Consider Wood Composite Decking for Your Outdoor Space

Wood composite decking, also known as wood-plastic composite decking, is the ideal material for today’s busy consumers. Like wood decking, wood composite decking adds value to your home. Unlike wood decking, however, wood composite decking saves you from the sanding, staining and time-consuming yearly maintenance.

Wood composite decking is made from recycled wood and plastic. It is an environmentally friendly choice for outdoor decking, as it uses both post-consumer and post-industrial waste.

It is durable and boasts excellent color retention and requires a simple, annual cleaning to remove mold and mildew build-up.

The two types of wood composite decking are solid wood decking and hollow wood decking. Solid wood decking emulates real lumber, but also expands and contracts more. Hollow wood decking, on the other hand, has a more engineered look, but also expands and contracts less.

The many, different brands of wood composite decking boast a nice variety of colors and textures. Many wood composite decking manufacturers also offer complete decking systems, which include rails, posts and balusters.

Benefits of Wood Composite Decking

The benefits of wood composite decking are myriad:

• -Will not rot or deteriorate
• -Has no toxic chemicals or preservatives (like arsenic and other heavy metals that have been found in certain pressure treated wood)
• -Resists heat and fading
• -Is easy to install
• -Is slip resistant when wet
• -Does not splinter (great for bare feet!)
• -Can capture the appearance of wood (has gained in popularity over the past few years because of the recent advances in aesthetics)
• -Can be installed using standard hand and power tools
• -Is durable – handles heavy foot traffic
• -Is environmentally responsible
• -Adds visual interest to any outdoor space
• -Is available in a wide array of colors and textures
• -Offers details such as hollow posts for the installation of outdoor lighting, security systems and audio systems
• -Can also be used for a wide variety of yard structures, such as hot tub surrounds and playground equipment
• Drawbacks of wood composite decking

Wood composite decking will weather, so the color of the decking will change slightly after a few months of installation. Because wood composite decking is weaker than wood, it may need additional joists and beams to support it. It may also warp easier than wood, and is prone to the growth of mold and mildew. Therefore, it is best to clean the decking once or twice a year to prevent any build-up of mold or mildew.

Wood composite decking is more expensive than standard, pretreated pinewood, but offers so many additional benefits that it is often worth the additional investment. Consider that with wood decking you will never need to replace rotting or splitting boards, and that you will never have to worry about decay, rot or insects damaging it. These factors are often what convince consumers to spend the extra money – which is often 20 to 30 percent more, although it can be as much as 50 percent more than standard lumber – for the quality features of wood composite decking.