Composite vs Wood Deck

[shariray 14]

For those of you who have seen this post in the PWNA site, I apologize for repeating it here but I have yet to find out any info. I figured maybe someone in here might be able to point me in the right direction

Hello Folks,

Wondering if anyone can point me in the right direction to provide the powers that be in my town with education and info on the real deal behind the "maintenance free" claims that the manufacturers of composite decks make.

I've read the posts in here about the problems we as contractors have been facing when asked to clean these decks and/or correct the problem that the manufacturers claim to be mildew stains.

I have not been able to find much "ammo" for a lack of a better word to show or prove that natural wood is still a viable option for part of our town's streetscape and park plans.

One thing that frustrates me is that people are lead to believe that they are maintenance free products. Additionally, they fade and stain badly.

Please let me know if you have any ideas on where I can look to back up my arguments with good facts.

Thanks folks!

Ray

[Paul B. 523]

Welcome to the board Ray!

We all know that there are very few things that are maintenance-free or even low-maintenance. Composits will stain from oils, etc.; mold, mildew and algea will grow on composits. It's a catch-22 situation at best - when you look at the manufacturer's, as they will talk about positive aspects (obviously, as they are trying to sell a product). The same applies to contractors that build decks - they accentuate the positives.

There are a few sites that talk about cleaning, maintenance, stain removal and cost related issues. It's not much, but I hope it helps at least a small amount.

www.correctdeck.com/faqs/faq_cleaning.htm

www.trex.com/universal/techn...tech_mildew.asp

http://search.csmonitor.com/durable/2001/04/18/fp13s1-csm.shtml

www.detnews.com/2001/decorating/0107/12/e16-241940.htm

[James 625]

Ray, in the long run for cities and towns composite decking is a better choice . They won't pay to have wood done correctly so it becomes a problem with maint. . Most of the time they take the quick fix approach.

cleaning is very easy bleach and soap . If its bad do it again ?

[shariray 14]

Thanks Paul & Jim

[CompletelyClean 14]

I just read in Readers Digest that composite decks are one of the "new" products of the 21st century that are made of recycled plastics. As with ANY plastics...they WILL fade from the sun.

Some friends of mine just asked me recetly about my opinion of composite vs. wood decking because they were about to have a deck built. I told them the truth about LESS maintenance on composite decks as opposed to wood decks, yet the cost of the composite deck built will likely be that of a wood deck with about 10 years of maintenance fees. Then I asked them a question. I asked them why they recently bought the beautiful mahogany office furniture for their home office, rather that a plastic one. They said it is classier and looks better. I said, "There's the answer to your original question!".