topic Re: composition deck in Home

composition deck

happycat — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 13:05:22 GMT

Our deck of 16 years is needing to be replaced. We like the looks of composition decking, but it is very expensive. I am wondering if any of you have any experience with it? If you think it is worth the money? TIA

Re: composition deck

sandy53 — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 13:27:29 GMT

I have two decks made from composition decking. I have one with gray decking with white vinyl railings and one with brown decking with brown railings. They are great!

The only cons: The decking is slippery when wet. The white railings get dirty and need to be power washed.

Re: composition deck

NickNack — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 13:37:14 GMT

I love mine! I think it's definitely worth the money.

Re: composition deck

susan kay — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 14:41:20 GMT

happycat, I've had a composite deck for about 10 years and love it. From what I've read, they come a long way even since I've bought mine. It's fairly easy to keep clean, too. I would just suggest to look around at different materials and get a number of different estimates before making your decision. I did put up wood railing.

Re: composition deck

Just Plain Crazy — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 15:35:36 GMT

We put in 2 porches with railing and loved the way they looked and easy care but as Sandy53 said, they are slippery when wet and then in the winter when icy they are very slick. We were having lots of people over one winter so ended up having to fasten throw rugs down on them so no one fell.

Ended up replacing them. We didn't want anyone to fall and I didn't want to either. We even asked about them being slick in the winter since our old ones did and was told they wouldn't. Guess they really wanted that sale.

JPC

Re: composition deck

Rabbit — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 16:08:33 GMT

my husband replaced our old deck several years ago with composite decking. I love it & highly recommend it. no more splinters -

Re: composition deck

glmama — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 17:20:50 GMT

We were just at a friend's house who has the composition decking. We have wood and it really needs quite a bit of upkeep. My friend said that sometimes it gets some moldy, dark spots that need to be cleaned (didn't ask her what she used to clean it with), but that was the only real issue.

Re: composition deck

JeanLouiseFinch — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 17:28:36 GMT

Last year we decided to replace our wood deck. For the size we wanted, the composite deck price was going to be pretty high and the slippery when wet issue was a concern. We opted to put in a 24' x 24' patio instead, using Unilock pavers. It was significantly less costly, and yet a beautiful result. We're very happy with our decision.

Re: composition deck

HUENEME GIRL — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 17:35:50 GMT

Our deck is on the second floor and was pressurized wood. It baked in the El Paso sun for over 20 years. We replaced it with Trux which has a long life guarantee I love it! No splinters and easy to hose off. Sonnie

Re: composition deck

CelticAngel — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 19:30:07 GMT

We were deciding whether to restain or replace our deck this year. Decided to try a new product called Rescue It over our existing wood. Now our wood looks just like composite.

Re: composition deck

jlkz — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 22:45:42 GMT

The mountain house came with Trex decking. Love it and am considering doing the home deck with it. Home deck is wood and we've never done the upkeep: replacement time is right around the corner.

Re: composition deck

terrier3 — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 22:52:09 GMT

On 7/5/2014 JeanLouiseFinch said:
Last year we decided to replace our wood deck. For the size we wanted, the composite deck price was going to be pretty high and the slippery when wet issue was a concern. We opted to put in a 24' x 24' patio instead, using Unilock pavers. It was significantly less costly, and yet a beautiful result. We're very happy with our decision.

I personally also prefer natural pavers over a composition product. They are not allowed in my neighborhood, which is a historical district.

Re: composition deck

Ibby114 — Sat, 05 Jul 2014 23:29:03 GMT

I replaced just the floor boards of my deck with composite- the base structure of the deck was strong and sturdy so there was no need to redo everything. What a wonderful difference! The pressure treated wood required annual maintenance- this is simple and it looks great. Just be sure your base supports can handle the composite boards - they're heavier than pressure treated wood.

Re: composition deck

happycat — Mon, 07 Jul 2014 12:49:11 GMT

On 7/5/2014 terrier3 said:
On 7/5/2014 JeanLouiseFinch said:
Last year we decided to replace our wood deck. For the size we wanted, the composite deck price was going to be pretty high and the slippery when wet issue was a concern. We opted to put in a 24' x 24' patio instead, using Unilock pavers. It was significantly less costly, and yet a beautiful result. We're very happy with our decision.

I personally also prefer natural pavers over a composition product. They are not allowed in my neighborhood, which is a historical district.

Our deck is over a foot off the ground, so the pavers wouldn't work, but I do think they are pretty. The slick issue is a worry for me, we did not realize that they got slick- we may get it anyway, but we needed to know that. That is why I enjoy these boards so much. Good information.

Re: composition deck

JeanLouiseFinch — Mon, 07 Jul 2014 14:51:34 GMT

On 7/7/2014 happycat said:
On 7/5/2014 terrier3 said:
On 7/5/2014 JeanLouiseFinch said:
Last year we decided to replace our wood deck. For the size we wanted, the composite deck price was going to be pretty high and the slippery when wet issue was a concern. We opted to put in a 24' x 24' patio instead, using Unilock pavers. It was significantly less costly, and yet a beautiful result. We're very happy with our decision.

I personally also prefer natural pavers over a composition product. They are not allowed in my neighborhood, which is a historical district.

Our deck is over a foot off the ground, so the pavers wouldn't work, but I do think they are pretty. The slick issue is a worry for me, we did not realize that they got slick- we may get it anyway, but we needed to know that. That is why I enjoy these boards so much. Good information.

Patios can be ground level or elevated. You can look for paver patio designs/ideas online and then create your own. You just want to be sure to get good pavers. Spend the money and get Unilock, it'll still be cheaper than a composite deck. Our deck was elevated like yours. Access is/was through the kitchen and at the end/front of the deck there were steps to get down to ground level. Now, with the patio, we have a landing right outside the kitchen door (same level as the kitchen floor) and then a couple short rise steps down to the patio. We chose to have rounded/half circle steps, but there are designs with straight steps, too.

Re: composition deck

Carmie — Mon, 07 Jul 2014 15:17:04 GMT

We have 2 decks at 2 different locations/homes. The first deck is pressure treated wood and it was built in 1989. We treat it by using a solid color stain every few years. It is still in amazing shape.

The second deck is about 5 years old. It's made of composition material. It is very slippery and dirt gets trapped in the raised wood pattern on it. It can be power washed and always comes clean. The only problem we have had is that the material is brittle. We have had a few corners break off of the boards to the tune of an inch or two. We have had to replace a few boards for this reason.

It's a matter or what type of look and upkeep you are looking for and how much you are willing to spend.

We do not have the Trex brand, but it looks to be superior to the product that we have.

Re: composition deck

Allegheny — Mon, 07 Jul 2014 16:11:12 GMT

We replaced our wood deck surface three years ago with a composite by Azek. I will always like wood, but DH said we needed to go with something with less maintenance.

We are fairly happy with it. The surface gets just as hot if not hotter when exposed to the direct sun compared to wood. It is texturized to resemble wood, and grime does get in the grooves. We do have to pressure wash it every year. Of course that is because we selected a very light color to coordinate with our house. While it is not supposed to absorb stains, we get a couple small areas during the install. I contacted the company and never heard back from them. However, again, our color is very light.

There are a lot of options out there, even for elevated decks like we have (ours is over a car port). I looked at everything, including stone and there are probably even more products out there since i looked. Our house is cedar so it just killed me to consider composite decking, but it does look nice. We didn't do our railing system in composite, but a combination of wooden posts/rails with bronze powdered coated aluminum balusters.

At the time we replaced the deck restore systems like Restore or Rescue weren't developed. We probably would have tried them to extend the life of our 19 year old deck.

My brother used Restore last summer on his deck and railings. Since his decks were only a year old he did not use the heavier coating. It is not an easy task to apply and is quite expensive depending upon the size of the deck and quantity of posts/rails and balusters. There are some areas where the coating is coming off, but so many factors can figure into that from improper application, to a the particular piece of board having a residue on it.

Unfortunately decking, composite or more specialized wood is expensive but it is an investment that will last for many years. Just keep looking on the internet until you find something that you like.