Concrete Vs Wood Deck
|Concrete Vs Wood Deck – Part of the process of developing a deck is deciding which materials to use for the decking. Basically, you’ve got two choices – wood or composite. In this article, I’ll share the pros and cons of every type that may help you select the right 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 very best to create their product look like real wood, but to date haven’t achieved it. I personally don’t think they’ll ever be in a position to match the best thing about real wood. Because of the additional time necessary to maintain wood decking, first you need must yourself if you’ve got the additional time needed to keep a wood deck sealed and searching good. If you DO have enough time and so are prepared to wait on your own deck, great! Go with wood.
If, however, you do not have additional time or shouldn’t commit to sealing a wood deck a few times a year, composite could be your best option. Even though wood decks require more upkeep, there is a type of wood you can use for decking which requires hardly any 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 to rain, snow, and sunlight. It doesn’t warp or twist, and possess hardly any tendency to test or cup.
The only drawback with cedar decking left unsealed is that is will turn gray after a while. If you are in opposition to this look, it is possible to decide to seal it a few times per year. It may still “gray”, but it will take longer to take action. Actually ALL wood decks will turn gray after a while, if you do not apply sealer every month or two, the lots of work. Composite decking, however, is virtually maintenance free. Once it’s laid down, it’s not going to change much even through extreme weather. Some composite deck colors will fade over many years, however the fading is uniform, and that means you won’t really notice it happening.
There are several disadvantages to using composite. First, composite decking is more expensive than wood. This may be a challenge if you’ve got budget constraints. If you factor in the charge savings of not buying sealer for decades, it may balance out the charge increase somewhat. Another problem with using composite decking may be the chance of the product or service failing. Just like any man-made product, composite decking may be faulty. A few years ago, one major composite decking manufacturer put out some defective material. This led to many decks going bad which created a class action lawsuit. Even with compensation presented to consumers, many were saddled with high replacement costs. This doesn’t mean every composite deck method is gonna have problems, it’s just a reminder that it COULD happen.
Overall, wood or composite decks are good. You just need to decide from your gray deck, a wood deck that will need maintenance, or a composite deck which requires no upkeep, but is more expensive and contains the potential to visit awry.