6 Composite Decking Installation Mistakes To Avoid

Although composite wood decking is easier to maintain, some homeowners worry that composites won’t look as nice as wood. However, manufacturing advances have led to composites thatemulate the rich, natural look of woodwithout the hassles of maintaining a wood deck. As more builders and homeowners learn of wood decking problems, many are turning to high-performance composite decking.

Learn How To Build A Deck With Composites And Other Rot

Use clips to attach and snap composite decking into place according to your design. Contact our team to get an estimate for your composite decking project. Here are the top 5 myths about composite decking, updated for 2017. As to the Kontiki deck tiles and how they hold up, shorea wood is very durable, and very eco-friendly too since it is a plantation forest . Shorea is attractive and the tiles are easy to install  great for DIYers laying decking onto a concrete surface like a rooftop, balcony, or existing deck surface.

How Far Apart Should You Place Floor Joists On A Composite Deck?

Continue installing decking boards on the rest of the deck. When you get to the final decking board, you may need to measure and cut it to the correct width with a table saw. For this deck, there needs to be a cutout in a couple of boards to fit around the tree. Put a deck board in place but don’t fasten it down. Make sure the board is lined up end for end with the installed decking.

Decking Over An Existing Deck

Some composite materials mimic wood grain and others are monochromatic or multi-chromatic. Composite decking can also be hyper-realistic to resemble a tropical hardwood without the labor-intensive upkeep. Bottom line is that composite decking won’t break the bank, particularly when you consider the long-term savings. Consumer Reportscompared wood decking to alternative decking materials. They reported that pressure-treated pine is very popular and very inexpensive; but the wood tends to change color very quickly, and will rot, crack, and splinter over time. Pressure-treated woods have the shortest deck life expectancy, and while the initial cost is relatively low, the long-term costs for repairs, upkeep, and replacement tend to be very high.

The basic problem is that the UV-inhibiting additives are themselves broken down by exposure to UV radiation and lose effectiveness over time. This is the primary reason composite decks turn gray. ormal use of the deck wears off the protective plastic coating that surrounds the wood particles in the composite, leaving them exposed to mold and mildew. Most composite and PVC decking brands, like Trex and Azek, recommend a minimum joist spacing of 16 inches OC.

Hide Composite Ends

Some heavy-duty Irwin clamps helped to keep everything in position. Then, the first board was fastened to the framing with square-drive composite decking screws. My solution was to use a T-Jak, which is a type of cabinet jack (or drywall tool … or decking tool, evidently). However, the T-Jak didn’t reach from the concrete carport to the second-story joists above.

If you’re looking to replace a wood deck built on a steel substructure with composite boards, you can be confident that it will easily support the additional weight of composite. The first thing my friend did after closing on both his houses was tear out the old splintered wooden decks that came with them. Now, every time I go to his house, I have a problem. I end up chasing my friend’s rowdy yellow lab around the yard (because chasing down a big dog and wrasslin’ the toy back is great fun), and then stubbing my toe on, or tripping over, concrete. That’s because my friend decided to adopt an ‘as needed’ attitude toward removing the buried concrete post anchors that held down the decks he took out. A warped and discolored deck is more than just an eyesore.

In consequence, the flour provides a very friendly abode for mold and mildew which happily puts down roots. Once well anchored in the wood particles, mold and mildew are almost impossible to eradicate. The smaller the spacing, the longer your joists can span. Your composite decking manufacturer will have a unique joist span table to help you determine the maximum length based on joist size and spacing.

• Get Samples, try our Composite Deck Visualizer, or contact DuraLife now to learn more.
• It is stain and fade resistant, mold and mildew resistant, and is available in the colors and deck railing options you want.
• Another mistake to avoid when installing composite decking is spacing the joists too far apart.
• More solid and safe under foot, DuraLife decking is backed by a 25-year warranty.