Hello! Below is a picture of the board below my sliding glass door to my deck. The board needs to be replaced and I would like to be able to do it myself if I can. Any advice on how to go about doing this would be greatly appreciated! Thank you 
Sliding glass door
- Thread starter Lisas6583
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Lisas,
Looks like you are referring to the board underneath the sliding door and covered by the metal trim. If that's correct, then you need to remove the metal trim to remove the rotten board. It appears that the metal trim is secured by nails or screws which have to be removed to remove the trim. Be careful with the metal trim, try not to bend it any more than it already is because you may have to reuse it, a replacement may be difficult to find. Once the trim is removed, you will probably have to remove some nails or screws to get the board out. I can't tell if the board is a 1" thick or 2" thick, however it also looks as though there is another "trim" of some kind above the top edge of the rotten board. This may be part of the sliding door support or some other kind of trim or filler. Since you are replacing the rotten board, this very thin trim should not be disturbed if possible.
The rotten board should be easily removed after the metal trim is removed along with the nails or screws in the board. The board may be so rotten that it will come out in pieces, so you may be able to use a wide (1") putty knife or something like a scraper, both of which can be found at any hardware store. At this point once the board is removed, you can check to see if more than that one board is damaged by rot. If so, this "simple" job is now more complicated. (You can paint the wood frame that will be behind the new board with the anti-fungal paint that you use to paint the replacement board.)
If the damage is limited to the one board, then proceed to measure the height and length and thickness of the board to be replaced and journey to the lumber yard to buy a replacement. That door looks like it should be about 6 feet wide (therefore, the replacement board should be 6 feet) and you could just measure the width from side to side as shown in the picture where the board ends are shown. Home Depot will cut boards for you, so if you have to buy a board that is 8 feet, have them cut it to your measurement, I think they charge $1.00 per cut (and keep the 2 foot piece if they charge you for it).
Clean out the rotten board so that the replacement fits snug and completely inside the "hole" where the rotten board was removed. You should paint (two coats) the new board on both sides (and don't forget the ends) with a protective (anti-fungal or anti-rot) paint, don't buy more than a pint, that should be plenty. I would use screws (a length that is about 1 inch) longer than the thickness of the replacement board. You can drill holes (1/4 inch drill for #10 screws) in the replacement board to accommodate the screws.
So with the board replaced, you need to put the metal trim back on if its in good enough shape. To attach the trim, just use whatever the old trim had, probably 2" 6D (penny) nails. When you nail on the trim, try not to nail the nails too hard near the end so that you avoid damaging the trim near the head of the nail. If you "over nail" the trim it makes an ugly dent near the head of the nail. The trim may be a piece of siding which appears to be metal also. If you still have some of it around, try to use it as it will probably be a matching color, faded and all, you will just have to fit it, which means cut it with tin snips.
If the siding is wood and the old trim is too bent-up to reuse, use a piece of the siding but put the thinner side at the top when you place it below the door so that it fits evenly with the side of the bottom of the door trim. You can see how it fits if you hold it under the door in place as if it were nailed, the thinner edge should be even with the thickness of the bottom edge of the door trim (that small, thin piece mentioned above).
I tried to include everything that I could think of as if I were doing the job. However, if you have questions or need further explanation, please let me know.
Good luck, Clarence
Looks like you are referring to the board underneath the sliding door and covered by the metal trim. If that's correct, then you need to remove the metal trim to remove the rotten board. It appears that the metal trim is secured by nails or screws which have to be removed to remove the trim. Be careful with the metal trim, try not to bend it any more than it already is because you may have to reuse it, a replacement may be difficult to find. Once the trim is removed, you will probably have to remove some nails or screws to get the board out. I can't tell if the board is a 1" thick or 2" thick, however it also looks as though there is another "trim" of some kind above the top edge of the rotten board. This may be part of the sliding door support or some other kind of trim or filler. Since you are replacing the rotten board, this very thin trim should not be disturbed if possible.
The rotten board should be easily removed after the metal trim is removed along with the nails or screws in the board. The board may be so rotten that it will come out in pieces, so you may be able to use a wide (1") putty knife or something like a scraper, both of which can be found at any hardware store. At this point once the board is removed, you can check to see if more than that one board is damaged by rot. If so, this "simple" job is now more complicated. (You can paint the wood frame that will be behind the new board with the anti-fungal paint that you use to paint the replacement board.)
If the damage is limited to the one board, then proceed to measure the height and length and thickness of the board to be replaced and journey to the lumber yard to buy a replacement. That door looks like it should be about 6 feet wide (therefore, the replacement board should be 6 feet) and you could just measure the width from side to side as shown in the picture where the board ends are shown. Home Depot will cut boards for you, so if you have to buy a board that is 8 feet, have them cut it to your measurement, I think they charge $1.00 per cut (and keep the 2 foot piece if they charge you for it).
Clean out the rotten board so that the replacement fits snug and completely inside the "hole" where the rotten board was removed. You should paint (two coats) the new board on both sides (and don't forget the ends) with a protective (anti-fungal or anti-rot) paint, don't buy more than a pint, that should be plenty. I would use screws (a length that is about 1 inch) longer than the thickness of the replacement board. You can drill holes (1/4 inch drill for #10 screws) in the replacement board to accommodate the screws.
So with the board replaced, you need to put the metal trim back on if its in good enough shape. To attach the trim, just use whatever the old trim had, probably 2" 6D (penny) nails. When you nail on the trim, try not to nail the nails too hard near the end so that you avoid damaging the trim near the head of the nail. If you "over nail" the trim it makes an ugly dent near the head of the nail. The trim may be a piece of siding which appears to be metal also. If you still have some of it around, try to use it as it will probably be a matching color, faded and all, you will just have to fit it, which means cut it with tin snips.
If the siding is wood and the old trim is too bent-up to reuse, use a piece of the siding but put the thinner side at the top when you place it below the door so that it fits evenly with the side of the bottom of the door trim. You can see how it fits if you hold it under the door in place as if it were nailed, the thinner edge should be even with the thickness of the bottom edge of the door trim (that small, thin piece mentioned above).
I tried to include everything that I could think of as if I were doing the job. However, if you have questions or need further explanation, please let me know.
Good luck, Clarence
Hi Clarence!
I just removed the rotted board and looks like the one behind it is rotting also. How much more complicated will this be to replace?
Thanks,
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
It is important to remove all the rotten board as it will eventually cause the other board to rot. It is not that complicated unless all the board is rotten then you will have to change everything.
Thanks for replying!
I should be able to take out both boards and replace them without any complications, correct? Or is there going to be more to it than that?
Lisa
Yep, but complications are part of the process, but from the picture that you have posted, it looks like it is not complicated. just remove the glass door first then change whatever has to be replaced.
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Wow, you are very brave to do that by yourself. It looks way too complicated for me.