[OT] deck material?

Discussion:

[OT] deck material?

(too old to reply)

Therasa

2004-10-13 02:00:42 UTC

Just wondering if anyone has looked into the composite decking materials
like Trex, Veranda, Eon, ChoiceDeck, Evergrain, or CertainTeed.

Which do you think is best? Have you used one and been happy or not happy?
Any lessons learned? Where did you get the material?

Thanks

Michael (LS)

2004-10-13 02:38:04 UTC

Permalink

Post by Therasa
Just wondering if anyone has looked into the composite decking materials
like Trex, Veranda, Eon, ChoiceDeck, Evergrain, or CertainTeed.
Which do you think is best? Have you used one and been happy or not happy?
Any lessons learned? Where did you get the material?
Thanks

One thing to consider is flex. Some of the products require (to varying
degrees) joist spacing to be minimized to alleviate the flexing inherent in
the decking. Also, before selecting a brand look at all the available
"accessories" (i.e. railings, rim boards, trim boards, stair components,
etc.) to make sure that you can "finish" the project the way you want.

Michael (LS)

Clear Cut

2004-10-13 07:16:12 UTC

Permalink

In article

At my old house, I had a redwood deck. It lasted about 18 years (I owned
it for 8) and needed to be completely replaced due to rot when I sold
the house. The structure was also redwood and not pressure treated
(stupid). By the time I bought it, the surface was gray and weathered.
At least one coating of pigmented stain had worn off most of the
surface. I pressure washed it several times, tried several deck
cleaners, and used Penofin, Duck's Back, and a couple of other sealers,
none of which lasted more than a few months. It looked old and weathered
for the 8 years that I owned it.

My current house has a Trex deck installed by the previous owner. It
gets grungy over time but a scrub with detergent and a bit of bleach
cleans it right up. A light power washing and it looks - well not brand
new - it fades significantly in the first year - but like Trex. It is
what it is. You either like how it looks or not.

I built a bench and railing to match and the new Trex faded in about a
year to the same color as the 10 year old material. Some of the deck is
in ground contact and no rot. The Trex came from the local lumber yard.

It sits in full sun all day. During our 100+ degree days the surface is
hot to bare feet but a quick rinse with the hose cools it down. No
splinters and easy upkeep.

Trex is heavy to work with, it bends easily, and needs more support than
solid wood decking. I had no trouble working with the material using
standard tools. I did get to buy a power miter saw - I needed it.

I am generally happy with Trex and would use it again.

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Lobby Dosser

2004-10-13 07:28:08 UTC

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Post by Clear Cut
Trex is heavy to work with, it bends easily, and needs more support than
solid wood decking. I had no trouble working with the material using
standard tools. I did get to buy a power miter saw - I needed it.
I am generally happy with Trex and would use it again.

Even if you didn't have to buy a new tool? :o)

Clear Cut

2004-10-14 18:08:53 UTC

Permalink

Post by Lobby Dosser

Even if you didn't have to buy a new tool? :o)

Any project the wife requests REQUIRES at least one new tool - I thought
you knew that by now.

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Therasa

2004-10-13 11:08:25 UTC

Permalink

In article >
At my old house, I had a redwood deck. It lasted about 18 years (I owned
it for 8) and needed to be completely replaced due to rot when I sold
the house. The structure was also redwood and not pressure treated
(stupid). By the time I bought it, the surface was gray and weathered.
At least one coating of pigmented stain had worn off most of the
surface. I pressure washed it several times, tried several deck
cleaners, and used Penofin, Duck's Back, and a couple of other sealers,
none of which lasted more than a few months. It looked old and weathered
for the 8 years that I owned it.
My current house has a Trex deck installed by the previous owner. It
gets grungy over time but a scrub with detergent and a bit of bleach
cleans it right up. A light power washing and it looks - well not brand
new - it fades significantly in the first year - but like Trex. It is
what it is. You either like how it looks or not.
I built a bench and railing to match and the new Trex faded in about a
year to the same color as the 10 year old material. Some of the deck is
in ground contact and no rot. The Trex came from the local lumber yard.
It sits in full sun all day. During our 100+ degree days the surface is
hot to bare feet but a quick rinse with the hose cools it down. No
splinters and easy upkeep.
Trex is heavy to work with, it bends easily, and needs more support than
solid wood decking. I had no trouble working with the material using
standard tools. I did get to buy a power miter saw - I needed it.
I am generally happy with Trex and would use it again.

Good info, thanks!

jojo

2004-10-13 14:29:13 UTC

Permalink

I have not used it personally, but we spec Choicedeck on all of our "green"
projects.
The builders love working with it and the oldest residence I have used it on
(4 years old)
still looks great.
were I building a deck it would be my first choice.
Good luck!
jojo

benzette

2004-10-14 05:37:06 UTC

Permalink

I am redoing my ceder decking now. It was grungy greyish brown. I power
planed each plank down ( top and both sides) to new wood then rolled a
thick coat of Minwax Helmsman spar urathane. The deck looks better then
new now. It has brightened up conciderably. It almost has a redwood
color to it. The dark knots of the ceder give it a rustic look. I
lightly sprinkled some silica granuals on the wet sealer for traction.

To heck with buying new decking!!! I got a new deck for the price of a
few gallons of sealer and a few paint rollers...

Steve Poepoe

2004-10-18 14:38:25 UTC

Permalink

On 10/12/04 7:00 PM, in article

I installed a Trex deck a little over a year ago. I replaced the old deck
and enlarged it. It was the first deck I have ever built. The material was
easy to work with. It's not prone to splintering, cuts pretty easily, and is
somewhat flexible. You should use carbide blades though because there is a
gritty substance in the Trex boards that dulls saw blades pretty fast.

At the time Trex had only four colors to choose from. We chose the grey
color that fades to a very light grey. Most of the deck boards have faded by
now except for those that don't get much sun. However my neighbor used the
tan colored boards and is not happy with how they have faded. They kind of
look like wet cardboard.

We paid 1.39 per linear foot for the 2X6 decking boards and 1.80 per foot
for the 1X8 trim/fascia pieces. I had seen the boards going for as high as
1.64 per foot, but this store had a "sale."

I am happy with the 2X6 boards. They are smooth to walk on with bare feet,
are kinda "grippy" when wet, and are easy to clean. However when there is a
light frost it gets really slippery, much more so than the old wood deck
boards. Also, Trex decking doesn't like grease or animal fat (I'm thinking
outdoor grill here). I you drop your burger on it you need to get the grease
before it soaks in.

I am NOT happy with the 1X8 boards and I'll chalk it up to my inexperience.
I built benches with pressure treated lumber. Over the past year the frame
has shrunk (especially along the length) and bowed the fascia boards. This
has also happened on the deck frame. The fascia isn't very thick so it bends
easily. If I had to do it over again - which I have - I'd wait a year or so
before installing the fascia.

One last thing. I used composite deck screws for the deck boards and fascia.
They don't require pre-drilling and will pull the material back into the
hole for a nice smooth finish with the screw head showing. Trex says you can
use standard deck screws but you get a little mushroom that needs to pounded
down. I just didn't like the way it looked.

Oh yeah, I got a framing nailer and composite miter saw out of this project.