Decks – Green Deck Designs and Green Deck Plans

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deck, decking, trex composite decking

We are doing some research into replacing an aging outdoor deck. The costs to repair it and repaint it are so high that it makes sense to simply recycle the old deck and replace the old redwood. One of the first decisions when redoing a deck is what type of material to use, real wood or a composite decking material. Both materials cost about the same, with composite material slightly more expensive.

Real Wood

Appearance – Beautiful look, if kept up.

Maintenance – Requires re-staining or sealing every 1 to 4 years.

Installation – More expensive thick tropical woods like Ipe require special saw blades, drilling, and deck screws to install.

Reliability – Many types of woods are very reliable and termite proof. Real wood is also best at preventing slipping.

Eco Friendliness – FSC certified woods are green and sustainable

photo credit: Velo Steve

Composite Decking Material (Timbertech, Trex, Evergrain, Fiberon etc)

Appearance - Not as nice as real wood, but improving.

Maintenance - Lower maintenance? Periodic washing to remove dirt, mold, mildew. Chemicals may be involved. May require some refinishing after many years.

Installation - Normal installation.

Reliability - Mold and mildew problems require maintenance and pressure washing. Splinters, fading, and scratching are still issues. Suntan lotion can stain it. Slipping issues when wet.

Eco Friendliness – Many are made with wood pulp and petroleum products such as plastic or vinyl. Some are made from wood mill waste and polyethylene (PE or HDPE) from recycled plastic products. TimberTech is 12% post-consumer recycled plastic. Fiberon has up to 74% recycled content and up to 10% reclaimed content on products. The problem area is that they are not very recyclable after it has been installed.

Cost – May cost more than real wood.

If you want to go with Composite, you should think about going all the way to Carefree building products, 100% recycled plastic lumber products that can be recycled themselves. There are also PVC or polyethylene plastic products that are better than Composites at resisting the elements.

Some localities require Class A fireproof materials, so that alone many limit your choices to a certain kind of decking.

The biggest issue is whether composite materials can maintain their ‘look’ for a long period of time, perhaps decades. One look at the Bob Villa forums indicates lots of composite problems. As the Sierra Club said: “These wood composite products may save our current generation some time, but may have a negative impact on future generations when they try to dispose of them.” Trex technical support told us to trash extra Trex pieces as they do not recycle them.

FSC certified Natural wood seems to be the best bet. IPE, Douglas Fir, California redwood, and Mahogany are good bets. Avoid pressure treated wood as it contains chemicals like chromated copper arsenate and cannot be recycled.

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Filed under: Conservation, Eco Friendly, Effort, Green, Hard, Home, Reduce, Shopping | Tags: Building Materials, Composite Wood, Deck, FSC certified, Ipe, Remodelling, Trex, Wood

3 Comments »

Posted on October 19th, 2009
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3 Responses to “Decks – Green Deck Designs and Green Deck Plans”

Steve Ryan Says:
October 21st, 2009 at 4:27 pm
I suspect that the “greenest” choice may depend on the climate where the deck will be installed. In the Sierra Nevada Foothills, much of the year is dry with intense sun. Redwood decks seem to need heavy work with chemicals and stains every year or two. At the same time, mildew on composites doesn’t seem to be much of an issue here.

I haven’t done the research to be sure, but it could be that real wood is greener in wet climates and composites win in dry ones.
Allen Yin Says:
August 2nd, 2010 at 11:20 pm
Another choice is bamboo outdoor decking or tile, it is also environmental friendly and green material. you can check it my homepage.
wire deck railing Says:
April 12th, 2011 at 2:25 am
Whatever type of material one chooses for his deck building project, it is important to make sure that the installation is reliable. Safety measures should also be considered such as wire deck railings. My store can help you achieve a safe outdoor space for you.