It's taken years to finally admit it to 2x8s, 16 inches on-center. If the deck is tion. If the width of our deck were myself, and then actually to others, but loaded with 50 pounds per square foot, reduced from 8 feet to 6 feet, the outer- I belong to the Macho School of Struc- it will have a deflection of one inch at edge deflection would drop from 1 inch tural Engineering. The basic principle the outer edge. to 3/8 inch. of this school is, "Columns are for sis- If the outer edge is supported with a My personal criterion on deflections sies." This