Composite decking. Does it hold up? I need help from all you experts I am rebuilding the deck and porch on our house and am thinking about using composite decking. Any idea as to...

home brewer Loc: Fort Wayne, Indiana

I need help from all you experts

I am rebuilding the deck and porch on our house and am thinking about using composite decking. Any idea as to whether the stuff is any good. Some online reviews say it warps and sags

Thanks

Fotoartist Loc: Detroit, Michigan

home brewer wrote:

I need help from all you experts

I am rebuilding the deck and porch on our house and am thinking about using composite decking. Any idea as to whether the stuff is any good. Some online reviews say it warps and sags

Thanks

And wood doesn't?

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

We had the wood decking replace with Trex boards last year. I think this stuff is great, and a lot of people here in Alaska have done the same thing. I’ve never heard of it warping or sagging. The key to keep it from sagging is to make sure the support joists/crossmembers are close enough together to prevent it from sagging. I think 24” apart is recommended. You’ll love it, as you’ll never have to maintain it, other that to wash it off with a hose, or sweep it.

Country Boy Loc: Beckley, WV

I would guess there are various thicknesses and different materials. I helped a friend use it on his new deck 2 years ago and the material was about an inch thick and very solid. It looks as good today as when it went down and no painting etc.

asaya Loc: Syracuse, NY

Had Trex installed 10 years ago still looks great

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

home brewer wrote:

I need help from all you experts

I am rebuilding the deck and porch on our house and am thinking about using composite decking. Any idea as to whether the stuff is any good. Some online reviews say it warps and sags

Thanks

I did my sons deck in Trex. It lasted 13 years. I redid it in cedar pressure treated. Nothing lasts forever but wood properly stained should do better that composites from my experience. That experience is from Oregon where they get alot of rain.

ORpilot Loc: Prineville, Or

That is what they use at Yellowstone on the board walks around the hot pools and geizers. If it can stand up to all that nasty hot steamy stuff as well as Wingpilots Alaska, I think it will stand up to whatever Indiana can dish out.

John_F Loc: Minneapolis, MN

People who are in the business of designing load-bearing structures will refer to mechsnical properties of materials. There will be coefficients for the common stresses: tensile, compression, bending, torsion, yield points. To properly dimension your deck you need to realistically assess the loads to be supported.

NJphotodoc Loc: Now in the First State

Hi. We changed from wood to a composite deck (Azek) and love it. No annual maintenance and cleans with a mop or a a quick power wash set on low. Unlike wood,, there is no risk of the composite board splitting and if you want, you can get screws that match the color you selected or use mounting systems that hide the screws. The color doesn't fade and you have no risk of mold/fungus buildup. As an engineer, I was also concerned about mechanical properties but while this may have been an issue early on, the design and construction of your deck should pretty much handle any potential problems.
It may be more $ to buy but you'll save it back over time and it really is better investment than wood.

home brewer Loc: Fort Wayne, Indiana

John
the mechanical engineering stuff is simple; some of the items i designed are still in space on sensors that take weather photos. What I am referring to is that some articles say the composite stuff sags over time after exposure to the elements. I do not know if it was installed correctly. Trex has a lower Modulus of elasticity than pine and thus is not a stiff; but buildings tend to be over designed. I thank you for suggesting i look deeper in the mechanical properties.

I am considering composites to get away from the yearly deck wash and retreating. I also do not like the splinters.

chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

I've built many decks and patio covers over the years (42-year carpenter/contractor/cabinetmaker), most out of wood but some Trex and Trex-like. Wood, depending on finishing and species (redwood is an elegant and bug resistant type...but termites *will* eat the sapwood) is easy to work with and with good maintenance policies will weather well and provide long lasting enjoyment. But Trex will outlive wood, that's a fact. Design is a huge factor. I'm not a fan of 24" centers, it isn't *that* much more expensive to go 16" for the framing and provides *much* better structure. Really, it's up to the home owner which way to go, but I'd use good framing lumber for the beams and joists and cover with Trex decking. Regular inspections will keep the bugs at bay (this is where the orange-oil guys come into their own) and fastening systems tight (composites don't have a shrinkage problem like wood, so advantage there, too.). Nails are out, screws in for fastening decking. Composites cost more so that's a factor...

Bill_de Loc: US

I did my sister's 2 decks years ago with Trex, shortly after it became popular. Her kids complained it got too hot on their feet compared to the cedar it replaced. On the plus side they no longer complained about splinters.

---

cahale Loc: San Angelo, TX

home brewer wrote:

I need help from all you experts

I am rebuilding the deck and porch on our house and am thinking about using composite decking. Any idea as to whether the stuff is any good. Some online reviews say it warps and sags

Thanks

And this has what to do with photography? I thought I was going to find some exotic new method of enhancing photographs.

home brewer Loc: Fort Wayne, Indiana

My deck will have 16" max joist oc and some place 12". So Trex should work

chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

home brewer wrote:

My deck will have 16" max joist oc and some place 12". So Trex should work

...12" kind've heavy, but it'll certainly provide the stability!!!