Composite Decking

[maglite]

Gday all

I am looking at attaching a deck to the back of our place and am interested in getting some different opinions/ suggestions.

I have noticed a product called MODWOOD, made from waste timber and recycled plastics,that appears to be pretty good.
The manfacturers claim that it is virtually maintenance free.
Has anyone seen this stuff laid and are there any things to watch out for?

How would it compare with natural timber?

Thanks
Steve

[bitingmidge]

How would it compare with natural timber?

It can't be compared.

Treat it as a different material, the only similarity is in the dimension of the section.

As a material it's probably OK (if you like that sort of thing), but you'll never convince anyone it's timber.

Cheers,

P

[maglite]

Gday Midge

I fully appreciate that it wont feel, look or taste like real timber.
Of more concern to me are any maintenance issues of which i should be aware if i was to use reeded jarrah: finish, splinters, weathering, rot etc. rather than whether i can live with a deck made from artificial timber.

Obviously, the artificial variety is claimed to be virtually maintenace free and i was interested to see wether anyone on the forum has used or seen it and wether it is all that it is cracked up to be.

Cheers
Steve

[craigb]

i was interested to see wether anyone on the forum has used or seen it .


Probably not.
After all this is a woodwork forum :rolleyes:

[journeyman Mick]

Steve,
I've only seen the stuff used on those home wrecking, sorry, renovation shows, which is no recomendation at all. It may prove to be an excellent alternative to timber, but I don't believe it's been around long enough to be proven in service. Show me a deck in it that's survived 10 years in the tropics and I might consider it.

Mick

[archio]

Hi Steve,

I would definately go and have a look at the product at a display. I was looking at this product for a low clearance deck, and taking one look at the stuff made me decide it was not what I was after.

It sounds good in theory - but to me, the stuff looks like and feels like plastic. It even marked like plastic at the display in Joondalup/Perth W.A ( they had some aluminium round tube chairs on the deck with no feet, left imprints )

Cheers

Paul

[maglite]

Many thanks to those who replied with some helpful advice.:)
We have decided to go with reeded jarrah.

Does anyone have any ideas/ opinions on a suitable finish that will hold up in a coastal enviroment?

Cheers
Steve

[nexusone]

I was at a function recently at a pub and they had a deck. After looking at the deck from some time I realised the decking timbers were made of some sort of plastic. However I am sure almost all of the patrons thought they were standing on wood. It was well laid, very straight and flat and looked good. Something I would certainly try. Not sure if it was modwood or something else, but it actually looked surprisingliy good for what it's worth. Steve.

[markharrison]

Steve,

The US has had composite decking for years. One brand that comes to mind is Trex (http://www.trex.com).

It seems to weather well and is relatively maintenance free. It also uses what would have otherwise have been timber and plastic waste. Trex does have a reputation for being a bit toasty on bare feet which here in Aus might not be an endearing attribute! Still, I have a deck to re-do and I am strongly considering using a similar material. I would be interested to hear what brands you looked at.

[maglite]

Gday Mark,
Many thanks for your post and web link.:)
In response to your question i found out about the product in a local newspaper insert and then i did a fair bit of Googling until i found a local supplier.
The web site was great and the product appears to be very similar to modwood.
Same product....different name.

I have yet to veiw the product in the flesh so to speak but from most accounts it does perform very well and it is very price competive with reeded jarrah...around a $6.00 per sqm.
To be honest i didnt even think about the "Toasty" issue but i would think that would be mostly irrelevant if it is covered by a patio, not unlike timber in certain places.
Whether it is the most ideal product for this side of the country remains to be seen so i think i lean toward the tried and tested product.
Having lived in Sydney where the weather can be a lot milder it may be just the product for you ....taking into account the apparent high cost of hardwoods over your way.

Cheers
Steve

[markharrison]

Thanks for the product name. I now have a lead to pursue on this.

There is one other advantage to this: Splinters, or the lack thereof. This is very appealing!

[KarenLip]

Hi,

Mister Ply & Wood does not supply Modwood decking anymore because customers complained of snapping. I suppose some people probably didn't pre-drill before nailing.

Cheers,

Karen

[KarenLip]

Hi Mark,

Is there a Trex supplier in Sydney?

Thanks.

Karen

[markharrison]

To the best of my knowledge there is no Australian supplier of Trex unfortunately. Oh well.

[khmask]

i am going to import the wood plastic composite to perth, i would like to ask for opinion which product would be best supply to Perth customer needs?
fencing? decking?

[Barry_White]

Maglite

After nearly 3 years of retirement I have gone back to work selling home additions for Spanline.

They have in their range the opportunity to install Modwood on their decks.

As I have never had any experience with it before, but I was told by the manager who is a builder that if we sell Modwood we would have to go and install it ourselves.

They maintain that it contracts and expands excessivly and will buckle as well over a period of time like all plastics it will become brittle. As well as that apparantly the recommened method of fixing is to fix it on the opposite side on each alternative joist which when the light hits it you receive this rippling effect in appearance. Hope this helps make a decision.

[julianx]

I have yet to veiw the product in the flesh so to speak but from most accounts it does perform very well and it is very price competive with reeded jarrah...around a $6.00 per sqm.

This sounds a bit cheap don't you mean per Lineal metre

[maglite]

This sounds a bit cheap don't you mean per Lineal metre

Thanks for pointing that out.
The jarrah cost me about $4.80 per lm.

[Chris Parks]

I have just laid a modwood deck and am very impressed to say the least. The company supplied the material in custom cut lengths and I had minimal waste which is a plus and it lays perfectly straight and even as being extruded it is dimensionally perfect. It does not bend or twist, and as far as I can tell doesn't move with temperature. It is comparable to hardwood in price and never needs any maintenance which was the reason I laid it. I would recommend it if you want to avoid ongoing maintenance but if you like work then use timber by all means. The only minus I can see is that the surface temperature on hot days is far higher than timber, I measured about 60 degrees with my infra red temp gun on our hottest day. Everyone who has seen it is very impressed with the finished result and so am I.

[Chris G]

Hi there,
Does anyone have a recent update on composite decking? We have looked up Trex an American product but it appears to not be in Australia. I would if I decided to use such a product rather it be Australian made. Modwood got a bit of a canning on this forum dated 2004. Does anyone know about WPC decking of anything similar brands? Their site reads up quite well but as you know the proof is in the pudding. I thought that there may have been an improvement with this sort of product as our local council has just announced that it it going to use a recycled wood /like product for walkways. I like the idea of using maybe a recycled product but would appreciate some feedback. Does it warp, shrink, splinter ( yes some did as quoted here) etc. Regards Chris

[ritewood]

Hi All

As far as I know there at least 3 wood plastic composites (WPC) decking product available Australia wide and a couple more in some states. In WA DS Agencies have Correctdeck from Canada, there is Modwood (Aus) and Marine & Allied have Ritewood.

Feedback I have is that Ritewood looks more like wood than any others, in fact I have seen the Ritewood which has had a sealer applied it looks just like wood without heavy grain feature.

Personaly I like the look and feel of timber, however quality timber for decking is becoming harder to find and in an outdoor situation the problems twist, warp, splinters and ongoing maintance makes it a bit unpractical.

Recomend you see and compare samples, also see instalation using these in an outdoor situation. I do see they all have warrenties but realy they have limited value, Nexwood WPC was offering 10-20 years warrentee but have now shut up shop so the warrentee is now worth jack.

[MikeT]

My brother in law used some plastic pretend weatherboards on their house. Not sure of the name but it sounds similar to the decking stuff. This would've been at least 10 years ago. Within a couple of years it was buckling and warping. After a bunch of years of small claims tribunal they got the them to refund (and remove) and he put up timber weatherboards. Perhaps the product is better these days but I'd want solid evidence before I went down that path.

[UteMad]

Check out the costing!!!!!
I can purchase iron bark for the same amount....
Try scratching the surface and you'll see it looks newer it will then take 6 - 12 months to fade again...
Hopefully this isn't the future cause it looks SH*t the only upside is the set lengths....
Half the composites are extruded with holes in the end grain which the suppliers have told us to cover with hardy plank
YEAH RIGHT!!! my customers have taste if there product is trying to take over its place should be firmly in the treated pine customers market....
Then maybe we would move it...

My 2 Cents

www.dialadeck.com.au (http://www.dialadeck.com.au)

utemad

[hardy07]

I have just laid a modwood deck and am very impressed to say the least. The company supplied the material in custom cut lengths and I had minimal waste which is a plus and it lays perfectly straight and even as being extruded it is dimensionally perfect. It does not bend or twist, and as far as I can tell doesn't move with temperature. It is comparable to hardwood in price and never needs any maintenance which was the reason I laid it. I would recommend it if you want to avoid ongoing maintenance but if you like work then use timber by all means. The only minus I can see is that the surface temperature on hot days is far higher than timber, I measured about 60 degrees with my infra red temp gun on our hottest day. Everyone who has seen it is very impressed with the finished result and so am I.

Hi Mini,
Since you have used Modwood Decking for at least 2 and 1/2 years now, can you please give us your feedback how you feel about Modwood decking product. I am thinking of using Modwood decking (Hollow 88x23) for our place in Melbourne. We liked the Modwood product very much but don't have enough confidence about the reliability of this product and couldn't find anyone for real feedback. So if you please give us some feedback then it will be highly appreciated. Thanks,

Hardy

[rod1949]

I've used Correctdeck. It's been laid for about 8mths and considering it has and is still taking a lot of builders traffic it still looks like new.

Each board is quite heavy. It was about $78 for 4.88m board so its not cheap. I went for the fixing between the boards onto steel framework.

[ldello]

Hi rod<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p>
Thanks for your feedback on Correctdeck. I'm also considering using this product instead of Jarrah. My application will be beneath a veranda, but as we'll be adjacent the beach, facing west, I expect it will receive a fair amount of afternoon sun. Can you tell me how the deck goes with temperature retention? I've read similar products can become quite hot.
<o:p></o:p>
Admittedly, the product is on the pricey side, but I suppose it's offset by the reduced maintenance.<o:p></o:p>

Lou

[rod1949]

Hi rodffice:office" /><O:p></O:p>
Thanks for your feedback on Correctdeck. I'm also considering using this product instead of Jarrah. My application will be beneath a veranda, but as we'll be adjacent the beach, facing west, I expect it will receive a fair amount of afternoon sun. Can you tell me how the deck goes with temperature retention? I've read similar products can become quite hot.
<O:p></O:p>
Admittedly, the product is on the pricey side, but I suppose it's offset by the reduced maintenance.<O:p></O:p>

Lou

Lou,

Our deck is the alfresco area which is under the main roof of the house. The deck gets the morning sun up until mid morning. To be honest I've never noticed its retention of heat so therefore I can only assume it dosen't. We've got temperatures over 30 all this week and weekend so I'll report back to you next Tuesday (I don't have a computer at home).

See ya

[BustedThumbs]

After seeing my Uncles composite deck, i can't understand why anyone would do it. Perhaps it's just his, but it was really scuffed from traffic/chairs/etc and looked like a plastic deck. He was boasting that it only took a few hours to install and is immune to the effects of the pool, but why wouldn't you put in pavers. I reckon that if you want a deck it's because you like the look and feel. I can't see that composite can come close to real decking.

Just my rant. To each his own.

[rod1949]

Lou,

Our deck is the alfresco area which is under the main roof of the house. The deck gets the morning sun up until mid morning. To be honest I've never noticed its retention of heat so therefore I can only assume it dosen't. We've got temperatures over 30 all this week and weekend so I'll report back to you next Tuesday (I don't have a computer at home).

See ya


Lou,
As promised, I placed a piece of Correct deck out in the sun over the last week/weekend with a thermometer along side it. The thermometer got up to 57 degrees (yes that’s right, its always hotter out in the direct sun than the weather mob’s temperature which they take in the shade). I was able to pick up the piece of Correct deck and hold it quite comfortably. It had heat in it but then so did the piece of hardwood (Duran) that I had along side. On a scale of 1-10 with 1 being cold I would place it at about 6.

[Andy Mac]

Another option that someone mentioned recently (we're in the process of planning a deck 12m x 3m) is concrete sheeting, which can then be polished apparently. In the right setting I guess it could look pretty schmick, but we're going for local sawn hardwood.

Cheers,

[kevin pickering]

:2tsup: hi folks ,this is my first time so be kind .

i have been reading your forum on this composite decking saga . i have recently relocated over here in perth from the u.k . i have myself being running a pvc stockists company back in u.k of which i have brought over to western australia . my background is experience with pvc products , one of which is a relatively new 100 % pure pvc decking . this is not to be compared with the composite deckings and problems associated with them . i have set up a company in the wangara area with the product on show in my showroom , unfortunately , my web site is not complete as yet ,but more information can be found on the home improvement web site under innovated solutions .

hope this as been of help to your all .

[Barry_White]

Hi Kevin

Welcome to the forums. Not wanting to rain on your parade but have you seen what the Australian sun does to even UV stablised PVC products. It eventually becomes brittle and breaks apart under any pressure.

[kevin pickering]

:doh: hi barry white

being from the u.k , a liitle bit of rain hurts no-one . as for the product , successfully sold around the world in tropical places such as africa , dubai , canada ,u.s.a etc etc , tests have been done and a product would not of been given a 20yr manufacturers guarantee if not up to standard .

but of course at the end of day , it's all about opinions . :2tsup:

[Barry_White]

As they say Kevin, time will tell.