The Tool On Amazon That Makes Building Your Deck Quickly A Total Breeze

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Some DIY projects are harder than others. Whether it requires heavy lifting or a lot of digging, you can feel it in your body the next day. If you've ever built a deck and spent hours on your hands and knees driving screws into deck boards, you know there's nothing quite like it in terms of hurting your back and knees. No matter how spry you are, if you're building a deck, it's worth a moment of your time to check out a tool from Amazon that makes life easier. The CAMO DRIVE Stand-Up Drill Attachment is, exactly as the name suggests, an attachment for your drill that lets you install deck boards from a standing position.

Not for use with impact drivers, this attachment works with corded or cordless ⅜-inch drills and offers three methods for screwing in boards. Using interchangeable nose pieces, you can choose between edge, clip, and face fastening. The reasons for using edge fastening are more than cosmetic. Hidden fasteners are less likely to loosen over time or split the wood. Edge fastening is also less vulnerable to water penetration, and less likely to get stained by fasteners.

The CAMO DRIVE stand-up attachment tool uses collated screws. For corrosion protection, choose between stainless steel and carbon-coated screws. For face fastening, screws can handle pressure-treated wood up to 1 ½ inches thick or composite boards up to 1 inch thick. For edge fastening, the screws work on pressure-treated wood, cedar, redwood, uncapped composite, and PVC deck boards that are 1 to 1 ½ inches thick.

When you're building a deck, everyone knows to pay attention to the gap between the boards. But there are also some other gaps worth paying attention to, such as the gap between the lifespan of your deck boards and the lifespan of the pressure-treated wood structure they're built on. Because of water intrusion at critical areas like the tops of joists or ledger boards, it's critical to protect the substructure of your deck with joist and ledger tape to extend its longevity.   

Before you commit to purchasing the CAMO DRIVE tool, you should know that some composite deck board manufacturers have proprietary fastening systems, and using other products may void your warranty. While the CAMO products have warranties when used with products like Trex, TimberTech, and Deckorators, understanding the warranty for your decking materials is what protects your biggest investment, so it's recommended to check before you buy.

The CAMO DRIVE tool can be used on other projects that you may have been dreading because they hurt your back or your knees. Any projects that use deck boards or lumber with the same thickness, such as porch skirting or privacy panels made from leftover materials, are candidates for this tool. It will come in handy for porch floors, bench tops, and outdoor walls, where hidden fasteners will offer a better aesthetic. Best of all, you can build it on the ground while standing up.