Deck Posts

Can you see anything wrong with these pictures? This is a support post for an elevated deck with what appears to be an interesting repair in the past.

Post too short. Solution? Add an extra piece of wood...?!

Close up of the post. How long do you think this connection will last with a 4th of July party on the deck?

It looks like the original post was a bit short or possibly the bottom rotted away. To fix the bad post, the previous owner added a short section of newer pressure treated wood and butted the two ends together. At least he/she toenailed it together though they forgot to add more than one nail for the post support bracket.

Though the owner did make the post a bit longer they did so by making the overall structure weaker. This post is not going to do well with a large group of people moving on the deck during a BBQ.

There were actually two posts repaired this way on this particular deck. Both need to be replaced with the correct length of post (using one piece of wood) and correctly fastened to the concrete footing and beam above. 

Look at this video from This Old House. They do a great job of showing the correct way to replace a damaged deck support post.