It will last much longer than normal treated wood for decking with much less care, if any. When I was working for a lumber yard we went through a healthy amount of it and people seemed pretty pleased.
I don't remember prices, but keep in mind you get what you pay for. I wouldn't expect warping or discoloration or any of that kind of thing due to prolonged exposure to weather. That's common with wood, so there are definite benefits. Oh yeah, no splinters!
Honestly I would go down to a lumber yard and get some information from them. They'll be able to give you the info you need, as far as the pros and cons of Trex, or another company that makes composite decking.Yeah you're right. I guess I'm not going to use P.T. decking, I'm just looking for the cheapest composite then.
You should ba able to get samples of anything you are going to use. Take them home and leave them out in the sun. Also try scratching them, pouring different things on them to see oif they stain. You would be surprise at how much some of them fade.I don't remember prices, but keep in mind you get what you pay for. I wouldn't expect warping or discoloration or any of that kind of thing due to prolonged exposure to weather. That's common with wood, so there are definite benefits. Oh yeah, no splinters!
I just realized our dogs are out on our deck a lot so I need to find a product that doesn't scratch as easily.You should ba able to get samples of anything you are going to use. Take them home and leave them out in the sun. Also try scratching them, pouring different things on them to see oif they stain. You would be surprise at how much some of them fade.
I wouldn't expect you to have actually "built" anything anyway.Our deck was built with Trex. It was there when we bought the house. I know that doesn't help you out too much but you asked.
I built our Ikea TV stand. Took me four hours.I wouldn't expect you to have actually "built" anything anyway.
My wife "built" an ikea table once. It took me 1hr to take it apart and build it correctly.I built our Ikea TV stand. Took me four hours.
God help you if she ever reads these forumsMy wife "built" an ikea table once. It took me 1hr to take it apart and build it correctly.
Different quality grades are available to choose from to help with the cost. If I remember the price was comparable to higher end composite materials. The 4"x4" posts for the bench seating supports were ridiculously expensive, though.isn't that Ipe stuff really expensive? i've heard good things about it, it's a really hard wood and takes a beating, but i thought the price was thru the roof.
Really?FWIW, my parent's deck is about 20 years old, made of PT. It has been power washed once and resealed once and it looks and lasts just fine.
Thanks man!God help you if she ever reads these forums
That said if it was my house and I planned on staying there
for 10 years or more I would go with the manufactured or recycled stuff. It lasts forever but the cost is very high. If you don't plan on staying there for that long go with the PT at the most you may have to replace a few boards every now and then. My $0.02
I'll offer my services and tools if you need the help.
I recently did a friends deck with Lowes version of trex.. the also carry trex now too. It was about $3 less per 12 ftt board.Anybody used Trex or any of the other companies composite decking?
It seems like it's going to cost 2x as much as using pressure treated decking so I was curious if anybody knows which company is the cheapest or where to get it?
I'm convinced that no matter what material you choose, there will be certain advantages and disadvantages. I have a small 5x12 deck area that receives direct sunlight all day. When I layed the original deck surface, I hand picked only the quarter sawn, pressure treated lumber and permitted the material to air dry in a garage for about 1 year so the decking would be stabilized before installation. After being installed for about 2 years , the pt lumber was nice and flat but severely cracked. I removed the pressure treated lumber and replaced it with composite lumber. My wife hated the composite deck because deck surface would get really hot in the summer. Round Three. I replaced the composite deck with Ipe. After about three years, the Ipe looks pretty good but you do have to seal Ipe or it will turn from the dark walnut color to gray. I'm convinced there is no ideal deck surface.
The only positive thing that I have learned from my entire experience is that the use of stainless steel fasteners sure make the deck removal for replacement easier. Actually if you're using the newer pressure treated framing lumber , stainless steel fasteners are a good idea. Most of the newer pressure treated framing lumber is very corrosive and will ruin conventional fasteners.
I've heard about the static problem before. How long ago did you install the decking. Do you know what brand you used?My experience with composite was that it faded quickly, but then again, it got full afternoon sun in the NM mountains. Also, in our relatively dry climate, walking on it it created static elec. potential that was painfully discharged when you went to open the alum.-framed screen door to go back inside (my kid would call us to let her back in rather than open the door herself). But yeah, the maintenance was significantly reduced vs. both stained and painted wood decks.
- Joe