Thursday, March 3, 2011

Best Composite Decking



Best Composite Decking
DECK SPECIALISTS INC OF CONNECTICUT
we are often asked "what is the best composite decking?"
There are so many composite decking materials on the market, it is very difficult for the average homeowner to keep up, and chances are conflicting information is gathered from local lumberyard and big box suppliers. Really is it best to let the expert do the research and testing, who wants to invest thousands if not ten's of thousands in a large composite deck using the next big thing, or some brand new overhyped and very expensive composite that fails, or falls short well before anyone said you would be needing to replace. Even the companies that are standing behind their inferior products and offering replacement boards are not likely to pay for the labor to rebuild your once "dream deck".
some of the things often overlooked when comparing composites:
does the product have any history? has there been problems in the past? failures? recalls? has the product changed either partially or completely? some composites have dramatically changed their material several times. this comes into play when you need to match a board either to replace a damaged section or maybe to add on to your deck.

another consideration ,will the manufacturer be around long enough to honor and warrantee? so many companies have come and gone and changed hands. It is hard to find a composite decking company with a solid future you can trust your investment in.

We have been working with many of the composites, testing and building, taking notes when things go wrong or the companies collapses or are bought out. we have seen many promising products fall short of their claims.

For the longest history of a solid product, with no issues and constant look and availability we find Evergrain from Tamko to be one of, if not the best composite decking board. with all the original colors still available and a nice collection of new enhanced "vibrance" colors. we have been working with Evergrain for many years with zero call backs and a perfect history. We have built more Evergrain decks then all other composites combined.

We also hardily endorse Azek's decking board. although Azek has not been around as long, we have had no problems with Azek and cannot see and issues arising. Azek's original color pallet was drab and boring and probably the only fault you could find with the product, they now offer an expanded color pallet with something for everyone, including some simulated wood finishes.

both Evergrain and Azek are a good buy, they are not the very cheapest composite but highly outshine any cheaper product, and placed below most of the high end composites.

note: at this time many of the new generation of "capstock" composites are newer and untested, many of the bigger names like fiberon, correct deck, Timbertech and of course Trex offer capstock or coextruded decking boards, time will tell if the "finish" or cap will stay bonded to the composite core, or if this can become a problem. Another note on these products, they tend to be the most expensive decking boards in the marketplace.