Even though it may not quite feel like it today, summer is right around the corner! If that has you thinking about a new deck project, make sure you do your homework. Whether you plan to do it yourself or hire someone, sizing deck framing members properly is vitally important. Every year, there are tragic stories in the news about people getting hurt (or worse) due to deck failures. Every deck is different and “We’ve always used 2x8s and it’s been fine” is NOT an acceptable plan. While the building codes can be daunting and hard to read, there are plenty of resources online that attempt to make it a little more digestible. A basic span chart is a great place to start, and here’s one that we use as a quick reference all the time: https://www.decks.com/how-to/articles/beam-span-chart-tableIf that looks like Greek to you or your contractor can’t explain why they are using the size of lumber they are, consider pausing the project until you can be sure that your deck will be safe for you and future occupants of your home.