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View Full Version : Deck Material - What do you have and why?



Ranman
05-08-2006, 03:39 PM
I'm looking for opinions on available decking materials (cedar, wolmanized, Trex, Eon, etc). What do you have any why did you choose it. Also, feel free to post any interesting deck related resources you know of.

We are looking into having a deck built for our new house and I'm trying to decipher what is the best way to go.

BTW - I hate maintenance!

boxy
05-08-2006, 03:58 PM
Randy, we looked at "wood" style decks, and held off last year. We are going to do a stone patio this fall. Zero maintenance, and it suits our stone/bricks well. I looked at the Eon/Trex stuff last summer, and the cost of those products, good cedar, and the stone are all pretty close.

Permacon has a plant here, so our shipping costs are pretty light.

www.permacon.ca

http://www.permacon.ca/realizations.html?is_search=true&landscape_project_id=10&masonry_project_id=19&product_id=

RedDog
05-08-2006, 04:24 PM
I built my decking out of 5/4 wood deck boards - maintenance required...

The decking in the pic is about 5 years old and actually looks alot better than shown. Another deck I built the same wayabout 14 years ago. It looks fair if sprayed with deck clearner and followed by a Thompsons-type pigmented water seal product sprayed using a pump-up garden sprayer.

mrfixxall
05-08-2006, 06:08 PM
Randy,i used plastic low low maintance and any color...

http://www.plasticlumberyard.com/

Ed Donnelly
05-08-2006, 07:15 PM
Randy; I used Trex 10 yrs ago. Still looks as good as the day it was installed.
Pricey,but,lasts forever and no splinters. The Plastic wood doesn't look as natural.but,so many different colors to choose from..............Ed

maddad
05-08-2006, 08:12 PM
Randy, I do building, remods etc. for a living, and the next deck I do for myself is going to be mahogany. I don't plan on trying to keep it looking like furniture, just going to let it weather to a no maintenance silver grey. If you put a bit of thought into the layout and dress up all the cut ends, it'll look great and last a decade or two. The area I'm doing is 1100sq.' and the cost of the mahogany vs. plastic ends up being about 40% less. It is a little more labor intensive, and won't look like the day you put it down in 5 years, but like a few other things, it will get better as it ages.
The photo is a recent customer's in 5/4 x 4, I may use 5/4 x 6 to speed up the install a bit.

DonCig
05-08-2006, 11:30 PM
MadDad, your widom shows.

Randy, this man speaks the truth.

DonCig

MOP
05-09-2006, 06:00 AM
Mike is right mahogany is a great way to go, half the decks on West Hampton beach are mahogany. Then if you want something even better looking Epi/Iron wood wood, it without doubt is the longest lasting and most durable and needs little to no maintainance and is fire resistant.

Phil

CHACHI
05-09-2006, 09:58 AM
Randy, on the new house (4 years ago) had two porches bulit with Cambera
decking. Every two years I roll on a coat of Cabots Australian Timber Oil. I is holding up very nicely. Just a note, if you install the decks yourself and use exotic lumber,(something from the rainforest) invest in a very good pair of tweezers. Get a sliver with some of the exotic stuff and in seconds it starts to ache and swell. Don't ask me how I know. Ken

roadtrip se
05-09-2006, 12:12 PM
Composite is the way to go...

We did Choicedek, similar to Trek, a couple of years ago at our lake place in Texas. It looked great, but it would hold a stain once in awhile and I missed the look of wood grain.

We just put down TimberTech at the Cumberland lake house. I have a friend of twenty years that does decks. He recomended this stuff hands down for the warranty, selection of sizes including fascias, and the realistic wood grain look. It rocks.

Makes me want to take a stick of dynamite to the cedar stuff we have here in Milford!

Bob
05-09-2006, 05:49 PM
We put a new dock in 2 years ago on Lake George. Had a tought time choosing between Trex, cedar and Ipe (brazilian hardwood). Went with Ipe and love it. Hard as steel, we had it predrilled and screwed from below with stainless hardware. Any decks on shore will also be Ipe.