
Every now and again you get a squeaky deck board that simply twists, warps, or cups out of position.
Environmental issues and humidity changes are the root cause behind this problem, which makes it difficult to tackle – unless you are using shims.
You might have to slide underneath your deck, squeeze shims into the open space, and solidify things from the bottom up. But that approach is going to guarantee that you get a much tighter and much more consistent fit than what you would have had otherwise.
A Little Bit of Roofing Felt
This tip is little bit of a secret weapon for professional deck builders.
Get your hands on some roofing felt (the same stuff that goes underneath shingles), roll it out across your joists, and cut it to fit. Tack the felt down with small staples and then put your deck boards down over that.
You’ll get a little bit of sound dampening, eliminate your squeaking problem altogether, and even enjoy a little bit of extra waterproofing all in one shot.
Construction Adhesive is Your Best Friend
It’s never a bad idea to run a thin bead of construction adhesive – not wood glue, but full-blown construction adhesive – along each joist before you drop your deck boards down, too.
This provides a much better seal, locks down your boards in place even when they dry and shrink, and offers a bit of a moisture barrier the same way that the roofing felt tip above does.
It’s a game changer!
Closing Thoughts
Deck boards generally squeak because the boards themselves have shrunk or expanded, causing them to move and loosen the fasteners that were holding them tightly in the first place.
Fixing this is a pretty simple and straightforward process, especially now that you are armed with all the tips and tricks we highlighted above.
Good luck going forward!