What Makes Capped Composite Decking Different?
When considering what material to use for building your deck, like many homeowners, you may turn to composite decking as a durable, versatile option. While perusing the available options and features, you’ll come across a building material called capped composite decking. So what’s the difference between capped and uncapped composite boards, and should you build capped composite decks in Fishers, IN?
What Is Composite Decking?
Composite decking boards consist of a mixture of wood fiber and plastic, usually recycled materials from milk jugs, juice containers, and shampoo bottles. This combination of materials creates a strong, durable material that can withstand the elements and resists water damage, rot, and insect invasion. Homeowners can find composite decking in various styles, most mimicking the whorls and textures of natural wood grain.
What Is Capped Composite Decking?
Some models of composite boards come with protective capping made of a strong polymer material. This cap binds to the composite decking beneath in a process called co-extrusion. Capped composite boards can last over 10 years longer than the 20-year lifetime of uncapped composite boards, while wood decks may need repairs or full replacements within 15 years.
Chemicals included in this type of decking board’s cap consist of UV-resistant solutions, mold inhibitors, and antioxidants. Besides ensuring that your deck retains its color for years after installation, capped composite deck boards resist stains, bacteria, and mildew. All of these human-safe materials also protect the composite deck boards beneath, adding years of lifetime to your deck.
Benefits of Capped Composite Decking
Capped composite decking offers many benefits over uncapped composite boards or natural wood. From easy maintenance to the longevity of capped composite deck boards, learn about the many features of this decking material:
Higher Durability
Your deck must withstand heavy equipment and the constant foot traffic from multiple people, increasing the wear and tear on the decking boards. With regular wear and tear, natural wood decks need repairs or replacement sooner than other materials. Splintering, bowing, and soft spots not only make your deck’s appearance less appealing, but could result in serious injuries.
Low Maintenance
Capped composite deck boards require little maintenance, and definitely much less than a natural wood deck. Wood deck boards need repairs or replacement after years of use, or need sanding and resealing on a regular basis. Composite boards without an external cap will never need you to sand and reseal it, but you may have to replace the boards within two decades.
When you install a capped composite deck, you won’t need to worry about replacements or repairs for close to three decades. You also can depend on the material to keep mold or mildew growth from invading your boards and wreaking havoc. Maintaining capped composite decking takes little more than sweeping each day and using a hose or pressure washer to rinse down the deck.
Stain Resistance
Common food or drinks like wine, condiments, or greasy foods can leave harsh stains on natural wood decks, especially if not immediately wiped away. With capped composite deck boards, no matter how long the stain lay unseen, you can easily wipe it away. Since the deck’s innermost materials remained protected from the staining substances, no mark gets left behind.
Cleaning away stains provides a great opportunity to give your entire deck a quick cleaning. You can use a pressure washer to rinse away dust, grime, debris, and stain-causing substances with ease.
Four-Sided Protection
Composite board caps cover all four sides of each deck board, encapsulating them completely and preventing any possible moisture or mold from creeping in. This cap also maintains the same colors and patterns on all sides of the boards, including the bottom. Viewing the deck from below will provide visitors with a beautiful view free of water damage marks, unpainted boards, or mold and mildew development.
Choices for Every Budget
Capped composite boards come in various colors, grains, and textures that allow room for budgets of any size. Higher quality boards cost more, but provide a realistic wood appearance all the way around the board. For homeowners wishing to stretch their dollar as far as possible, a low-quality but still nice-looking board may end up as your best option.
Beautiful, Natural Appearance
When composite boards first appeared in the eighties and nineties, they didn’t have a realistic appearance. Today, composite boards come in various shades and styles that imitate the natural grain, whorls, and stripes seen in natural wood. You can choose board types that look like mahogany, walnut, or even ash tree lumber.
High Environmental Resistance
Natural wood often falls victim to bleaching from UV rays, bowing from dry conditions or excessive humidity, and splintering thanks to all of the above. Homeowners who opt for composite decking don’t worry about these problems, while capped composite boards carry an extra layer of resistance against the environment. Other common problems like wood-boring insects, rot, or mold also don’t stand a chance against the protection of capped composite boards.
Decades-Long or Lifetime Limited Warranties
Capped composite board manufacturers know that they have a superior product, so they provide long-term warranties against defective products. Some warranties extend for up to two or three decades, with others standing up for the entire lifetime of the product. As with any warranty, homeowners should carefully study up on the warranty of their preferred capped composite decking to ensure they understand and agree with the warranty.
Use Capped Composite Decking to Design Your Ideal Outdoor Space in Fishers, IN
When designing your ideal deck, you want an outdoor space that will survive for decades, providing years of enjoyment and entertainment. Your deck consists of a pricey investment, so get the best bang for your buck when you choose to install capped composite decking. This long-lasting material resists everything nature throws at it and more, making everything from daily maintenance to repairs easier than with natural wood decking.
Whether you’re considering building or expanding composite decking at your home, call Artisan Outdoor Craftsman in Fishers, IN, at (317) 813-9669.
