A Tow Chain Meets a Pipe Clamp
You can use this helpful clamp system to straighten out perpendicular deck boards.
While working on a Tigerwood deck, I used a tip from a past issue to force all the boards into place. That tip recommended anchoring a pipe clamp against a pry bar inserted between previously installed boards.
But the Tigerwood deck had two outside rows of deck boards perpendicular to the field boards and parallel to the main floor joists. I had no desire to purchase 20 ft. of 3/4-in. pipe for my pipe clamps to span the width of the deck.
Instead, I placed a pipe clamp on each side of the deck and then joined them together using a length of tow chain with grab hooks at each end. I placed a block under each of these intersections to prevent damage to the beautiful wood.
— Stephen Beese; Winston-Salem, NC
From Fine Homebuilding #246
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View Comments
When I need to extend the length of a pipe clamp I join several end to end using the coupling shown at the end of the clamp in the drawing. But making a 20' section that way would be more awkward than the chain.