These are a few examples of the pencil markings inside on the inside stairs and outside on the deck. If I'm being too picky I know you'll be honest with me.

Buy cheap white eraser sharpen it with a box knife at 45 degrees

Acetone or denatured alcohol will remove graphite without scratching or raising the grain of the wood. Wrap a cloth or paper towel around a knife blade, trowel, putty knife, spatula, etc.

They should have erased the pencil markings. Hopefully the suggestion RES made gets them off. I know that would drive me nuts too.

We had lumber used on our handrails for our deck that had stamps on them. They never sanded them off. Just stained right over them. We will get around to sanding them off and restaining. We got to the point in our build that we would rather fix the small stuff on our own then have them come and make a bigger mess.

I had a project manager who used ballpoint pen to make notes on the drywall. So not only ink to cover, but depressions to fill.

I write the codes to key less entries to houses on inconspicuous spots on the house exterior. If I return a few months later they are almost always gone.

I wouldn't worry too much about pencil marks on exterior wood. Use them as a guide. When they are gone the wood is dry enough to stain.

Never a good idea to paint a wooden deck, unless you like scraping, sanding, and painting wooden decks. I like weathered grey decks...

...and I really hate to do this but that post attachment detail is questionable. Railing posts need to be attached to the framing. Those toe screws wouldn't pass any codes that I know.

https://www.deckmagazine.com/design-construction/railings/code-compliant-guardrail-posts_o

The pencil marks will take 10 minutes to remove with acetone. There was a time that architects needed to clean all their drafting equipment with acetone often. I still have a can of it.

If the deck posts are surface attached, you will need to replace them and provide direct anchors to the framing. Better to find that out now than later when it fails. Was there no building inspector?

It looks like they are screwed on top of the decking. They should be bolted to the framing, and the decking should notched around them.

Can you post an image(s) of what the posts look like from under the deck showing how they are anchored to the deck framing? If the posts are not anchored to the framing, the pencil marks will be easy to remove once the railing posts fail.

Mark, here are photos of underneath. Maybe I was wrong. if what we have done is wrong, please tell me simply what we should have done. I am keeping track of all of our mistakes so I can share with others so they don't go through this.

Your rail posts were toe nailed into deck boards. The rail posts should have been bolted to the deck framing.

I've omitted the details, but here are 2 common ways of mounting the posts.

They need to extend down and tie into the deck framing, not just sit on top.

Is this deck attached to your house... What is the house cladding? Are there flashing details? The leger board is attached with...?

Ksc was the first to catch the poor post detail. Hopefully some of the posts that support the deck's railing pass through the deck's decking and are secured to the deck structure.

How could we pass inspections with such things wrong?

Inspectors' training, interest and workload varies enormously from one jurisdiction to another.

Since the deck is fair game now, some of the joist hangers are incorrectly sized. But will your deck fall down? Probably not. (Just don't lean too much on the railings.)

Post a plan or photos of the entire deck so we can see the railing system Also post some photos of the corner posts.

The code requires a guard railing to resist a 200 lb horizontal force at any point along the top rail but, to my knowledge, it doesn't say how to achieve it. The screws into the decking might be that strong now but may weaken with time.

I've seen old railings removed that used 6x6 posts and were attached this way without failing but the larger posts would have been stronger..

A photo might help us to judge whether or not the railing will be safe (there might a post or two attached to the framing) but pushing on it really hard might be all the assurance you are going to get. Its not as if the deck was 10 ft off the ground.

FWIW, I have seen galvanized steel pipe, sistered to posts.

Terri, after seeing so many examples of poor and unknowledgable workmanship in your various posts, I'm left wondering if your husband may have selected this builder simply because he offered "an amazing low price"? Or because the builder is his brother?

I can't imagine what his other recommendations could be.

https://www.woodcraft.com/products/standard-kit-sanding-sticks-24-piece?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=PLA&utm_term=123283&utm_content=All%20Products&adlclid=ADL-d4e04ce4-6e85-4e4a-8b85-453562e7daa6

A box knife is what you would cut cardboard with. Its also called a mat knife or a utility knife. They are made in different sizes with different kinds of blades that are often retractable. The kind for light duty work in tight spaces are shown here.

Avoid X-acto knives; the round handle and pointed blade makes them very dangerous. Many architects have scars to prove it.

Relying on God for your safety in a botched house? Good luck with that.

RES , here are some photos that may help you see if this will be safe. you mentioned that seeing a photo of the entire deck, the corners and the railing system could help.

RES, here are a few more to help determine the safety and structure of my deck.

RES, and a few more in case this helps.

The posts appear to be 6x6 so if the screws are deck screws designed for exterior use you should be fine. If the posts start to move when you push against them, you might need to add some small stainless steel steel clip angles at the base of the posts.

How is the deck attached to the house? I don't see any lag bolts. Just a few little black dots that I'm assuming are screw heads. Is that all that's holding it to the house?

Good catch Greg. The 205 IRC requires lag bolting and flashing. Of course, there might not be a code or inspector.

I don't remember the last time I used a lag screw for anything.

I use these or similar from Simpson.

I imagine (hope) the black dots are this type of fastener.