There’s something oddly satisfying about wood decking. It offers a home a functional outside area to hold a party or get into a comfortable and relaxed position in a chair on your patio/terrace.
Before you begin building your outdoor living area, there are some things you must have if you are intending on building the deck yourself, which will help you achieve a great result such as the proper drills. Drills are primarily used to drill circular holes in the material or insert decking screws and other threaded fasteners into the material. There are many kinds and sizes of drills used at varying terms in the building process to help you complete it in a flash.
Types of Drills For Decking Boards
Corded Drill Vs. Cordless Drill
Corded Drill
You depend on your power drill to venture on many projects from start to finish. If unlimited runtime is the first concern, an electric drill is an essential gear. It can drill diverse dents, though it can also grind and sand and drive screws.
Compared with cordless drills powered by batteries, corded drills deliver boundless running time as an electrical source powers them. Corded power drills are usually lighter and significantly more potent than their cordless rivals without requiring a battery.
The corded drill is suitable for projects that need regular and extended usage. If you want an alternative that permits full mobility to deal with works where you don’t have access to an electrical outlet, a cordless drill might be the ideal option.
Cordless Drill
A cordless drill is an electric drill that utilizes rechargeable batteries. The best cordless drill will perhaps be commonly used on a deck-building because it requires no electrical charge, making them exceptionally lightweight and more leisurely to use.
You don’t have to be stressed about having an electric socket and when you purchase one with good battery life, it can drill through all kinds of materials. With these drills, you can execute everything from drilling small pilot holes in deck boards that might split to bigger holes with a spade drill bit for installing lag screws.
With a hole saw bit, a cordless drill is even utilized as a saw for carving hollows for drains, sinks, doorknobs, and other round depressions. This drill has a keyless chuck that commonly opens up to half-inch, can be tightened by hand and is lightweight to drag and carry the entire day.
Brushless Drills
Among the more tricky drill classifications involves brushless drills, which are likely to look somewhat identical to traditional drills regardless of becoming prevalent and typical around the 1980s. The word “brushless” pertains to the motor inside the drill that uses magnetic components to deliver a direct electric current rather than a friction-based brush.
This might appear perplexing, though the brief explanation is that brushless drills don’t tend to overheat and have much neater adjustable speeds. This makes brushless drills far smoother for large projects with various drilling like deck building, but a bit pricier due to their more intricate components.
Heavy-Duty Hammer Drill
The drill function will have its setting but suppose it’s a hammer drill; it will contain an added mode for that hammer function. For building decks, the hammer function is not essential except when you’re associating any of the sub-frame of the decking to a wall.
You will generally encounter them used in the construction and masonry industries. However, you can also employ them at home for home renovation tasks – especially when drilling into the concrete block framework of a house or drilling holes for anchor bolts in footing when installing a ledger board. Although some cordless drills have a hammer drill function, an actual heavy-duty hammer drill is better manufactured to accept the challenge and provide years of dependable service.
Impact Driver/Drill
One of the evident drill types applies to impact drills, which are likely to have a small grip and much shorter heads, unlike a standard chuck. Even though standard drills and impact drills are essentially somewhat comparable, impact drills tend to be more lightweight and are highly easier to handle as you use them.
A quality impact driver incorporates the drill’s rotational power with a force of impact like the hammer drill to drive a deck screw and saves its bursts of quick power when it feels resistance. It’s indeed the finest of both matters.
An impact drill delivers more torque towards the drill bit for bigger projects. Think of using a compact impact driver for projects that demand drilling longer screws through thicker materials like stud concrete surfaces and hardwoods. This device features a clip you can load with deck screws to push plenty of them swiftly and has an extender that allows you to finish the task while standing.
Chucks with drill bit adapters are also available. This is the tool to use in laying down and screwing in all those deck boards.
Because deck building often needs plenty of services and good power, you’ll probably wish to avoid impact drills for this job. Never say that this drill is entirely worthless if you’re interested in obtaining a drill for more complicated tasks.
Some Helpful Tips
Building a deck of all sizes is believed to be a big project for any DIY-er. You can hire a professional to do the task for you, though it may be costly.
If you enjoy going on this yourself, it will consume time since you don’t possess the knowledge, time, or professional pieces of equipment. Getting the posts in place and making sure they are square is the key thing to getting the entire structure right. If they are placed adequately, forming the frame is the subsequent move and screwing in the joists. Positioning the decking boards is the best part.
Drilling Pilot Holes
When putting down deck boards, there is actually no reason to drill pilot holes. It is simple enough to drive deck screws home. Nevertheless, concerning the edges of deck boards, experts advise drilling a small pilot hole. This is because it will help stop the board’s edge from splitting. It just needs a couple of seconds to bore a couple of dents before driving home the deck screw.
Split wood is delicate wood and water can easily penetrate it. In a couple of years, that becomes a primary flaw in your deck.
Ask For Help
We all want to work in entirely different patterns. Having a second person to help you is a great approach when laying boards and levelling them. Asking for assistance at this step can be exceptionally convenient. You can finish this stage independently, though it’s a lot better if you can confer a favour from a relative or friend.
Correspondingly, building the frame is more abrupt and effortless when someone can assist you. Maintaining the joist in place is much more manageable with two people.
Conclusion
Colin Macmillan is a seasoned entrepreneur and the CEO of Riverwood Landscape, a leading landscaping company based in Canada. He has been at the helm of the company since leaving high school, demonstrating his strong leadership skills and business acumen.
Colin’s expertise lies in various aspects of landscaping, including lawn care, interlocking, sod installation, and commercial maintenance. His hands-on approach and dedication to the craft have been instrumental in building Riverwood Landscape into a reputable brand.
One of his most notable achievements is the creation of a successful landscape franchise that services multiple locations. This accomplishment underscores his strategic thinking and ability to scale operations effectively.
Colin has also had the privilege of working with Guelph Hospital for landscaping and maintenance, a testament to the trust and reliability that his company has earned over the years.
His professional mission is to offer the best services and experiences for customers, a goal that he tirelessly pursues. Colin’s commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction continues to drive the growth and success of Riverwood Landscape.
