Procell has no wood fillers and says it is not suseptible to the mold problems that I have read about Trex. It comes with a lifetime warranty and shows very extensive comparisons on its website against Trex for stains, durability and splitting. But, I am not sure I like the look of it. Timbertech looks more appealing... has a 25 yr warranty and says it resists heating and fading. With both I am concerned about the fading difference between the covered part and the uncovered part, I know there will be some difference with any product. I am concerned about the hot tub and any staining that may occur from water spots, etc. I have also read about the sealing debate, there is nothing on either website about sealing- only cleaning. My contractor says he has no idea of what I am talking about! Any info there? Do all composites have to be sealed and why? He also says Evergrain is a good product, any info about that.

Lastly, this is an expensive project for my husband and I and I don't want to have any regrets. Please give it to me honest. I have my heart set on the lowest maintenance possible, my husband travels and it is difficult for him to take time off for large home projects, like staining.

Thank you!
Lisa

Procell is made entirely out of PVC and should stand up the elements for a long time. After all, vinyl siding is PVC. I have a WHITE railing from Certainteed that is made of PVC and it looks great after 8 years. Just as vinyl siding fades, so will procell but I would'nt expect procell to fade to much since it only comes in very light colors (just like vinyl siding). I believe it is made in these light colors for a reason - so fading between sunny and shaded portions wont be too noticable. The downside is that Procell cetainly does not look like wood. It, of course, has the color of vinyl siding. If the vinyl-siding color of Procell does not bother you (it works with your house & backyard) then I would say it is a excellent choice. It's expensive though. I would not worry about water spots from a hot tub on Procell any more than I would worry about water spots on the vinyl siding of your house. However, I imagine that PVC could be stained by the accidental spilling of full-strength hot-tub chemicals.

We screwed it down and it went down very fast and is very lightweight as well. No predrilling required. Builder also covered two 12ft benches that are attached to the deck.

I expect it to last as long as I do but look alot better than me.

Mark in NH

Having had some direct experience with Trex on other people's decks (a dozen decks over 8 years), there was originally no question that I was going to use it when it came to the new deck on my house. All those other decks still look great with minimal maintenance (brush on cleaner with push broom, very light power wash rinse every two years).

However, a number of web searches and comments here made me doubt my plan. What I found is a lot of anecdotal stories about Trex failures. There were very few specifics and there was no gauge as to how wide-spread the reported problems actually were/are. As such, I cannot justify ignoring personal experience. I would gladly take any verified data (number of failures, location of failures) into consideration, but no one seems to have such information.

I just visited a fairly large, family owned lumberyard / hardware store - it's been there forever and is doing exceptional business even against the Home Depot that moved in across the street some years ago. It would not be an exaggeration to say that they sell hundreds of thousands (millions?) of linear feet of composite decking each year. They sell Trex, ProCell, EverGrain, TimberTech, and Eon. They are also known to pull products that are reported by contractors and owners to have issues.

I spoke at length with one of the guys that has been there a long time. He said the number of Trex failures (mold or structural) the lumberyard had been made aware of was "less than a handful" and none in at least five years. He did say that since Trex is fairly porous, I might want to consider sealing it so that it doesn't get stained by grease and the like (which is what I planned to do anyway).

No one can predict what is going to happen in the future. All I can do is make the best choice given the data available to me. If I do that, I can never fault myself for any past decision. Right now, I need a material that is splinter free, low maintenence, and is wife-approved for looks. Unless some other data comes up soon, that material is going to be Trex.

- Tony

I am in the process right now of having to seal an eight month old Trex deck with which the customer is extremely unhappy. No rhetoric or anecdotal evidence here, just what I see out in the field every day. It sounds like you have your mind made up and I respect that but Trex would be the LAST thing I would use for decking.

You've obviously see a lot more Trex than I do, but your experiences are the exact opposite of what I've seen. What's really strange is that we are in the same area - half the decks I've seen are just North of you and the other half, just South. I had some expectation of geography being part of the difference in observations.

Trex was also sued in class action law suit filed in New Jersey (and lost)

Settling and losing are two vastly different things. It is really no surprise that TWP settled. Based on board-feet, they are the market leader in composite decks (representing about 80% of all non-wood material). It is a rapidly expanding market with many new competitors; their brand name is CRITICAL to maintaining market share. The more their name is in the papers associated with a lawsuit, even if they are in the right, the harder it is for them to sell.

It is pretty simple economics:

To settle, it cost TWP $40,000 ($10,000 to each of the original suit homeowners) + 1.75 mil (to class action lawyer - it is any wonder these guys love to bring class actions against anything that moves?) + cost of company lawyer + a promise to replace any deck of a class member which TWP determines to have failed. This last item makes me think the class wasn't that large.

Now, they could have fought the class action (cost of company lawyer) and have their market share drop due to on-going bad publicity. In 2005, each percentage drop would represent about $3 million in revenue. A 5 - 10% drop would be on the low side of what could be expected due to the outstanding lawsuit. Even if the case took only a year and they "win", it would cost them at least 5 to 10 times MORE than it did to settle. This doesn't even take into account the ongoing losses associated with the lessened market share.

sued by investors in 2005, and accused of stock fraud.

Any time a company has a big run-up followed by a similar fall, you get these same accusations from securities "ambulance chasers". Some would have you believe that there was insider trading, which is ridiculous since the trades in question were all planned sales. Simply looking at a insider transactional report will show this.

I am writing all this not to defend Trex nor to justify my decision as it stands now, but to explain why I am currently not placing much weight in the statement that they have a bad product because of the class actions suits they've been involved in. Two facts that would make me re-evaluate this position would be the number of members in the class actions and the number of decks that have been replaced under the settlement.

I am in the process right now of having to seal an eight month old Trex deck with which the customer is extremely unhappy. No rhetoric or anecdotal evidence here, just what I see out in the field every day. It sounds like you have your mind made up and I respect that but Trex would be the LAST thing I would use for decking.

And there's the rub... name ANY composite decking product and I can find customers that have complained about it in nearly the same way that people have about Trex. I've seen complaints about TimberTech, Eon, and EverGrain. The problem is that Trex has at least ten times the installed base of any of these products, thus there are more people complaining about them.

As I mentioned earlier, I am looking for a splinter-free, low maintenance deck. PT, cedar, and Ipe have exactly 0% chance of meeting this requirement, which forces me to composites. Based on their 10K, I estimate that there are at least 500,000 Trex decks (probably double that). Let's assume 10,000 people are unsatisfied with Trex. That means I have a 98% of meeting my goal. Furthermore, of the composites, Trex is the one we have successfully worked with in the past and for every 10 complaints about Trex, I can pretty much find at least 1 for the other composites. So I don't see a benefit in going with a new material. (Personally, if my wife and I can agree on having a step down out of the house, we'd rather just put in a paver patio.)

On a related note, I would love to see detailed pictures of pre and post cleanings of the decks you've done. I've read about the different problems people have had, yet have never actually seen it and would love to know what to look out for. If we end up with Trex and things go south in the future, maybe you can give me the GardenWeb discount?

- Tony

Silly is asking for facts and getting rumor, anecdotes, and ad hominems in return. It's really funny that you are getting offended (although I am sure you will respond saying you are not) because I am unwilling to put the opinion of an unknown third party above that of fact. By not presenting facts, you are doing a disservice to people that come here seeking advice.

For example, I've talked with three lumberyards, three deck professionals, and been on several other forums and guess what I found? The black spot / tannin bleed issue only was with the Origins product, "Natural" color. Funny how this has never been mentioned here. Oh, yeah, I forgot. All these independent sources have their stories wrong. The lumberyards that pulled that specific product and saw their complaints go to ZERO must all be confused and lying.

To anyone that find this posting when searching about Trex, black spots, mold, or whatever, do yourself a favor and do your own research. Go to your local lumberyards and talk to them. Talk to several decking professionals. You will find a wealth of information - some of it conflicting - but none of it from a fairly anonymous source. The hard part is weighing one person's claim against another. The only guidance I can give you is:

(a) separate fact from opinion when possible
(b) if someone tells you a "fact" that you know is wrong, take the rest of what they say with a grain of salt. For example, I've only spoken to one decking contractor that was negative toward Trex - but he also stated that "the coloring in Trex is only on the surface. If you cut it, you will see that only the outer 1/8" of the material is colored". I chose not to pull out the Trex sample in the drawer next to where he was sitting to show him how wrong he was. Why did he lie? I don't know, but if he can't get something as simple (and verifiable) as the composition of Trex, how can I trust anything else he says about it.

I've done my research and believe Trex is right for me. I'd be more than happy to go with another product that has no splinters and is low maintenance. But all I get are attacks on my request for facts about Trex.

Tony my man I am thinking you and t-junk were made for each other.

Asking about Trex from someone who calls it "t-junk" is like asking computer questions of someone that writes "M$", "Microsuck", and "crApple".

Besides, some might say the fact that you missed the fairly obvious "t-wrecks" says a lot about you.

- Tony

I can only offer opinion based upon what I see. Entitle it rhetoric, rumor, conjecture or emblazon it with a bias of my dislike for composites. I am by no means the expert of all that is decks, composite or otherwise. I am merely another guy that has an opinion.

I have too much on my plate to argue the topic further. I wish you the best with your decision.

Tony in the future...
Hello gentlemen. It's me, Tony, again. I went forward with my selection of Trex and was surprisingly amazed at my superior decision-making;initially.
Now the wife and I have run into some issues with trex. The color has faded a tad and entirely clashes with the wifes' sandles. Pooky, my poodle, has rendered some scratches in my surface and I can't get them out. Anyone know how to get a scratch off of trex without making the spot look different than the rest of the deck? I also see the watering and bowing affect of my trex in less than 5 years, is this normal? Anyone got the number for ipe? After asking my wife for permission, we will decide to go with ipe and allow it to go gray. Well, thanks fellows, for listening to me. Toodles.

I've said it before and I'll say it again:

To all homeowners looking for a deck, do yourself a favor and don't trust me. Don't trust gorillabuilder. Don't trust pressurepros. Don't trust john_hyatt. Don't trust ANYONE that posts to these and similar forums. Do take what is said under advisement. Assume everything that is told to you is opinion unless you can verify it via an independent source.

Talk to several local independent lumber yards and deck contractors and ask them your questions. Don't be afraid to ask too many questions (there's no such thing).

Most importantly, trust in yourself to make the right decision once you have
all the information.

That's all I gotta say in this discussion.

- Tony

So there goes your theory of ask lumberyards and 'other' deck builders in real life.

Opinions here are free and people should investigate all ways to skin a cat before they skin the cat. No one is holding a gun to their head.
But alot of people here have great opinions and advise and save people tons of money OR give them a lead to save tons of money by doing it themselves.

You also said you 'talked' to people about ipe splinters and saw small samples which you agreed.. you'd buy the next time around...
Ipe is in Atlantic City.. and other public boardwalks and walkways around the country. I'm sure these people wouldn't put junk down when they are investing millions of dollars and lengths over a mile.

Ipe is most likely cheaper than trex. Composites are fairly new and not time-tested. I held a few brands and some had to be torn out in under 3 years. Perfection decking being one.
If you get a bunch of scratches in trex.. what do you do?.. Does trex sell a putty repair kit?.. No.
With ipe or other woods you can sand numerous skins off and stain it.... hence, getting multiple decks if need be.
If trex works for you.. fine.. No one cares if you marry a board of trex. I'd luv to use a composite that is time-tested and repairable. I just think they are still refining the process. Just like microsoft windows.. 3.1, 98, xp, and then vista in 07. Grooming the procedure, bugs, recovery... each time. Composite is still around the 3.1 version.

GB: "Ipe is in Atlantic City.. and other public boardwalks and walkways around the country. I'm sure these people wouldn't put junk down when they are investing millions of dollars and lengths over a mile."

I would think splintering would have been a big issue when deciding to use ipe on a boardwalk where thousands of barefoot people would be walking every day.

I don't understand your logic of saying don't trust anyone on this website yet trust your local yards and builders. The people here have little bias and have proven themselves with offering sound advise. Your local yard wants to sell you something as does your local builder. I would say if either one is to be mistrusted, it would be the latter.

however, i have built lots of Ipe decks, and have revisited them over the years. Splinters? I don't see any splinters. I have a small ipe deck sample in my back yard. it's been out there for years, and it might have some fine checks, but no splinters.

Tony...You are going to great lengths to justify your using trex. why? just go fix a drink and enjoy your deck. but make sure not to spill your vodka and cranberry. you may get a stain.

Gorilla...Tony in the future...LOL...Pooky the poodle...hahaha. what happens if Pooky renders a dump on Trex? it becomes Drex.

I'm enjoying this, but I better get back to my shop...got a cedar arbor to build. Now cedar...I love working with it, but I wouldn't want to build a deck with it.

steve

I've never built a composite deck. the only one that i've actually seen was a trex deck, and it had a serious mold problem. it was strange to me, as it was in a sunny location.

This is exactly what I am trying to avoid: conclusions based on anecdotal samples. Was there mold elsewhere in the vicinity? What line of Trex was is (Origins "Natural", perhaps)? What type of mold?

I don't doubt what you saw or what anyone else has seen relating to Trex.
All I want is some factual data, not anecdotes. The big two questions are:

About how many failures have been reported (either as a total number or percentage of installations)?
How many members were in the class action against them?

I made the assumption that, given the bias I observed here, there would be no problems finding this information out. I never would have predicted the negative response I received, especially when I tried to show what was being reported was not the data I was looking for and why.

I've said it time and time again, give me facts about Trex failures. If it came out that 0.5% of Trex decks had failures and 5% needed a "under warranty" cleaning, I'd probably still have no problem with Trex. If, on the other hand, the data showed that 5% of Trex decks had failures and 20% of them needed "under warranty" cleanings, I'd be right there with you, bashing it, calling it "t-junk" or "t-wrecks".

In absence of such data, I have to trust my own experience and research, "face-to-face" third party opinions, anonymous/Internet third party opinions (in that order). That is why the data I am looking for is so important.

however, i have built lots of Ipe decks, and have revisited them over the years. Splinters? I don't see any splinters. I have a small ipe deck sample in my back yard. it's been out there for years, and it might have some fine checks, but no splinters.

I've felt it with my own hands and talked to Ipe deck owners - they really like Ipe, but it seems to have small, painful splinters mainly on small children. Considering this is going to be an outdoor play area for my 2 yo and 3 wk old as they grow up, I simply cannot risk it.

That is why I keep saying the next house will have Ipe because the kids will be older and the only big negative I hear (and feel) from Ipe owners will be moot.

- Tony

Face to face I could sell you on constructing a deck out of popsickle sticks. I'm a good salesman. I would expect as an educated man you would then seek unbiased advice regarding the sanding of the words "Jello Pudding Pops" from your deck. I'm here to help you, Tony, not hurt or argue with you. I really do have your best interest in mind.

You see, here is the possibility for some interesting data. 130 Trex decks cleaned. Would you be willing to answer any of the following questions (either on the board or in private)?

Can you provide some background on what was wrong with them?
Was it usually black spots / tannin bleed, moldy, just dirty, or a mixture of all of them?
Did it seem to happen to all types of Trex or did one color and/or type predominate?
Did there appear to be a pattern with respect to the age of the deck?
Do you have a geographic territory for Trex warranty work? How big is it?
Are you the exclusive or primary provider for that territory?

Thanks,
- Tony

Complaints have been color shift, excessive spotting from mold (and extractive bleeding), scratches, oil stains (obviously these are a byproduct of negligence, no fault of Trex).

My analysis of the product as it is sold today is that while better than 1st generation product, it still is a long way off from living to customer expectations. I really cannot be as scientific as you would like because I don't have a breakdown of which colors were the biggest offenders. I have seen them all have issues.

I have performed cleaning and sealings of deck from the most recent which was installed eight months ago to some of the first ones layed down 10 years ago which look horrible. I will have to go through my picture files to see if I can find some good ones for you. Here is one I already have on photobucket so I will post it here. Not wonderful angles.. my deck restoration skills are better than my photography ones.

Here is 18 month old Trex. This deck received direct sun 3/4 of the day. Can you tell the color?

Hard to believe the "maintenance free" Trex could get that nasty in a soft enviroment. Here is the real composite color and after the rails and spindles were all cleaned with Restore-A-Deck

I didn't question the owner about it...I didn't call forensics to test the mold, and if there's other mold in the area, I don't know, as I was on a rooftop. I was there to talk about an arbor, and when I showed her my Ipe samples, she exclaimed that she wished she had an Ipe deck instead of black moldy plastic baggies.

you may chose to ignore my anecdote, but it seems that Ken has enough experience to debate trex with you.

you won't find sympathy here, as we're all shills for the Ipe industry. No, that's not true. I wish there were only a handful of Ipe deck builders. that would keep the demand down, and the price too, and it would guarantee a neverending supply.

so go build your trex deck, and leave the Ipe for us.

steve

Not sure of the color - in the "after" picture it looks like grey (which is one of the colors they offer).

Any other photos would be great.

One further question: Have any of the decks you have been called in for been sealed previously?

Thanks,
- Tony

Gorillabuilder, "Yes yes yes!!!!! I did it! I put the mold on trex!"

The salesman at the lumberyard was pushing Tendura, but my contractor was not too familiar with Tendura. Tendura gets mixed reviews in these forums.

My contractor installed an EverGrain deck once and had problems with the railings or some sort of component made by EverGrain. He contacted EverGrain and they assumed he did an improper installation, but sent someone to check his work and determined that the material was defective and corrected the problem to his satisfaction.

From what I've read, EverGrain is a good product and now I know they are a reputable company.

Our back deck is Trex - it's 7 years old. Yes, it gets green in the shady parts. Every year we power-wash it, and it looks like like new again. I don't want to use harsh chemical cleaners next to my pool or shrubbery. Water works just fine. It gets lots of hard use and it still looks great. I'm perfectly happy with it.

We just replaced our front covered porch with Procell last spring. I really like it. That side of the house gets lots of afternoon sun, and I have not noticed any fading. It's a breeze to clean. It has a very "clean" look that goes well with the look of the house. Does it look like siding? No, I don't think so. It looks like all of the solid-stained decks around here, except that I don't have to stain it.

YMMV.

Anymore observations in regard to composite decking?

Thanks.

Hi, this is my first post and although I note that most of the debate centers on Trex I'll start by saying that I chose another product, LB WeatherBest.

I have about a 1500 square foot deck thats about 2-1/2 years old at this point. The railing top is clear western cedar. Its a north side deck with a large Japanese maple over a portion. Needless to say after about two winters it needs a cleaning. Leaf stain, some mold and just plain dirt.

I bought myself a nice DeWalt pressure cleaner (2800 Psi, ~2.9-3.0 GPM according to the CAT pump people) for xmas. I am doing extensive reading before i lay into the deck. I'm interested in composite deck cleaners and note that a number of them are sodium percarbonate based but I'm intrigued by the use of other cleaners. I'm asking for help as a beginner and recommendations on how to clean and what cleaners to use.

thnx Ti

For what's its worth, I am a design engineer with a Masters Degree from MIT, I will share my conclusions on deck materials. I will also add that my two neighbors built desks the same time I did. One built with IPE, one with mahogany, and I used composite. I don't even remember the exact brands of composite I used.

IPE in my opinion is the overall best material to use for a deck. I think it does require some maintenance, but you basically get a work of art for your effort. I think when stained or finished they are beautiful. I also love hardwood floors for the same reason. My neighbor has let his go grey and I don't think it looks anywhere near as good as a stained deck. His deck has required very little maintence and is holding up really well. The IPE really doesn't splinter or check very much. It is good stuff.

My neighbor with the mahogany deck is the only unhappy one, his builder talked him into mahogany because the builder didn't like composites, even though my neighbor did. Mahogany checks and splinters and requires sanding and refinishing. It looks really good for a while then really starts to look bad. Once refinished, it looks great again.

My composite decks I am very happy with. I didn't want any maintence (my boat is my second job). My 16 X 12 deck I used 100% plastic with hidden fasteners. I have a grey house and grey deck with white vinyl railings. I have washed it 3 times in about 6 years and it looks brand new. Its one major problem is we do get static shocks at times from it. Its not that big a deal, but noticeable. This deck has a smooth surface and my son really loved it when he was young. On the negative side, it gets really slippey with snow and ice on it.

My smaller deck is a composite deck, I think Weatherbest. It is also grey with white vinyl railings. I chose the composite for this deck because it has a heavy texture and we go on and off this deck a lot in the winter. The texture makes a huge difference in grip and it is fine when wet and with snow and ice on it. This deck has some light green mold on it in the shady spots and I have to clean this one every year or so. Although most of the deck looks pretty good and is relatively maintenance free.

Here is the bottom line, I got educated and new the issues with the materials I choose. Nothing is perfect, and my choices gave me the things that were most important to me and I liked the look of what I bought.(the all plastic looked really bad in some colors, but the grey looked OK) I am very happy with it, as will the Trex guy who keeps posting a lot. My IPE neighbor is really happy as well and he likes the "greyed" look of his deck. My other neighbor is the only unhappy one, he let the builder talk him into something that wasn't right for him.

Go look at the different materials, get educated on them, and decide what you like. Then find someone who is good to build it for you (don't get talked out of what you decided on) or do it yoursef. You will be happy with the finished product.

As for mildew -- it does and it is not a big deal. Our deck gets full afternoon sun (SE MI) -- the northern end of the deck does get mildewed. Once a year we wash the deck with Behr deck cleaner (I think it is just a $3.00 bleach solution) and a push broom. I don't see why people make such a big deal out of this. I would imagine a deck that faces north and never dries out after rain would have a bigger problem.

As for stains, fading and scratches -- I believe it could happen. I had a few spots (birdies that ate berries I believe) but either the cleaner got rid of them or they faded. I would believe a greasy hamburger could stain it but again, the cleaner would probably help. The deck has faded - we had a children's Little Tykes playhouse on it and the deck faded around it. We sold the playhouse this summer and the fading "caught up" and you can't tell anymore it was there. Lastly, I am sure it would scratch if you dragged something sharp across it.

All and all, I would never have a "real wood" deck again.

i dont hang out on these sites too much but just had ton read the above comments and toss my hat into the ring. people talk about pressure treated decks, this, that and the other thing. now we have had our deck probably about 1100 feet gets 75% direct sun, all screwed down sits 7 feet off the ground i initially stained the floor and painted aftrewards. its still in fantastic shape even after 20 years. look at it this way, we paid 400 bucks for this 20 years ago so how about that return on investment? yes it does have a few splinters, but no warpng, splitting on and on. so to all the experts, how is this possible?
who says the more you pay you get a better product?
thanks fred

Its also very possible a lot of Folks would not be happy with it,altho a $400 project is not really the normal over here I cant even fire up the truck for that.
The Business of Deck Building has come a long in the past 20 years bringing me along with it I also have 20 year old projects out done in old growth redwood that dont look all that bad really. Im proud of my frame/foundation job and I love cvg redwood But we just cant use it now days its just off the scale. So enter stage left the Composites and enter stage right the S American lumber. I have a 10 year old Ipe project out over here in Cow Town that looks the same as the day I built it.
I also am doing the service work on a 15 year old Preasure Treated deck that dont look too bad either with the given we have done hmmmmmmm say $7500 work on it thats still better than the $25,000 to replace it. Its got splinters,cracks,the miters are seperated things like that but if a Person is ok with that your right the $ is good.
John

I can't see a 20 year old TP deck lasting here in Austin without being splintered all to heck. The boys at AWDS have a 16 year old PT deck @ the entry. Left it there just to prove a point, it looks like crap. Their 10 year old ipe deck right next to it looks great. Premier composite deck on the front of the store looks like new, it's about 5 years old now. They got some old Trex in the boneyard that is literally falling apart.

Al

The pt money folks saw a good thing,just switch to acq,charge a little more,give a major bunch of $ to the SS fastener market,cut down on the actuall chem in the lumber, everyone makes more money.

The problem with fliping pt decking is the structure of the wood is gone,it just looks good below. In a very short time the same faliure will happen to the flip side. John

john yes you maybe right in my eyes i may see diamonds and yours see lead. the only point i was trying to make is the product was good for me hey it might not be a cadillac but i dont need all the bells and whistels just looking for something blue collar decent price that will give us some years. doe sit make sense shelling out 30000 for a ipe or other deck my eyes say no. but thats me.aand denamrk well said with many good pointers fo those that are willing to see others view. just my 2 cents. thanks fred

Al

In the five years we've had the Trex, it has had olive oil, salmon drippings, cigar ashes, wine, polyurethane, bird droppings and god knows what else spilled on it. With the exception of the polyurethane spilled by a careless painter, everything cleaned up beautifully. The polyurethane was eventually mitigated by sanding.

We are currently replacing a 15 yr old rotted redwood deck (builder ran out of treated nails)on the land side of the house. We were in a discussion about which composite to use. Our carpenters' usual suppliers each recommended competing products while trashing Trex with all the usual lawsuit talk etc.

We've compared our friend's decks (Trex and Fiberon) they both have their defects but, we've decided to stick with 'the devil we know' as opposed to one we don't. The only thing that I will do differently this time is to seal the Trex so I don't have to go running for a rag and solvent everytime somone's little darling drops a hot dog.

Regarding the acrimony in some of the posts - this site is no different from any other Internet forum: The Internet just promotes 'fanboyism'. Don't know what a fanboy is? Go to a cellphone forum and search for "Buy Motorola Razr". You'll find an abundance of posts from Nokia (or Sony or ??) fanboys claiming that 'Razrs suck' while touting their favorite phone and maybe 2 or 3 posts from actual Razr users talking about the good and the bad of the Razr. Same thing with Sony PS3 vs Xbox, Audis vs BMWs etc. and I'm sure the reverse is true if you ask about buying a Nokia. Some folks just like to go negative when there is no accountability.

Bottom line is that through the acrimony, I realized that MY observations are really the only ones that matter to our project. Thanks for a positive experience.

The latest class action has been brought against Choice composite. I used some left over choice on my upper leval stairway years ago,several coats of twp. The top dosent look bad but underneith the stuff is crumbling I can actually scrap chunks of it off with my fingernail.

John

http://momsfork.blogspot.com/2008/04/beware-of-trex.html

I am a representative of Trex and direct you to our claims department. They can be reached at 1-800-BUY-Trex, and they will help address all your concerns.

If I can be of further assistance, please feel free to contact me at question@trex.com or 800-BUY-Trex.

Pat - M

If you are considering purchasing composite decking from Home Depot you should consider Veranda--less expensive and a much better product.

As for PVC--have fun washing off the chalk every week.

Photo of our steps. Work not done on porch clearly. Steps are wet from rain, and cleared off for winter :( We did big scale to better match the house and so we would still have a place to hang out outdoors when the porch is screened.

Related to this, I looked at some attractive new condos in our town kind of hoping to get my mom to move into one someday and just wondering what they are like. The nice porches overlooking the fields and woods were composite so that the one above had holes (the big spaces between the boards)where things could fall into the porch below! Not only dirt from shoes by spilled anything. What were they thinking?
kathy

I believe that they are fully code compliant and safe. In NH the applicable code is the International Residential Code, 2006. The stairs have a uniform riser height (about 5.5") and tread depth (about 11") and appropriate profile (nosing) conforming to R311.5.3. R311.5.6 states that "Handrails shall be provided on at least one side of each continuous run of treads or flight with four or more risers" (which is the case). The height, continuity and grip size of the handrail (seen on the left of the photo) all conform to the code. The deck of the porch is less than 30" above grade so no guards are required on open sides of the porch or stairs per R312.1. One thing that may not be apparent is that when we finish screening in the porch the top landing of the stairs (below the porch level) will become a 42" deep landing outside of a 36" screen door (with hinge on the right, away from the handrail), conforming with R311.4.3, exception 2. Functionally these stairs are very easy to traverse even in the total dark, because of the easy rise and the handrail that is right on the edge of the regular path of travel to the driveway. What might I be missing?
BTW the deck material is Correct Deck, which is PVC free, made from 40% recycled hardwood sawdust and 60% polypropylene, with an excellent grip even when wet.

No problem with correctdeck its another man made little come a long poking its head up latley. J.

Me again: While dh was writing the previous post, I was thinking about all the big public places with big steps and decided to look for a pic of the met. It is an very good public space, always full of people and I've never seen any one fall down them.
kathy

If you guys like it, I love it. J.

www.arsenichometest.com

John

Do you have a deck made with Trex wood-alternative material?

Trex lost a lawsuit a few years ago because their deck materials didn’t stand up as advertised. Now, other homeowners are seeing their Trex decks rot, warp and fall apart.

I work with a law firm that filed a lawsuit against Trex for misrepresenting their materials and then failing to help homeowners with repair costs. The suit represents everyone who has a deck made from Trex materials and are experiencing rot, warp or degrading of any kind. Anyone who’s experienced problems since 2004 can join. It’s worth checking out.

You can learn more about the case by visiting the Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro website and selecting Trex Company under the list of Featured Cases.

ALthough the splinters were pretty painful, the good thing about ipe is that you're able to pull them out pretty easily since the wood is so hard. (the splinter won't break or anything while it's still under the skin) :) you can pretty much grab it and extract it easily