Plywood Decking
|Plywood Decking – Part of the means of building a deck is deciding which materials to use for the decking. Basically, you have two choices – wood or composite. In this article, I’ll share the pros and cons of each and every type to assist you choose the best one for the deck. The main difference between wood and composite decking may be the volume of maintenance required. Wood decking requires more upkeep than composite, but looks nicer. The companies who manufacture composite decking are doing their finest to create their product seem like real wood, but so far haven’t achieved it. I personally don’t even think they’ll ever be able to match the best thing about real wood. Because of the more time necessary to maintain wood decking, you first need must yourself if you have the more time forced to keep a wood deck sealed and searching good. If you DO have the time and they are willing to stand on your deck, great! Go with wood.
If, however, there isn’t more time or wouldn’t like to spend on sealing a wood deck a few times a year, composite might be the best choice. Even though wood decks require more upkeep, you will find there’s type of wood which you can use for decking which requires very little or no upkeep. That wood is cedar. I’ve actually laid wood decking and done absolutely NOTHING to it along it last a long time without any problems. Cedar is naturally resistant against rain, snow, and sunlight. It doesn’t warp or twist, and have very little tendency to test or cup.
The only drawback with cedar decking left unsealed is that is will turn gray with time. If you are against this look, it is possible to opt to seal it a few times a year. It may still “gray”, however it will need longer to take action. Actually ALL wood decks will turn gray with time, if you don’t apply sealer every several months, that is a lots of work. Composite decking, conversely, is virtually maintenance free. Once it’s laid down, it won’t change much even through extreme weather. Some composite deck colors will fade over a few years, though the fading is uniform, so that you won’t really notice it happening.
There are a few disadvantages to getting composite. First, composite decking is more expensive than wood. This may be a difficulty if you have budget constraints. If you element in the cost savings of not buying sealer for years, it might stabilize the cost increase somewhat. Another drawback to using composite decking may be the chance of the merchandise failing. Just like any man-made product, composite decking may be faulty. A few years ago, one major composite decking manufacturer released some defective material. This triggered many decks going bad which designed a class action lawsuit. Even with compensation given to consumers, many were bound to high replacement costs. This doesn’t mean every composite deck strategy is likely to have problems, it is just a reminder that it COULD happen.
Overall, wood or composite decks are great. You just need to decide from the gray deck, a wood deck that needs maintenance, or possibly a composite deck which requires no upkeep, but is more expensive and contains the potential to go awry.