52 VIDEO MAKING AND USING A WATER LEVEL

In this video tip I want to show you how to make and use a water level. You're

going to need some kind of tool for long-range leveling of the various parts

of your deck frame. This is an excellent and inexpensive option. It starts with an

ordinary garden hose. It's going to be stretched from one area to another. So

from the area of the height that you know, your starting height, to the other

area where you want that level position extended. So just an ordinary garden

hose. Fit the ends with repair couplings. You can get these at any hardware store

and they simply thread into the end of the hose with a barbed fitting on the

other end. This allows you to fit a length of clear vinyl tubing to the end

of the hose. You can save these. Certainly unscrew the repair couplings and keep

them for later. It's important that this tubing be clear because you have to see

the water level inside. That's key. I usually make this 12 to 16 inches long

so you have plenty of leeway to see the water level regardless of what it is. Now

over here you get the female repair coupling to fit the male end of the hose

and over on the other end you get the male repair coupling to fit the female

end of the hose. When it's all assembled you want to mostly fill the whole

arrangement with water. Let's just say the water levels here for a minute. That

water will flow down through the hose and wherever the water appears in the

other clear tubing, you know you've got a level point. This is because the fact

that water always seeks its own level and it's always a hundred percent

accurate. So let's say you've got a concrete pier form here. It's made out of

cardboard and it's on one side of your deck area and you want to extend the

level of that form over to some other area where you want to install another

form. You can put in plugs when you're done to save the water so you can move

the hose around without it leaking