Decking Board Gap

[pweber]

My wife says it's time to build a firewood shelter and stop stacking firewood in the driveway. I'm going to build basically a covered deck rather than sitting the wood directly on a gravel bed. Normally I'd gap the floor boards at one-quarter inch. Do you guys have any input on why the gap should be more or less in a firewood shelter? I'll probably use 2" x 6" boards rather than 1" decking material. My max load will be 3 cords spread out over an 8' x 12'ish area.

 

[muddstopper]

Dont know that theres any set rule for gap. I'll just give a Opinion worth what your paying for it....
Only reason for spacing would be for air flow so more is better, or maybe not. I stack on pallets and pallet boards are spaced pretty wide. The problem I have is walking across the pallets, I am always catching my heel between the cracks and it has me stumbling around all the time. also wide cracks allows lots of chips and scrap to fall down so eventually meaning I have to take up the pallets and clean up the mess. All those scrap piecs makes great mouse bedding. I think if I was going to go to the expense of building a wood house with a wood floor, I would probably just space the boards like I would for a normal deck. jmho

 

[peakbagger]

I am not a fan of firewood storage under decks unless there is secondary roof over the wood under the deck. Unless there is really good air flow the wood seems to get damp and stay damp under a deck.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Rule of thumb on a decking floor board gap is no less than 1/8". If it's too tight, it will seal itself up with dirt and grime and eventually water cannot drain through. That hastens rot. I would shoot for 3/16".

 

[Joesell]

Here's my deck. They're green treated deck boards from menards. I slammed them as tight as I could get them last year. This year they have a 1/4" or better gap. They shrink when they dry.

 

[JeffHK454]

Couple questions..since this isn't for lounging on or walking over other than when you're loading it up why not have big gaps..like 1+" to let all the debris fall through? Or where you thinking of sweeping this off every time it's clear of splits?

Also , how high is the surface off the ground , could you get the scraps out from under it?

I use skids sitting on steel runners and when I want to clean up the droppings I just flip up the skids and shovel it out..and every so often I bring home some new skids(free) to resurface my racks.

 

[Frogfarmer]

I have a pretty good background building decks and for a normal deck using new treated lumber you will want to install the boards as tight together as you possibly can. When they dry the gap will be an ideal 1/4". Because this isn't a typical deck and the lumber will likely always retain some moisture installing with a 1/4" gap from the start will be a good idea and worse case scenario you will have a 1/2" finish gap if it dries out.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Boards shrink when dry and expand when wet. High humidity can squeeze them together in the summer, like now in Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, etc. All of this expansion and contraction is also affected a great deal by the board species that you select.

 

[byron2]

"if the gravel is not in place yet"might not hurt to put plastic down then the gravel helping to minimize ground moisture... Pressure treated lumber for deck framing and flooring... I'd block or post it up off the ground some for air movement ... Up here I'd put in posts it to get below the frost line "about 4' ft here in Maine" I wouldn't want to be jacking on the thing every year to get leveled back up .... As far as the gap goes I'd probably just push them up tight they'll skink. But if you want a gap use what ever fastener your using to nail down the deck as your gauge. I usually use a 10 penny twisted galv box nail on decking.... good luck

ps. If cost is an issue or I didn't want to get to much into it I'd build a post style building, shed roof, gravel floor with the plastic.....

 

[pweber]

Thanks for all the input. The "deck" will sit just above ground level so retrieving debris from underneath isn't going to be a possibility. I want to keep it as low as possible so I don't have to climb a "step" every time I get an armload of wood. I think my best option will be a 1/8" gap to allow for expansion and contraction (mostly contraction). And I will definitely put plastic down to cut down on moisture and weeds. Thanks again for all the responses.

 

[Sandhill Crane]

I built a ramp 3' wide for the wheel barrow for the section I have that's elevated.