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We want to put in a composite deck and wondered if anyone has one and if you like it. Pros and cons, etc. We will have some one install it. We are really tired of all the work that a wood deck requires. Meem
lots info on this subject on many forums and treads.
briefly : if your deck will be exposed to hot sun all day long your will burn the bottoms of your feet off if walking bare foot. If you build built in benches with trex or any other composite wood, and it is exposed to the hot sun all day, you will burn your bum off.
The composite absorbs heat - in a big way.
I live in California and this is a big consideration for us when building with a composite .
Stay true to the manufact . joist spacing. anything more than 16" on center and you will get deflection.
don't over tighten the screws - you'll create raised volcano like bumps across the deck. sure, they can be sanded down, but if you have a big deck it is a big extra chore.
the color will fade in strong sun.
with a regular redwood or cedar deck you can usually get by with one nice new cross cutting blade on your skill saw.
Figure on buying at least two blades. The composite really dulls your blades quickly.
very easy low maintenance product that is a nice 'green' ecological recycled material.
easy maintenance , good on your eco conscience.
in heavily shaded areas, it can mold, but easily power washes clean and there are no wood fibers that will be raised, causing splinters due to the powerwashing.
have a massage therapist appointment made right about at the end of the project. you will need it.
the lumber is about 4 times heavier as a regular piece of KD lumber in the same denomination.
there is a slight compromise on aesthetics if you are a purist when it comes to appreciating a nice wood deck.
There is no fooling the eye. it is not wood, and will never look like wood.
You have to appreciate and accept it for what it is : a composite.
It can look very odd when built right up against a wood shingle or wood sided house , due to the obvious disparity in the two materials.
It is a great surface for kids to play on , if it doesn't get too hot .
relatively splinter free , easy to clean, low to no maintenance.
comes in a wide range of colors, that despite what the manufact. says, they do fade.
Thanks for the info. D.D. We had someone come out yesterday and give us an estimate. Composite is NOT cheap, but I think that we are going to go ahead with it. We will put some sort of awning up to help with the heat. I am not sure if we will use a retractable or aluminum, that is another decision we have to make. Meem
Have you considered building a vinyl deck? The life expectancy is 25 years. It has a non-skid surface and you can walk on it barefoot on a hot day. We are very pleased with ours. (See photo on this forum under "Gazebo on Deck."
Wow!! That is beautiful. Can you tell me a little bit more about vinyl decking. Is it solid? I never really thought about using vinyl. Are there any downsides? Thanks, Coterly. Meem
Thanks, MeemsDream, so far I don't know of any downsides, but like composite, it wasn't cheap either. We are not going to put our grill on it, using the brick patio below, just to be certain we don't scorch it. It could dink if something pretty heavy fell on it, but the installer said the vinyl boards could be replaced individually, they are tongue in groove. We did decide to put in glass windows above and heavy-guage plexiglas below making it a 3 season gazebo. The upside to that is that my tender annuals are in the gazebo now awaiting more stable weather. Another plus was the storage we gained underneath the whole gazebo and deck for lawn equipment, potting stuff, etc.
However, I did notice a few wasps in the gazebo today, I think we have more caulking to do! Neverending work, eh?
I am a child protective service investigator. I currently have a case where a toddler supposedly received a second degree burn on his feet from a composite decking (Trex). I need to find factual information on whether this type of decking can, in fact, burn a child's feet. So far, I have heard people say composite decking can get "hot", but I have found nothing factual to prove this.
Do you have any factual information to support a composite decking burning a person's feet? Or have you known anyone to receive a burn from a composite decking?
There is no way my deck (which is not Trex, but a similar product) would ever burn anyone's feet. It gets warm in the direct summer sun, but I would not call it hot, and I have sun, sun, sun all afternoon and into the evening on that deck. I live in the Pacific Northwest, where it rarely gets into the 90's, so that may make a difference. However, if I were a child and had just stepped onto an uncomfortably hot deck in my bare feet, I would immediately jump back to where I had been standing a moment before, most likely avoiding any severe burns. The only time I have ever known someone to get burns on the bottom of their feet was when my sister walked barefoot down a black paved road in Mexico in August. Also, she went quite a way before she realized that she was actually burning her feet. It certainly wasn't second degree burns at that.
I can speak from personal experience--it was 112 here yesterday and I walked on my pale grey Trex deck several times in bare feet and while it was definitely warm and I wouldn't have wanted to stand on it for hours on end, I definitely didn't burn my feet or even need to jump around to avoid burning them. A lot may depend on the color though--other colors might absorb heat more and cause more problems.
