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composite decking advice needed

Hello,

I've been asked by a customer to quote to remove some old decking leaving the frame and re installing composite decking as the current decking isnt on a fall its level so floods also it gets pretty slippy green due to a lack of light. so customer thinks you can get composite decking which is anti slip, what worries me is he has furniture on the decking so i dont want the composite decking getting scratched easily. any advice please

thanks,

mitch

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  • Look up Hahn Plastics and ask for Sally. I did a decking job with their plastic "boards" and the client is delighted. The decking is indeed non-slip and it isn't easy to scratch. Mention my name if you like, I am welcome at least for the moment.

    • PRO

      I second this, just met them at the Futurescape Event and looked at their deck boards.  They look they aren't easy to scratch compared to composite decking that has wood fibres in. 

      Also, worth mentioned that Millboard do a deck board with extra grip- often used in commercial settings. It is called Lasta grip - it is a premium product so it can be quite costly. 

  • Hi Mitch,

    Give CORE Products a call, new anti slip WPC decking looks fantastic and is anti slip. Nice and hard wearing too, so furniture on top shouldn't be a problem! 

  • Trex is good I've used it on a few projects, it doesn't fade, scratch or get slippery in the wet, plus it doesn't look like plastic like many of the cheaper brands do. Beware of the hollow boards as they are rubbish.
  • If you install new composite decking on the old frame it will simply puddle in the same places as before as the frame has been incorrectly installed. Also composite generally needs 400mm joist spacing which is unlikely to be the case with a badly installed existing frame. Tell the client you need to rip out the entire bad job and install the new decking properly. 

    What type of composite you use is entirely up to you (and the client). I almost exclusively use EcoDek. 100% recycled, anti -slip, maintenance free and guaranteed for years. It has the added benefit of looking like plastic decking (but in a good way) and not looking like some of the awful faux offerings on the market. It's not cheap to buy or install but in this case you definitely get what you pay for. Plus it is a solid product inlike some of the lightweight alternatives which I've found to be unstable in varying moisture and sunlight situatuions.

    Ecodeck is far from cheap and their customer relations could do with an overhaul but despite this in general and especially in this case you most definitely get what you pay for.

    To be perfectly honest I've now stopped specifying softwood decking entirely as it is guaranteed to generate customer complaints and the hassle just isn't worth it. My theory is that as decking has become more popular and more producers are supplying similar products then product choice becomes based on price.. In order to compete on price then quality is inevitably going to suffer. If a client absolutely insists on softwood decking then I make it clear that my usual five year guarantee no longer applies and we will not be coming back to fix any splits, warps, cracks or rotten exposed heartwood. The same principle applies to composite - using the cheap stuff is just not worth the hassle and will cost you money in the long run.

    Aplogies for the rant but this is all based on bitter experience.

    • my thoughts exactly john. also whats the point on spending all the money on the composite and not replacing the frame even if it is correct. its lifespan will be reduced since its been in place a while. seems a very false economy

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