Composite decking

[Barnbuilder]

Anyone have any long term experience with it? I built a deck for a customer about 7 years ago and the 5/4 deck boards are deteriorating. I have another customer with a deck that has Trex on it and looks like crap. I can get Ipe' out of Atlanta for about the same price as Trex but I have no prior experience and not sure what direction to lead customer as he wants my opinion.

Thanks
Greg

 

[Wolfy]

Azek makes an excellent composite deckboard, it actually has flax seeds embedded inside for stability.

 

[nbking]

Trex had a major recall some years ago for their boards fading/deteriorating. We have the Lowe's branded composite boards on our cabin deck, they still look really good. Can't remember the brand name, they are at least 10 years old.

 

[joeu235]

I installed a Fiberon deck next to a west facing brick wall. It felt like I was in a pizza oven while I was working on it. The temperate has to exceed 120F in August. 3 years later and I am not aware of any issues.

 

[Captain Dirty]

. . . I can get Ipe' out of Atlanta for about the same price as Trex but I have no prior experience and not sure what direction to lead customer . . .

I installed an Ipe deck in 2015 because Ipe is said to require no maintenance. Nothing was done except to seal the end grain. It has weathered from a rich brown to a pleasing (to my taste) grey. The rich brown could have been retained by using a finish that would require re-finishing annually or biannually. I have used scrub brushes and power washing to remove fortuitous stains such as spilled BBQ fat, and those areas inconspicuously blend into the general patina.

Unlike the PT SYP under framing, ipe is very stable. None of the mitered corners on the steps and on the removable gratings that "frame" the hot tub have "blown". (A friend with a composite deck is disappointed that the miters on his steps have opened 1/4 to 3/8".) Most boards were straight. Some boards had crooks; after levering the boards into position we felt that the crook would overpower the fasteners, and we rejected those boards. We used a hidden fastener system in which plastic "biscuits" were inserted into recesses routed into the 3/4" edges of the boards. Each biscuit is held by one screw that is supposed to be driven at a 45ｰ but hired help often installed the screw perpendicularly. So far that has not presented a problem except when lifting some of the gratings. (A yacht club in a neighboring town has a 5/4 or 4/4 ipe deck with two #12 or #14 FH screws per joist. The pattern of the exposed stainless screw heads reminds me of a ship with a riveted hull; perhaps that is appropriate. The two screws per joist probably has more strength to hold warped wood in position.) (There are also hidden fastener systems that require access to the underside of the deck. That was not possible in my situation.)

Other characteristics of ipe may affect installation. Ipe is hard. All screw holes should be drilled; cobalt bits last longer. Any saw cuts or routing requires carbide. Some ipe has groves milled into the edges to facilitate the hidden fastener system described above. Ipe is corrosive. All fasteners and brackets should be stainless, and by extension, fasteners contacting the stainless brackets should also be stainless.

In summary, expect to put more time and effort into installation, especially if you haven't worked with ipe before. I decided the durability and lack of required maintenance was worth the premium.

 

[ruffdog]

My 5/4 treated wood deck is 23 years old now. I need to power wash it this year and coat it again.

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

I put some type of stuff down about 14 years ago, not trex. But I can't remember the name. Came from Home Depot. It still looks great. It came grey, it still is grey.

 

[KennyG]

My Azek deck has been installed for 7 or 8 years now and is in good shape. I power wash it once or twice a year. I've got a couple of mold stains under a tree I'm going to go after with cleaner this year. It does have the usual composite downsides - a little slick when icy (but that makes the snow push off easier) and it gets hot in the sun. I would go with it again if I had a do-over.

 

[EddieWalker]

Anyone have any long term experience with it? I built a deck for a customer about 7 years ago and the 5/4 deck boards are deteriorating. I have another customer with a deck that has Trex on it and looks like crap. I can get Ipe' out of Atlanta for about the same price as Trex but I have no prior experience and not sure what direction to lead customer as he wants my opinion.

Thanks
Greg

Since they changed how pressure treated wood is created, I will not use 5/4 boards for a deck anymore. The shrinkage is too extreme!!!! My bids are always for 2x6's for the deck boards. If they want to use a composite, like Trex, I double up on my joists in the bid and increase my amount for composite decking and fasteners. When clients see the difference in cost, they always go with they 2x6's.

Why does the Trex look bad? Is it sagging and cracking? I've seen that when the joists are too far apart. Composite decking has no strength.

 

[Barnbuilder]

The Trex on one deck has faded and looks terrible. The deck I built has 5/4 on a 45* angle. Joists are 16" oc. If I ran Trex 45* I would have to double up joists for the span. Other issue is the 5/4 is 20' boards for no butt joints which I've already drawn up a design to use 12' with no butt joints.
I haven5 had an issue with shrinkage as boards are kd.

 

[farmeratheart]

10 or 11 years ago we had a new deck framed for us. My wife and I then covered it with Fiberon bought from 84 Lumber. We have power washed it once or twice and waterproofed the exposed framing once. The joists are 12” oc . I would do it again with no changes- very happy with the product.

 

[downsizingnow48]

About 20 years ago I worked for a cranky old contractor that only did decks and kitchens. And if it was a deck, he only did treated 2x4's laid 45 degrees over 8" joists 16" oc. If you wanted anything else, you had to get another contractor. We could lay those boards arrow-straight and although they were so green they squirted, shrinkage would be perfect 1/8" after a few months. And the decks were extremely strong.

 

[Cord]

I’ve done several decks with Ipe. It’s become my go to deck material. Currently have a building under construction that has Ipe for siding. I’ve blind fastened with good luck, but for the trouble now use trim head stainless fasteners. Once the deck weathers, you can’t even see them. The trim head screws must be predrilled or they will snap off.

I know that there are experts out there that know more, but I don’t space my deck boards. When installed with a gap I find the shrinkage results in an excessive gap. With pressure treated lumber I’ll put the boards tight because I know that each board will loose 1/8” in width. With Ipe, it still shrinks, but not as much as PT so I’ll space Ipe using an 8d nail.

 

[Fallon]

We have a composite deck. Not sure how old, but it wasnt new when we bought the place almost 7 years ago. It's a bit faded & chalky, but sun up here in Colorado is brutal. It scratches a bit when I shovel snow off of it or drag stuff across it, but realistically even faded as it is, it's no worse than most wood would be at it's best. I havent done a lick of maintnance to it. Which is a good enough reason for me to plan on using it for any future decking needs.

 

[ericm979]

The newer Trex with plastic wood grain caps is supposed to be more durable than the old raw stuff. I sure hope it is- we just had the old deck rebuilt with it. It's also more fire resistant which is a big deal here.

Ipe would have been more expensive due to labor costs. Fresh stained ipe sure looks nice though. But what turned us off from it is that you have to strip the old stain and re-stain it annually.