source for # 12 x 4 inch stainless screws?

flathead, or similar top - needed to replace 16 penny stainless nails in 1985 redwood deck

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Reply to
Hobdbcgv
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I would suggest

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flathead sms 12 x 4" 25ea / $7.50

but I have a couple of questions

why 12's instead of 10's, 12's seem kinda big

also why are you replacing the 16d SS nails? did they rust or has the wood deteriorated?

I suggest you "flood" the holes with waterproofer before & after installation of the screws. It will help reduce water infiltration.

btw I have built several redwood patio covers using these materials & techniques with good success. regards Bob

Reply to
Bob K 207

a 16 penny common diameter is # 10 x 3 1/2" -- to replace a nail with a screw, I need a larger diameter to allow the threads to engage.

nails are fine - holes and back-up adhesive are "bad"

IMHE, things like thomson water seal lubricate and prevent drying one side only, both of which would exacerbate the problem.

background- (actually, it's an engawa rather than a deck - B redwood on 0.6 treated SYpine w/ oversized framing, clear facing, no splices, nail heads lined, etc.)

  1. the only type of stainless nail available when it was built was 16 penny common - no sinkers or coated, just common. (a couple of facing boards used super-special no stain screws, but they stained in about ten years m- they are not an option.)
  2. a deck board is placed cup-down - but when it rains, the top swells a little more relative to the drier underside, and when it dries, it shrinks a little more than the damper underside, and the board regularly moves on the fastener - so after a few years, the near-clear redwood was not tightly gripped by the stainless nail. The untreated boards do what any wood does in weather unless it is painted completely - boards bow against their nails, they twist along the grain even on near-clear redwood, and they swell and shrink. And in time, the interface loses its grip - so now, I can, with minimal work, pull up a 16 penny nail with my hand -
  3. In addition to the nails, I had also set the deck boards with outdoor rated premium grade construction adhesive rated for redwood - theory being that if the deck boards slip the nails, there would be no squeaking - but in about five years, the combination of dried adhesive and stainless nails and winter and rain had some areas making noise. Adhesive dries, and eventually squeaks if the board can move. I put some down with screws, and some larger nails but they didn't hold well either, but as an engawa, it looks patched, so I decided to replace all surface fasteners - but i couldn't find the right size thru any of my usual sources.
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Reply to
Hobdbcgv

I'd worry that flathead screws in countersunk holes would split the redwood.

Pan head or round head screws in counterbored holes might be less likely to split the boards. But the counterbored holes would hold rain, unless plugged with caulk or redwood plugs.

-Mike-

Reply to
Mike Halloran

Here is one source. The square drive are excellent fasteners. I saw a set of wooden stairs outdoors in Oregon that ran down to the beach from resort hotel. No staining and the hotel was on the coast.

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An excellent source for all sort of SS fasteners.

Have you considered silicon bronze screws?

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They oxidize to match the color of the deck.

Here is another source of high-quality fasteners.

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Reply to
basilnospam

Jamestown Distributors (a marine hardware supplier in Bristol, RI) lists 18-8 stainless wood screws, Phillips head, #12x4" in their catalog, part # FSSWSFP12X4. I didn't see that size listed on their website, though. Price is $48.62 per hundred. Their phone is 1-800-423-0030, website is

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Norm

Hobdbcgv wrote: : flathead, or similar top - needed to replace 16 penny stainless nails in 1985 : redwood deck

: thanx - : ^sig^

: -please remove the spam block "nono" to reply

Reply to
Norman Wood

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