[header] How to safety check your deck [title] Make sure the deck's boards are strong. [step] Look all across the deck for damaged boards, particularly in areas where water gathers. Take an ice pick or screwdriver and push the tip into the wood. 
If the wood feels soft, splinters, or is easily penetrated, it is rotting and needs to be replaced. [substeps] Pay special attention to the gaps between decking boards as well as the deck joists underneath the deck boards.