Deck plank extrusion and retaining clip

A deck structure for attaching a deck board to a surface, comprising:

• a clip for attachment to said surface,
• said clip having a bottom portion which can be attached to said surface, said bottom portion having a length defined by a pair of opposite ends,
• said clip having a pair of flange-support legs extending up from a center section of said bottom portion, said flange-support legs being spaced in from said opposite ends of said bottom portion and being spaced apart from each other by a predetermined leg spacing;
• so that two end sections of said bottom portion of said clip extend out from said flange-support legs, respectively, to said opposite ends of said bottom portion,
• a pair of flanges, each flange being attached to and extending from at an upper end of a respective one of said pair of flange-support legs, so that each flange is spaced up by a predetermined flange height from said bottom portion,
• said flanges extending in opposite directions and away from each other and generally parallel to said bottom portion,
• an elongated deck board, said elongated deck board having a width substantially equal to the length of said clip,
• said deck board having an upper surface and an under side,
• said under side of said deck board having a bottom surface which is substantially parallel to said upper surface and an elongated recess in a portion of said bottom surface, said elongated recess extending along the length of said deck board,
• said elongated recess having a pair of sidewalls which directly face each other and which are spaced apart by a distance substantially the same as said predetermined leg spacing,
• said deck board having a pair of side portions on the respective sides of said portion of said bottom surface, said side portions having a width at least equal to that of said end sections of said bottom portion of said clip,
• the bottom portion of each of said pair of sidewalls of said elongated recess tapering up and inward toward the opposite sidewall to a ledge which faces upward, so that each of said sidewalls contains an upwardly facing ledge, one ledge extending from and being spaced up from the bottom of each sidewall by a distance substantially equal to said predetermined flange height,
• said ledges extending into said recess from said respective sidewalls toward each other,
• said pair of ledges being spaced and shaped to mate with said pair of flanges of said clip when said deck board is pushed down onto said surface over said clip, such that said pair of flanges extend into said recess and engage said ledges, so as to hold said deck board to said clip,
• whereby said deck board can be connected smoothly and securely to said clip while maintaining a uniform alignment of said elongated deck boards over said surface, yet can be readily disconnected, and such that said deck board can be trimmed in width without disturbing the attachment of said deck board to said clip.

A deck board which can be attached to an underlying surface easily in one downward motion and with a simple clip, comprising:

• a deck board of rigid material having a width and a length, the width being substantially less than the length, said deck board having a pair of opposite edges, said opposite edges having a separation that defines said width,
• said deck board having an upper surface and an under side,
• said under side of said deck board having a bottom surface which is substantially parallel to said upper surface and an elongated recess in a portion of said bottom surface, said elongated recess extending along the length of said deck board,
• said elongated recess having a pair of sidewalls which directly face each other and which are spaced apart by a predetermined spacing,
• a bottom portion of each of said pair of sidewalls of said elongated recess tapering up and inward toward the opposite sidewall to a ledge which faces upward, so that said sidewalls contain a respective pair of upwardly facing ledges, each ledge extending from and being spaced up from the bottom of a respective sidewall by a predetermined distance,
• said ledges extending into said recess from said respective sidewalls toward each other,
• whereby said deck board can be connected smoothly and securely to a clip having a pair of outwardly facing flanges while maintaining a uniform alignment of said elongated deck board over said surface, yet can be readily disconnected, and such that said deck board can be trimmed in width at said edges of said deck board without disturbing the attachment of said deck board to said clip.

A deck structure for attaching a deck board to a surface, comprising:

• a clip for attachment to said surface,
• said clip having a bottom portion which can be attached to said surface, said bottom portion having a length defined by a pair of opposite ends,
• said clip having a pair of flange-support legs extending up from a center section of said bottom portion, said flange-support legs each having a base and being spaced in from said opposite ends of said bottom portion and being spaced apart from each other by a predetermined leg spacing, so that two end sections of said bottom portion of said clip extend out from said respective bases of said flange-support legs, respectively, to said opposite ends of said bottom portion,
• a pair of flanges, each at an upper end of a respective flange-support leg, so that each flange is spaced up by a predetermined flange height from said bottom portion,
• said flanges extending in opposite directions and away from each other and generally parallel to said bottom portion,
• an elongated deck board having an upper surface and an under side,
• said under side of said deck board having a bottom surface which is substantially parallel to said upper surface and an elongated recess in a center portion of said bottom surface,
• said elongated recess having a pair of sidewalls which directly face each other and which are spaced apart by a distance substantially the same as said predetermined leg spacing,
• said pair of sidewalls of said elongated recess containing a respective pair of upwardly facing ledges, one ledge extending from and being spaced up from the bottom of each sidewall by a distance substantially equal to said predetermined flange height,
• said ledges extending into said recess from said respective sidewalls toward each other,
• said pair of ledges being spaced and shaped to mate with said pair of flanges when said deck board is pushed down onto said surface over said clip, such that said pair of flanges extend into said recess and engage said ledges, so as to hold said deck board to said clip,
• whereby said deck board can be connected smoothly and securely to said clip while maintaining a uniform alignment of said elongated deck boards over said surface, yet can be readily disconnected, and such that said deck board can be trimmed in width without disturbing the attachment of said deck board to said clip.

A method of attaching a deck board to a surface, comprising:

• providing a clip for attachment to said surface,
• said clip having a bottom portion which can be attached to said surface, said bottom portion having a pair of opposite ends which define the length of said bottom portion,
• said clip having a pair of spaced legs extending up from a center section of said bottom portion, so that each leg has an upper end,
• each of said legs having a flange attached to and extending out from said upper end, so that said flanges are spaced up from said bottom portion by the length of said legs,
• said flanges being spaced apart from each other by a flange-spacing distance and extending in opposite directions from each other,
• a first of said flanges being spaced from one opposite end of said bottom portion by a first given distance and a second of said flanges being spaced from the other opposite end of said bottom portion by a second given distance which is substantially equal to said first given distance,
• providing an elongated deck board, said deck board having an upper surface and an under surface and a pair of opposite sides connecting said upper surface to said under surface, said opposite sides defining the width of said deck board,
• said under surface of said deck board having an elongated recess which extends along the length of said board,
• said elongated recess having a width substantially the same as said flange-spacing distance and substantially narrower than said width of said deck board, such that said deck board has a pair of side portions on opposite sides of said recess,
• said elongated recess containing a pair of ledges spaced and shaped to mate with said pair of flanges when said deck board is pushed down onto said surface, so as to hold said deck boards to said clip,
• attaching said deck board to said clip by orienting said deck board over said clip, and
• pushing down said deck board in a direction substantially normal to said bottom portion of said clip so that said deck board snaps onto said clip,
• whereby said deck board can be attached rapidly and easily to said surface, and said deck board can be trimmed in width without affecting the attachment of said deck board to said clip.

A deck structure comprising:

• a plurality of deck boards, each of said deck boards having a width;
• and
• a plurality of clips,
• each clip having a base portion which has first and second ends which are spaced apart by a first distance defined as the length of said clip,
• said first end of one clip engaged to said second end of another clip,
• each of said clips having a deck-board-attachment portion operable to secure a respective one of said deck boards to a respective clip,
• said deck-board-attachment portion of each clip comprising a pair of legs extending up from said base portion and a respective pair of flanges, one flange disposed at an end of each leg which is distal from said base portion, so that said flanges are spaced from said base portion,
• said pair of flanges being spaced apart by a second, flange-spacing, distance which is less than said first distance,
• one of said flanges of said pair of flanges being spaced from said first end of said base portion by a third distance and from said second end of said base portion by a fourth distance which is substantially equal to said second, flange-spacing distance plus said third distance,
• the other of said flanges of said pair of flanges being spaced from said second end of said base portion by said third distance and from said first end of said base portion by said fourth distance,
• said flanges extending in opposite directions and away from each other and generally parallel to said bottom portion,
• each of said deck boards having an having an upper surface and an under side,
• said under side of each of said deck boards having a bottom surface which is substantially parallel to said upper surface and an elongated recess in a center portion of said bottom surface,
• each of said deck boards having a pair of clip-attachment ledges operable to secure said deck board to a deck-board-attachment portion of a respective clip,
• said elongated recess in said center portion of said bottom surface of each deck board having a width substantially equal to said flange-spacing distance, said elongated recess defined by a pair of spaced walls containing said clip-attachment ledges, respectively,
• said width of each of said deck boards being substantially greater than the width of said elongated center recess,
• whereby the outside edges of any of said deck boards can be trimmed without interfering with the attachment of said deck board to a clip.