composite decking Archives - Decks, Decks, and More Decks

Now Is the Time to Buy a Low-Maintenance Deck

You’ve wanted a deck for a long time, but something is holding you back.

You’ve been following the price of lumber throughout the pandemic and it isn’t looking pretty. It’s gone up and up and up some more. If you were forced to buy a wood deck now, it would have you biting your fingernails.

We have good news for you. The cost of composite decks has not matched the spike in cost compared to all-wood decks. In fact, now is the perfect time to invest in a low-maintenance deck that will last for decades.

Low-Maintenance Decks Aren’t Affected by the Price of Lumber

We build most of our decks with a composite material that’s part synthetic and part recycled wood. They’re beautiful, they’ll outlast your neighbor’s cedar porch, and they won’t give you splinters.

The boards don’t split or warp, and their price has stayed stable rather than soaring into the stratosphere like wood decks.

Environmentally Friendly Decks

Even more, composite decking is the most environmentally friendly option on the market. The wooden component doesn’t require cutting any new trees, and the synthetic part is recycled, too. Unlike wood, composite materials don’t require staining or chemical treatment, so there’s no risk of contaminating the environment.

Of course, if you really must have lumber as part of your deck plan, you can always mix and match. We’ve built hundreds of lovely mixed decks–you can find our favorites here.

Beautiful Decks to Last a Lifetime

If you want our opinion, composite decks look so good that most people never notice the difference. And you won’t have to worry about screws and splinters snagging on your socks. In fact, you won’t have to worry at all. We call our decks low-maintenance for a reason. Many composite decks will last as many as 50 years.

Your grandkids will thank you.

So why wait? Contact us today, and together, we’ll develop a deck plan that’s right for you.

Now is a Great Time to Invest in Your Home with a Custom Deck

Since the beginning of 2020, people have been spending a lot of time at home. The entire pandemic experience has transitioned many Americans into permanent or at least partial work from home employees. More time at home and little ability to travel comfortably has led a lot of homeowners to put more resources into their homes. They’re making it a more comfortable place to relax and entertain while adding value at the same time. One of the most popular investments among Omaha area homeowners is a custom deck upgrade.

Types of Custom Decks

The two most common types of decks are wood and composite. The type of material you choose will directly affect the durability, maintenance requirements, and budget needed to build it.

Wood Decks

There used to be a time when redwood and cedar were your only options for building a week deck. Today, you have more choices with pressure-treated wood. A lot of people like natural wood because it’s durable and looks great. The downside is that it requires the most maintenance. You need to put a lot of time into cleaning and re-sealing it.

Pressure-treated wood is the most affordable, but a lot of people are wary of the toxic chemicals used to treat it. Redwood and cedar are beautiful options that are bug-resistant, but they’re softwoods and are easily damaged.

Composite Decks

Composite decking is a popular alternative to natural wood. It’s made from a blend of wood fibers and plastics. The composition makes it resistant to rotting and wear while closely resembling the look of natural wood. Most can’t notice the difference in appearance.

Composite decks come with nearly unlimited color and texture options. You can choose the color you want and never have to worry about painting, staining, or re-sealing it for the remainder of its life. The day-to-day and yearly maintenance is minimal.

Composite deck installations leave a clean and seamless look upon completion. Wood decks leave the hardware holding the boards together visible. The clips, deck screws, and fasteners are all hidden with composite decks.

Different Styles of Decks

Wraparound
This is a traditional style of deck and is often called a wraparound porch. Unlike a porch, though, your deck can have varying shapes and levels. The benefit of this style deck is that it gives you plenty of usable outdoor space and is easily accessed from more than one entry point in your home.

Multi-Tier
If your property has hills or isn’t perfectly level, then you have the perfect setup for a multi-tier deck. You’ll build one level that’s attached to your house and level with your exterior doors.
Then there are steps that lead up or down to another flat deck area. You could have multiple levels of different sizes to suit different uses.

Attached
An attached deck is one that’s built directly off of your home. You’ll be able to open the exterior door of your home and step directly onto your deck. They’re typically a square, rectangle, L, or U shape.

Detached
If you have a large backyard, you could build a deck that’s detached from your home. This is a floating deck level that’s accessed by a path or walkway. These decks are perfect for creating usable areas on your property that have poor drainage.

Omaha Custom Deck Builders

Want to find out more about how you can invest in your home with a custom deck? Give us a call today and schedule your deck build. If you’re not sure what you want, come by our showroom and see what we can offer in person. One of our deck-building experts can walk you through all your options and give you a free quote.

Why Avoid Hardwood Decking?

If you’re thinking about building a custom deck in Omaha, you’re going to be faced with a choice – hardwood decking or composite decking? In the past, hardwood decking materials were the only option, and they did a good job when properly maintained. But today’s technology has given deck buyers an alternative with composite decking, and with continual innovation over the years, it’s now far surpassed the benefits of hardwood decking in all categories.

Hardwood Vs. Composite Decking

Many homeowners choose hardwood decking because it sounds familiar and is easy to find. What they’re not aware of is the wood decking problems like splinters, staining, rot issues, hours of maintenance, and high cost. Homeowners who are not familiar with composite decking and all of the innovations it’s undergone since it first emerged over 30 years ago are afraid composite decking will not look as nice as wood. Let’s take an in-depth look and see how today’s composite decking compares to wood decking.

How do they Look?

It’s true that early-generation composite decking looked artificial and plastic-like. But today’s composites are nearly indistinguishable from wood decks, and many argue much more beautiful. They have grain patterns, so no two boards are alike. They can mimic any hardwood on the market in appearance and do a lot more when it comes to getting the exact pattern, color, and finish.

Moisture Factor

One of the biggest problems with natural hardwood decking is that boards absorb water. Without frequent applications of stains, sealers, or paint, wood decking will warp, splinter, crack, and rot. Composite decking, on the other hand, is fully moisture-resistant, eliminating the need for repeated sealing applications and can be installed in high moisture conditions with no issues.

Maintenance

To extend the life of a wood deck, homeowners are tasked with regularly painting and staining to keep the deck sealed from moisture, as noted above. It’s a battle that continues for the lifespan of the entire deck. A composite deck only requires sweeping and an occasional wash to keep the boards looking new.

Insect Damage

Insects love natural hardwoods. Termites and other wood loving insects can do a number on a natural hardwood deck and render it unusable or fill it with unsightly holes in little time. Composite decks are insect-proof – you’ll never have insect damage with a composite deck.

Final Breakdown

Appearance – Hardwood timber fades over time. Composite has the beauty of natural wood with high-performance durability.
Moisture – Hardwood doesn’t hold up well with water lots of water contact. Composite can be installed with water contact and is moisture-proof.
Maintenance – Hardwood requires 16-32 hours of cleaning, painting, and staining per year. Composite requires 2-4 hours per year.
Durability – Hardwood decking is susceptible to rot, splintering, warping, and termite damage. Composite resists rot, warping, splintering, and termite damage.
Price – Hardwood decks have a lower initial cost, but it varies depending on wood species. Composite has a higher upfront cost, but a much longer lifetime.

Go Green with Trex Decking

The Trex brand name is a recognized leader among custom deck builders. What a lot of people don’t know is that Trex offers eco-friendly decking that’s made of 95% recycled products. After building custom decks in Omaha for 40 years, we’ve seen a lot of innovations in the deck materials industry, and we’re not surprised Trex is leading the pack with their green decking lineup. Trex offers consumers a truly environmentally responsible choice with their decks. Let’s take a closer look at why these decks are considered green.

Why a Trex Composite Deck is Considered Green

It’s all in the ingredients. A Trex composite deck is made of locally sourced reclaimed wood and recycled plastic. The wood used in Trex decking would otherwise end up in a landfill if it didn’t become a Trex high-performance composite deck. The plastic is sourced from some of the most common plastic waste like sandwich bags, dry cleaner bags, and grocery shopping bags. The average 500 square foot composite Trex deck contains 140,000 recycled plastic bags! Trex is one of the largest plastic bag recyclers in the United States.

Trex Recycling Facts

In comparison with pressure-treated lumber over a 25-year period, the positive environmental impact of Trex decking is amazing.

36% Fewer Greenhouse Emissions
47% Fewer Toxic Air Pollutants
84% Less Acidification
80% Less Water Contamination
53% Less Smog
93% Less Ecological Toxicity

The Trex Sustainable Supply Chain

Trex takes an active role to ensure its supply vendors operate with ethical and responsible business practices. 95% of Trex suppliers are U.S. based. Trex conducts supply chain assessments, including in-person reviews, operating facility tours, and works with suppliers to reduce the environmental impact across the supply chain.

The Trex Production Process

The Trex manufacturing process is just as green as its final product. Their processing method eliminates the use of smoke stacks. Nearly 100% of factory runoff and refuse is recycled back into the manufacturing line. Here’s an overview of the process of creating a Trex deck.

Sawdust and plastic film are purchased
Plastic film is cleaned and ground into granules
Plastic film and sawdust are combined and heated
Mixture is mixed to a soft, pliable consistency
Mixture is formed into boards using profile dies
Boards are cooled and cut to length
Boards are inspected by quality control for defects, strengths, and color accuracy
Finished boards are wrapped and shipped

Trex has never cut a single tree in the making of their high-performance composite decking!

Ready to Go Green in 2020?

If you’ve been thinking about a custom deck for your home in 2020, you can’t go wrong with Trex. Not only are they leading the composite deck industry in sustainability, but they also make some of the most high-quality, long-lasting composite decking materials on the market. The customization from color, texture, and board size ensures you get a truly one of a kind deck that will last for years – if not decades.

Deckorators Composite Decking

Go beyond ordinary with Deckorators composite decking. Deckorators is one of the composite decking industry leaders. They offer a high-quality product and a vast line of colors and styles for your custom deck. After all the years we’ve spent deck building in Omaha and surrounding areas the Deckorators brand as emerged as one of our most recommended. Let’s take a look at the different types of low maintenance composite decking they offer and find out which one is right for your home.

Voyage Decking

Deckorators is known for its water and ground friendly decks. Voyage decking can be installed in or in contact with the ground or water. The deck absorbs no moisture. It will not splinter, sag, chalk, or crack. It’s finished with a stain and fade-resistant cap stock. Deckorators Voyage Decking features vertical grain deck boards that are designed with textured embossing for enhanced traction. Get your Voyage Decking in one of four beautiful finishes:

Costa
Mesa
Sierra
Tundra

Vault Decking

Deckorators’ Vault family is made with patented Eovations technology, which provides the industry’s best strength-to-weight ratio. This technology allows the decking to have virtually no thermal expansion or contraction. It makes for a powerful and stable deck that absorbs no moisture. The Deckorators Vault Deck is similar to the Voyage Decking, but without the enhanced traction. It’s still a great deck that can be installed on ground or water surfaces. Colors for the Vault Decking lineup include:

Dusk
Mesquite
Hickory

Frontier Decking

The Frontier family is a non-variegated deck board for those looking for a more traditional look for their outdoor living space. Like Voyage and Vault, Frontier is also made with Eovation technology providing superior strength to weight ratio and is rated for water and ground surfaces. The lightweight boards are easy to handle and make a great option around pools, spas, or decks. They never splinter, sag, chalk, or crack so you never need to worry about walking around with bare feet. Color chooses for the Deckorators Frontier family include:

Summit
Woodland
Prairie

Heritage & Vista Decking

The most popular lines within Deckorators are Heritage and Vista. These lines include the top-selling colors of:

Ironwood
Smokehouse
Riverhouse
Ciderhouse

Ready for Your Deckorators Low Maintenance Deck?

You can’t go wrong with a Deckorators custom deck. Deckorators offers a few more families of decks not covered in this article. They also provide premium deck railing that comes in a wide variety of styles and colors. If you have questions, give us a call. If you want to see what Deckorators decks look like in person stop by our showroom. We’d love to help you see what is possible with a custom-built low maintenance deck.