Trex Decking vs. Wood

Do you need a new deck but want to know which material to choose?  Trex Decking vs. wood? I’ve got answers, but first I need to show you something.

My parents’ deck is in need of a major facelift.

They live in Seattle. You know, the place where it rains most of the year?

And they have had a wood deck for over 20 years.  That is 20+ years of wood living with hard rain, soft rain, drizzly rain, misty rain, layers of paint, layers of stain, layers of paint over stain, mismatching colors, moss, insects and rotted-out areas.

Trex Decking vs. Wood?

Wood is a great and inexpensive option for a deck, and a fraction of Trex, but it needs to be maintained.  Depending on where you live, like the Pacific Northwest, that can mean annually. Maintaining it means sanding and painting or staining and replacing broken, warped, or rotted pieces. It is about half the cost of doing a composite deck, but there is the cost and time of maintaining it.

Trex decking is the material of choice by my parents because of its low to no maintenance performance and is made of composite. Composite decking is not plastic.  It is a blend of plastic film and wood fibers. The plastic film that goes into composite decking can include polypropylene or polyethylene. Polypropylene is a very durable plastic that is resistant to fatigue and has good impact strength. These plastics are combined with wood fibers to create a strong, resilient material that is more stable than 100% plastic decking.

Trex has so many colors to choose from and the pricing varies depending on the look you like and the budget you have to build a deck.  They have a lot of options!  You can find planks that are stocked in-store for $20+, but you are limited on color choice. If possible, spend a little extra and get a more realistic color variation in your planks.

You can order sample pieces so I recommend doing that first to get the perfect fit for your home. Have a first and second choice and then check the availability of the color you want.  With shipping delays, you may find the color you really want is not available.  Wait until you see the color I chose. It is so pretty and so realistic!

Why did I build a deck?

True story.  When I heard that the contractors wanted between $20,000 and $25,000 to rebuild my parents 12′ x 14′ deck with Trex decking I spit out my coffee.

And since I didn’t want their retirement money to be wasted on paying someone a gross amount for their time and labor, I said I would fly up to do it for them.

Who better to help them than their DIYer daughter?

They jumped on that idea. Didn’t hesitate for one moment. (I love the confidence they have in me.)

So I started planning.  And you will never believe what it actually cost me to order the materials and do the work.

Here is where we started.

Keep in mind that this was just repainted by my mom last year! She has always done her best to try to keep it pretty, but it was just a sad space that they no longer wanted to hang out in and she hated the work it took to maintain it. She didn’t even want to really look at it because the thought of the work made her tired. The weather wears it down and it needs to be redone annually. In addition, they have HUGE trees all around their property and leaves get caught in the railings and the rain causes rot in the wood.

 

A deck should extend your living space and although this may not look that bad to you, it is. It is an unhappy space.And it made my parents unhappy.

So I came to the rescue, took time off work, and flew from Denver to Seattle for 11 days to do it for them. This deck was in for a major overhaul.

Project “Re-build A Deck” is underway!

 

Oh, it is going to be stunning!

Stay tuned to see the process and how it all turned out.  I will share exactly what I used, the actual cost, the problems I ran into, and tips to make your deck project a success!