Has anyone used Trex or an alternative to wood for decking? Wood doesn't hold up to the heat for me and even long term sealers don't last long. What about the frame? That is the first thing that starts giving on mine, and very hard to completly reseal.
Trex for decking
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DOUBLEG
Member
I just replaced my deck this year. The old one was likely 20+ years old and was unsafe (rotten) in a number of areas. I had to replace the whole thing. New pressure treated frame with Trex decking, couldn't afford the Trex railing so went with pressured treated wood there but will be putting a Trex cap on it.
Everything I could find out about Trex was positive but only time will tell. I am looking forward to having a deck floor with some colour on it, the old one was a mess. My only concern is how it will stand up to the cold weather, we can hit minus 40 during the winter.
Everything I could find out about Trex was positive but only time will tell. I am looking forward to having a deck floor with some colour on it, the old one was a mess. My only concern is how it will stand up to the cold weather, we can hit minus 40 during the winter.
Probably going to replace the deck with Trex, but I'm not sure about the framing. I used pressure treated lumber and it was the first to give up. Thinking about steel, using steel used in some homes for the walls or pearling. Would cost quite a bit more, but I've already thrown money away with what I used initally.
Deerlope
Veteran Member
Composit wood seems to be the thing that is going good now.
Wesdor
Gold Member
We built a new home last year and put Trex on for the deck. It was more expensive, but the builder said it would probably outlive all of us. After 1 year it still looks brand new.
dillo99
Gold Member
I had a 16 year old deck that I re-surfaced with trex three years ago (kept the old joists in place). So far the trex has done very well. Also, it is very easy to work with - cuts and nails beautifully.
NY_Yankees_Fan
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dillo99 said:
I want to do the same thing, my joists are 16" on center, did you have to add more joists? Will Trex span the 16"?
EddieWalker
Epic Contributor
I'm not a big fan of Trex or any of the composit decking materials. It could just be me, but every time I've seen it, I see sagging and cracking in places. I have a way of finding flaws in things, though I never mention it to anybody, but if you look hard enough, you can find the flaws.
A really good example of Trex failure was at Yellowstone this past August. They put it down at the viewing area for Old Faithful. It's on 12 inch centers and has just about totally failed. I know it's used all day, everyday, but to me that just shows what will happen on a residential deck after a decade or so. The failures are that i's sagging some to real bad in places. It's cracked around the areas it's fastned to the joists underneath, and it flexes to different levels when walking on it.
For the money, I still like 5/4 PT decking. It shrinks like crazy, so you really need to set it out flat for at least a week before installing it.
Somebody on here mentioned a really good technique to preserve your PT joists. Put flashing paper over the edge before attaching yoru decking. You wont see it under the decking, but it will keep the moisture off of it when it rains. If you don't have flashing, cut roofing felt, or tar paper into 4 inch wide strips and staple to the top edge of the joists.
Good luck,
Eddie
A really good example of Trex failure was at Yellowstone this past August. They put it down at the viewing area for Old Faithful. It's on 12 inch centers and has just about totally failed. I know it's used all day, everyday, but to me that just shows what will happen on a residential deck after a decade or so. The failures are that i's sagging some to real bad in places. It's cracked around the areas it's fastned to the joists underneath, and it flexes to different levels when walking on it.
For the money, I still like 5/4 PT decking. It shrinks like crazy, so you really need to set it out flat for at least a week before installing it.
Somebody on here mentioned a really good technique to preserve your PT joists. Put flashing paper over the edge before attaching yoru decking. You wont see it under the decking, but it will keep the moisture off of it when it rains. If you don't have flashing, cut roofing felt, or tar paper into 4 inch wide strips and staple to the top edge of the joists.
Good luck,
Eddie
KubotaSteve
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I used the Home Depot version of composite (Veranda I think) on my pool deck. I put it on 12" centers and used PT wood for framing. I kept the decking tight with no cracks and it will actually hold water a little (I have a slight run off). The worst thing I have seen is how hot it gets. When it gets to be 80 to 90 degrees outside the decking is so hot you can't stand on it with bare feet. I've had it for two years and still just like new without any sagging. It is the least expensive of the composite they offer and still cost me about $150 to do a 8' X 9' deck flooring and railing.
I have the Lowes version on my kid's play set (ramp to the slide and platform for the slide). I didn't care for it as well as it had ridges that the bees really like to build nests under it. This is probably 5 years old but just like new and no sagging or anything, but I always put it on 12" centers.
If I had it to do all over, I'd go the same route with composite, but next time I think I might try composite framing & railing too.
I have the Lowes version on my kid's play set (ramp to the slide and platform for the slide). I didn't care for it as well as it had ridges that the bees really like to build nests under it. This is probably 5 years old but just like new and no sagging or anything, but I always put it on 12" centers.
If I had it to do all over, I'd go the same route with composite, but next time I think I might try composite framing & railing too.
