Decking Material Options

A cedar wonderland we just finished building!

Cedar

Cedar has been our go-to choice for decking. It’s natural tannins and oils make it resist rot and insects. On top of that, it’s beautiful! and ages well. As with all woods, the sun fades the color of the wood over time. When weathered, cedar turns a soft gray. To prevent this, a semi-transparent stain can be applied and regular maintenance to keep it looking great.

White Oak

Black Locust

Local Woods

Black Locust and White Oak are good local options for decking. Both are super strong woods and both are listed as being nearly as rot resistant as red cedar's by the USDA's Forest Products Lab. Black Locust is said to be a good local option over the tropical hardwood, Ipe. These woods both weather to a dark gray.  They are great sustainable alternatives but have a few drawbacks. Both are less readily available than cedar and cost a bit more.  

Pressure Treated Lumber

PTL is the least expensive and  most commonly used wood for decking. Preservatives and chemicals are forced into the wood at high pressure to make the wood insect and fungal resistant. In the past, PTL was infused with a chemical which was later found to be a carcinogen. Today’s wood is treated with less toxic chemicals. Like most cheap options, PTL has it’s drawbacks. It is prone to splitting and warping. Routine maintenance, including annual power washing and an application of stain every few years, will prolong the life of the wood.  

Composite

Composite is made by combining recycled plastic and wood fibers. These boards will never splinter, warp or rot thus they are extremely low-maintenance compared to wood. They won’t ever need to be sanded, refinished or stained. They do require some maintenance though because they are prone to grow mold and mildew in dark, damp areas. A good scrubbing every now and then can help prevent this. All these perks do come with a price though. They are the most expensive of the options listed so far.

I can’t leave out tropical hardwoods as an option, though we do not recommend these. Ipe is a very common deck material because it is super strong and durable. It is also very expensive and requires special tools to even work with it because it is so hard. It is a beautiful wood, but it has to be imported all the way from tropical regions which is something we do not support. According to Greenpeace, “Between 60 and 80 percent of all logging in the Brazilian Amazon is estimated to be illegal. Of the timber that is cut, as much as 70 percent is wasted at mills”. We strive to make conscious buying choices and we hope you will too.