Hidden deck fastener

Abstract

Deck clips for fastening surface structure boards which are adjacent and parallel to each other to a transverse underlying substructure have a top portion with two opposed wings, which are inserted into slots or grooves in the side of the surface structure boards. A center section has a vertical spine designed to be installed against the vertical plane of the substructure member, and a bottom section has a protruding attachment device and / or an opening to accommodate a fastener such as a screw or nail.

Description

[0001]This is a continuation of Provisional U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 61 / 033,217, filed Mar. 3, 2008, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates to devices for adhering a surface structure, usually boards, to underlying sub-structures, such as an apparatus for securing adjacent boards to a large sub-structure consisting of various joists.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Structures, including but not limited to decks, docks, steps, roof decks, ramps, gazebos, pool decks, and platforms can and do use the same substructure technique for the purpose of adhering the surface boards. The technique has many elements, including but not limited to, a substructure made up of posts, beams, joist hangers, joists, header, and fascia boards. The purpose of the substructure is to provide a base to which the horizontal surface, made up typically of boards, is laid down and adhered to. Typically, the boar...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The present invention relates to devices for adhering surface boards to underlying substructures, such as joists, using hidden fasteners. The invention aims to overcome the limitations of previous methods such as using screws or nails, which can result in aesthetic issues and safety hazards. The invention provides a clip fastener that can be easily installed and removed without damaging the deck board, and can be used with various manufacturer board profiles without requiring additional surface area or installation time. The clip fastener is designed to provide a secure and aesthetically pleasing solution for adhering deck boards to substructures."

Problems solved by technology

Screws and nails as a way to adhere surface boards to the substructure have proven to yield several disadvantages when used in the construction of decks.

There is a general dislike of the appearance of the resulting pattern of the head portion of fasteners showing across the surface of the deck.

In addition, many fasteners are coated in a color that is not consistent with the color of the deck surface boards, creating yet another unappealing aesthetic result.

In many cases, regardless of the fastener used, the result of attempting to drive a fastener through the deck surface board and into the substructure results in the head of the fastener not being completely buried or recessed into the wood.

Similarly, the inherent shrinkage of wood deck boards due to moisture loss can cause the board to shrink away from the head, causing the same situation.

This is not only aesthetically unattractive, etc., it creates a safety hazard and usually results in the necessity to remove the protruding fastener and re-install it, or another fastener in its place, thus requiring additional installation time and costs.

Other aesthetic issues that may arise during installation are the marring of the surface when setting the head, mushrooming or splintering of displaced material when driving the fastener into the deck board surface, and creating a large hole when removing an installed or partially installed fastener, the head of which has failed to set below the board's surface, or failed when one has to install a fastener through the deck surface board and into a knot present in the substructure.

Once installed, many fasteners eventually rust, creating discoloration or bleeding onto the deck surface boards.

While some current existing hidden fastening devices have been designed in an attempt to solve many of these objections to driven fastener installations, existing designs have other limitations, leaving installers with an unsatisfactory solution.

For example, some of these devices require installation from the underside of the deck, which is not always possible depending on the space available under the deck.

Some devices are two piece / two step installations which are first attached to the bottom of the deck surface board and then require a subsequent precision placement, resulting in increased difficulty and slower installation.

Some devices affix to the top of the joists between the boards and into grooves in a predetermined location on the side of the deck surface boards, thus limiting the flexibility to use the same device in different and multiple manufacturer board profiles.

The same limited use drawback presents itself more dramatically in the installation of various pre-grooved boards of varying thickness, such as ¾ inch, 1 inch, 1¼ inch or 1½ inch.

These require an extra “nailer block” effectively doubling the joist surface to allow the use of multiple devices and / or fasteners, increasing project costs and requiring additional installation time.

Some hidden fasteners have a pre-determined “built-in” spacer used to force spacing between parallel deck surface boards, and can create spacing which conflicts with the manufacturers' specifications or recommendations.

Many devices which affix to the top of the joists between the boards limit the size of the fastener available for use, due to the spacing available between parallel deck surface boards.

The inability to access and remove these clip fastening screws makes it nearly impossible to replace a deck board without damage.

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