Trex vs. Wood Decking?

[Homer Simpson]

We're having a deck built and I was wondering if any fellow budget boarders have any opinions about trex decking?

I know its much more expensive than wood, but is it worth it?

Thanks!

 

[CTdiznymom]

We're having a deck built and I was wondering if any fellow budget boarders have any opinions about trex decking?

I know its much more expensive than wood, but is it worth it?

Thanks!

I frequent the HGTV boards, and there have been comments about wood vs composite decking. Some say that the composite material stains if debris is left on it like wet leaves. Also that it mildews. I don't have either so I can't comment from experience.

 

[CrzyforPiglet]

If we could have afforded it I would have loved a Trex deck but to be honest I don't know that much about them. Now on our new less than a year old wood deck we're still going to have to go through the process of cleaning it and then sealing it which I already think is going to be a big pain. Also with wood you have to worry about pests like carpenter ants getting in there. I guess I'd talk to someone about the maintenance of each and then see if that helps you decide which is worth it.

 

[BlakeNJ]

We just priced a deck with Trex. I asked around to my neighbors and they all say, "If they could do it again, they'd get composite". I asked another neighbor about maintainence with Trex and she mentioned having to shovel snow off. I did notice what I thought was mold on her deck but I asked a contractor and he told me the newest version of Trex has been improved but even so, mold can be washed off easliy.

I watched my next door neighbor stain and seal her wood deck last summer and that was enough to comvince me!
Good luck!

 

[MPLsDad]

I went from wood to Trex - would never even think of wood again - trex is virtually non-maintenance. Stains only happen if you blatantly neglect it. MY neighbor reinstalled his deck with wood the year before we did ours in trex. His whole family comments on how smooth our deck is while they can't even walk on theirs without shoes. For the extra money, we have no maintenance and will enjoy our deck for years to come. Our contractor didn't want to work with trex since it's a little more expensive and if they make the wrong cut...But we insisted and are pleased to this day.

 

[soccerchick]

Loved, loved, loved my trex deck on my old house! There are more color choices and even better maintenance. Yes, you do need to sweep of leaves in the fall ,etc. but it was great with kids - no stumped toes, no splinters, just walk all over that bad boy with bare feet.

Our new house has a brick and flagstone patio - the flagstone is fine, but sometimes when I hit the brick I long for my old trex.

 

[Homer Simpson]

For those of you that have trex... does it get hot in the summertime? I've heard that its not so great on kids feet.

 

[Liltx]

Yes, the composite gets VERY hot in the sun. But ours is only in the sun midday which is when we are inside anyway.

There are many different composites. We used Evergrain which is cheaper than Trex but the same composition. It cost about 30% more than redwood but is sooooo worth it. There is no maintance besides shooting it with a power washer if it gets dirty. Mildew will be a much bigger problem with real wood. It does fade about 20% during the first 90 days but then stays the same. We have the redwood color and the stainless color pickets. You need to make sure they install it right. If they don't know how to screw it in correctly they can ruin all of the pieces.

Monica

 

[DVC-LEROY]

We bought our composite from Lowes for around our pool- it's the light gray - which doesn't look so light gray in the store - almost has a brownish cast- then fades nicely to a weathered light gray in a short time. My inlaws have Trex in dark gray. Ours does get hot although not much hotter than our wood deck- but theirs - in the dark color - gets even hotter. A quick powerwash and its good to go. Make sure you get the special screws that sink in and are covered by the drilled material with a quick tap of a hammer. My DS had no trouble installing it. Well worth it in the long run.

 

[nskjerven]

We put in a trex deck at our rental house years ago (5 or more) and have had no problems with it. Wish it was the first deck installed and not the replacement, could have saved money in the long run.....

 

[luv2nascar]

Oh I want a trex deck bad. We are looking into the costs of those but it isn't in the budget this year. Bills to pay off.

 

[HeatherC]

We did a composite deck a couple years ago. Instead of Trex we went with Timbertech. Just liked the look better.

Yes, it was expensive, but I would never go back to regular pressure treated again. No splinter, no sanding or painting. Just a quick power wash in the spring and we are good to go.

I think if you can swing the money, you would not be disappointed.

HeatherC

PS. The other thing we found was that the railing systems are outrageous for composite. You could always just do the flooring in the composite and then upgrade the railing over time if money is a concern.

 

[Homer Simpson]

Thanks for the tips, everyone!

It looks like the extra money is worth it for the trex... I'm glad I asked... thank you again!

 

[Kickapoo Joie Juice]

My inlaws had trex put in a few years ago, and the deck itself is fine but the railings are sagging something awful!

Now, I'm not sure that this isn't because of a bad installation, but they had to pull the composite railings out and put in wooden railings, and it looks sort of Frankensteiny with the composite deck and wood railings-sort of like when you mix travertine with ceramic-just doesn't seem to match well at all.

 

[jas_mom1]

We put in a Trex deck about 6 years ago. Then even expanded it! We bought the Trex that looks brown but weathers to a light grey. It does get hot when directly in the sun but we just wet it down a bit, if necessary. It's practically maintenance-free. It cleans up very easily and is easy to shovel off. We did use pressure treated wood for the railings with Trex at the top of the railing. (It doesn't look weird! But the wood does not hold up as well as the Trex.)

We also built an outdoor sink on our deck and my husband used the extra Trex pieces to make a counter-top around the sink.

Dianne

 

[amshowers]

We put a huge composite deck around our pool 2 summers ago, and love it. It is more expensive , but so worth it. We have a wood deck off back of the house thats eights years old and we primed and stained twice. I would rather have a beautiful maitenence free deck, than have to paint every 2 years. We will probably replace that deck with composite next year. Go for it, it's so worth the investment, you won't regret it.

 

[dimimi]

We have a trex deck and we love it. It is easy to clean, splinter free and worth every penny. Now there are many different kinds to choose from. We live in southern Ohio and even when it is in the 90's, it does not get hot. Our neighbors who had wood are all switching to trex or trex-like products.

 

[melag]

We love our composite - It's the Lowe's version of trex (can't remember the name). Best thing we ever bought - babies can't get splinters and my dh gets rid of any mildew with the power washer. My parents have a wood deck and are replacing it with composite.

 

[wld]

In terms of getting hot....my wood deck is on the west and in the afternoons in the summer it is too hot to walk on in bare feet....wish they had composite back then around here because after about 18 years we really need a new deck!!

 

[stemikger]

I put my wood deck up 13 years ago and I wish I had trex. I have to pay someone to power wash it and stain it every two years. If I had trex I could just power wash it myself.

My next deck will be trex. In the long run you save money. I pay $700 every two years to have it cleaned and stained.