Readiness check

Is your deck built to hold people or to fail?

A deck holds people in the air, so it is a structure with two life-safety parts that fail catastrophically: the ledger connection to the house and the guardrail. Answer for how the deck is actually built. This is general guidance; confirm with the IRC, DCA 6, and the engineer. The score stays on your device; enter an email only if you want the deck construction checklist sent over.

1. Is the ledger bolted (lag or through-bolt) to the house band joist, not just nailed?Yes, bolted at the correct size and spacingLagged, spacing not verifiedNailed, or free-standing without a plan

2. Is the ledger flashed so water cannot rot the band joist behind it?Yes, flashed and integrated with the wallCaulked onlyNo flashing

3. Are lateral-load tension ties installed to keep the deck from pulling off the house?Yes, code tension ties into the house framingNot sureNone

4. Are the footings below the frost line on undisturbed soil, sized for the load?Yes, frost-depth footings, properly sizedShallow or guessedThe deck basically floats

5. Are the joist and beam spans set from the span tables (IRC / DCA 6), not guessed?Yes, spans per the tablesBy experience, not checkedGuessed

6. Does the guardrail meet height, the 200 lb load, and the 4-inch sphere, with a blocked post?Yes, code guardrail with a through-bolted, blocked postHeight OK, post just lagged to the rimWeak or no guardrail

7. Are the fasteners and connectors hot-dip or stainless (treated lumber corrodes regular steel)?Yes, hot-dip/stainless with rated connectorsMixedRegular or electro-galvanized

8. Did you pull the deck permit and get the footing and framing inspections?Yes, permitted and inspectedPermit, no inspectionsNo permit