Parts Of A Deck Ledger Board: Whenever the deck is attached to the house, a ledger board is used. In general, ledger boards are the same size as the floor joists. After selecting a straight piece of lumber for the  ledger board, the ledger is bolted to the house's framing. Given the potential for injury should the deck break apart from the house, it's important to select the right type of bolt, as well as, the correct size and spacing of bolts to handle expected design loads. Similarly, to avoid water damage to your home's framing, it's important to install sheet-metal flashing that prevents rainwater from getting between the ledger and the home's framing. Floor Joists: In general, "2x" (two-by) lumber with an actual thickness of 1-1/2" is used for floor joists. Probably the most common floor joist size is 2x8 lumber - actual size is 1-1/2"x7-1/4". The species of lumber, the spacing of the joists, and expected design loads all determine what size floor joist is required. Solid Blocking: Blocking keeps taller joists from twisting onto their sides when heavily loaded. In general, blocking is just short boards cut from the same size lumber as the floor joists. In fact, you should set the most warped joists off to the side and cut them up for blocking. By 2003 International Building Code (IBC), blocking is required every 8 feet for 2x10 and taller joists. In other words, the distance between any two rows of blocking, or any one row of blocking and the end of the deck, can not be more than 8 feet. It should be noted that the blocking doesn't necessarily have to be centered over the length of the joists. Support Beam: The beams take all the weight from the floor joists and transfer this load onto the posts and ultimately to the concrete footings in the ground. Although there are special composite lumber exterior grade beams, usually either a solid lumber beam or a built-up beam is used. A solid lumber beam is just that. It's  a single thick and wide piece of wood. For example, a 4x10 solid beam is 3-1/2" thick by 9-1/4" tall. Built-up beams are made from nailing together two or more "2x" boards. In practice, the use of one type of beam over the other is solely a function of what part of the country you live in. Both types of beams are perfectly acceptable. Band/Rim Joist: Band joists, also sometimes called rim joists, are just joists at either the side or end of the deck. There's nothing special about them. In fact, unless you've got stairs attached to one of them, band/rim joists only have to carry a fraction of the load that the regular floor joists do.

Parts of a Deck