Wood Deck Handrails
|Wood Deck Handrails – Part of the process of building a deck is deciding which materials to use for the decking. Basically, you’ve two choices – wood or composite. In this article, I’ll share the pros and cons of each one type that may help you select the right one for your deck. The main difference between wood and composite decking is the quantity of maintenance required. Wood decking requires more upkeep than composite, but looks nicer. The companies who manufacture composite decking do their very best to generate their product appear to be real wood, but to date haven’t achieved it. I personally do not think they’ll ever be capable to match the beauty of real wood. Because of the an extension cord needed to maintain wood decking, you need must yourself if you’ve the an extension cord necessary to keep a wood deck sealed and seeking good. If you DO have the time and are prepared to wait on the deck, great! Go with wood.
If, however, you don’t have an extension cord or wouldn’t like to spend on sealing a wood deck a couple of times a year, composite might be your best option. Even though wood decks require more upkeep, there is a form of wood 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 for many years with no problems. Cedar is naturally resistance against rain, snow, and sunlight. It doesn’t warp or twist, and also have very little tendency to check on or cup.
The only drawback with cedar decking left unsealed is the fact that is will turn gray with time. If you are against this look, you are able to choose to seal it a couple of times per year. It may still “gray”, nonetheless it is going to take longer to do so. Actually ALL wood decks will turn gray with time, unless you apply sealer every month or two, the industry lots of work. Composite decking, alternatively, is virtually maintenance free. Once it’s laid down, it will not change much even through extreme weather. Some composite deck colors will fade over a long period, however the fading is uniform, and that means you won’t really notice it happening.
There are some disadvantages to presenting composite. First, composite decking is more expensive than wood. This could be a challenge if you’ve budget constraints. If you aspect in the charge savings of not buying sealer for decades, it could normalize the charge increase somewhat. Another downside of using composite decking is the chance for the merchandise failing. Just like any man-made product, composite decking could be faulty. A few years ago, one major composite decking manufacturer put out some defective material. This resulted in many decks going bad which designed a class action lawsuit. Even with compensation provided to consumers, many were bound to high replacement costs. This doesn’t mean every composite deck product is likely to have problems, it’s just a reminder that it COULD happen.
Overall, wood or composite decks are good. You just need to decide from a gray deck, a wood deck that will need maintenance, or even a composite deck which requires no upkeep, but is more expensive and has the possibility to visit awry.