How to Choose Between Wood vs WPC Deck: A Homeowner's Guide

The choice between a wood vs composite deck could mean a difference of 10-15 years in lifespan. Wood decking lasts 10-20 years with proper care, and composite decking extends that to 25-30 years.

Durability is just one aspect to think over when comparing these popular decking options. The composite vs wood deck debate stretches beyond longevity. Composite decking's upfront cost runs $15-36 per square foot while wood costs $4-25, but it saves homeowners over a thousand dollars across a 10-year span after factoring in maintenance costs.

Building a deck represents a major investment for any homeowner. This piece helps you understand the key differences in durability, maintenance needs, costs, esthetics, and environmental effects. A deck's annual maintenance costs for wood can reach $5,620-$12,500 over a decade, particularly in harsh weather conditions.

The time has come to make an informed decision about your home's best decking material. Let's tuck into the details of each option to create an outdoor space that serves your needs for years ahead.

Understanding the Basics of Decking Materials

You need to know what goes into each decking material to understand how they perform differently. Let's explore what makes up traditional wood and modern composite decking.

What is wood decking?

Wood decking comes from various tree species that fall into three main groups. Your local lumberyard likely stocks cedar, redwood and pressure-treated pine. If you want something more exotic, you can choose tropical hardwoods like tigerwood, ipe, and mahogany.

Pressure-treated lumber goes through a chemical process that helps the wood fight off pests, mold, mildew, and weather damage. This treatment makes softwoods last longer outdoors. All the same, wood decking needs regular upkeep to look good and stay strong.

Each wood type has its own benefits:

• Softwoods (cedar, pine): Cost less and you can work with them easily
• Hardwoods (ipe, teak): Last longer but cost more
• Pressure-treated: Good weather resistance at mid-range prices

Wood's natural beauty remains its biggest selling point. Manufactured alternatives still try to match its authentic look.

What is WPC decking?

WPC decking emerged in the late 1980s. It mixes recycled wood fibers with plastic polymers to create a tough alternative to regular lumber. The wood parts can be sawdust, wood chips, and wood fiber pieces. The plastic can be either new or recycled materials.

Most WPC decks contain polypropylene or polyethylene plastic. These bond with wood fibers to create something stronger than pure plastic decking. The mix of wood and plastic changes between brands, with some products using up to 85% recycled content.

WPC decking comes in two main types:

• Uncapped composite: The basic version that can stain and fade more easily
• Capped composite: Has a protective polymer shell that fights moisture, stains, and sun damage better

Manufacturers make these either through extrusion (pushing mixed materials through an opening) or compression molding (pressing melted materials onto a wood grain mold).

Key differences in composition

The biggest difference between these materials is what they're made of. Wood decking is pure lumber, while composite mixes wood fibers with synthetic polymers. This explains why they perform so differently.

Wood has a porous structure that soaks up moisture. This makes it expand, contract, and eventually break down without proper care. On top of that, it attracts bugs and can grow mold.

WPC decking's plastic content helps it resist these problems. Advanced composites even wrap each wood fiber in plastic. This makes the fibers tougher and water-resistant, while the wood makes the plastic more rigid.

PVC decking stands apart as it contains no wood at all. This all-plastic material lasts incredibly long but doesn't have the wood-like look many homeowners want.

These basic differences affect how much maintenance each needs, how long it lasts, how it looks, and what it costs. We'll dig deeper into these factors throughout this piece.

Durability and Maintenance Comparison

Your deck's durability doesn't just determine its lifespan. It also decides how much time and money you'll spend on it through the years. Let's get into the key differences between wood and composite decking that affect how long they last and what kind of care they need.

How long does each material last?

These materials have a big gap in their lifespans. Wood decking typically lasts 10 to 15 years when you take good care of it. Some hardwood decks might make it to 15-20 years, but that needs constant attention. Composite decking, on the other hand, lasts much longer than wood.

Most composite products should give you 25 to 30+ years of service. The high-end composite options can last anywhere from 30 to 50 years if you look after them properly. This huge difference in durability makes composite decking really attractive to homeowners who want long-term value.

Your deck's lifespan depends on several things:

• Weather exposure
• How often you maintain it
• Quality of installation
• Grade of material

Maintenance needs over time

The biggest difference between wood and composite decks shows up in their maintenance needs. Wood decking needs a strict care schedule that has:

• Yearly checks for rot, loose parts, and structural problems
• Regular cleaning with special chemicals
• Sanding to fix splinters and rough spots
• New stain and sealant every 1-2 years
• Replacing damaged boards when needed

Wood decks that don't get proper care might only last 5-10 years. You'll spend $200 to $500 each year on wood deck maintenance, which adds up to $5,620 to $12,500 over ten years.

Composite decking is much easier to care for. You just need to:

• Sweep off debris
• Clean it with soap and water twice a year
• Check for loose boards now and then

The best part? Composite decking doesn't need sanding, staining, or sealing - these tasks take up most of your time with wood deck maintenance.

Weather and insect resistance

Weather can really affect how long your deck lasts. Wood decking faces several challenges because it's a natural material:

• It soaks up moisture, which leads to swelling, warping, and rot
• UV rays fade it and damage the surface
• Freeze-thaw cycles create cracks and structural issues
• Temperature changes make it expand and contract

Composite decking handles weather much better thanks to its engineered design. The plastic parts keep moisture out and prevent related problems. Many composite products also have UV protection that keeps their color looking fresh for years.

Pest resistance shows another big difference between these materials. Wood decks can fall victim to termites and other wood-boring insects that cause serious structural damage. Even pressure-treated lumber, while tougher than regular wood, can still get insect damage.

Composite decking's plastic content makes it naturally resistant to insects. The plastic coating around wood fibers gets rid of the cellulose that attracts termites, so bugs just aren't interested. This means you won't need chemical treatments and you'll have fewer maintenance worries down the road.

Cost Breakdown: Upfront and Long-Term

Environmental and Installation Factors

Your deck's environmental footprint goes way beyond your backyard. The choice between wood and composite deck materials will shape your installation experience and your home's future value. Let's get into these key factors that make a big difference in how happy you'll be with your outdoor investment.

Sustainability of materials

Decking materials' environmental effects change based on their source, manufacturing, and life cycle. Wood and composite options each have their own sustainability story worth exploring.

Wood decking's sustainability depends on how it's harvested. The U.S. softwood lumber industry has kept forest lands eco-friendly for over 50 years. Trees like Southern Yellow Pine grow fast and are great renewable resources that we can plant and harvest again and again. Wood has a natural edge because trees store carbon while growing and keep storing it as lumber.

Wood's carbon footprint looks pretty impressive. Research from the University of Tennessee showed that softwood lumber, including Southern Yellow Pine, actually reduces carbon in all building projects. Using whole lumber in construction helps cut down atmospheric carbon instead of adding to it.

Wood decking comes with some environmental challenges though:

• Pressure-treated lumber has chemicals that worry environmentalists during making, using, and throwing away
• Wood deck maintenance products often harm the environment
• Wood doesn't last as long, so you need more resources to replace it

On the composite side, manufacturers have really stepped up their eco-friendly game. The big companies now use lots of recycled stuff:

• Trex uses up to 95% recycled materials and keeps over 850 million pounds of plastic film and wood out of landfills every year
• TimberTech puts 60% to 85% recycled content in their decking
• Companies like Trex are super efficient, recycling almost all their factory waste back into making new products

TimberTech and their parent company AZEK have saved about 4 million trees since 2001 and used 2.6 billion pounds of waste in their products since 2019. Many composite makers now use wind power and other green practices to cut their carbon footprint.

TimberTech's studies show their advanced PVC decking has a 26% smaller carbon footprint than pine and 89% less than Brazilian Ipe decking. Their composite decking beats pine by 15% and Ipe by 88% in lifecycle carbon footprint.

The environmental story has two sides though. Dovetail, Inc.'s environmental experts say wood-plastic composites cause more problems with acid rain, breathing issues, and energy use. While composite decking won't break down naturally like wood, many companies now make their products recyclable after their long life.

Ease of installation

Wood and composite decking installation looks pretty similar, but some key differences can change your project's timeline, costs, and overall experience.

The basic installation steps match up for both materials. You'll find that both:

• Need the same joist spacing (16" on center) for straight patterns
• Work with similar tools (miter saw and/or jig saw)
• Take top-down fasteners

Composite decking's consistent size makes installation easier. Unlike wood boards that can be different sizes or have defects, composite boards are all the same size, which saves time sorting materials. You can make cuts more easily and waste less material since you won't find warped or knotted boards.

The prep work differs too. Wood needs staining, sealing, or painting before or after you put it up, but composite decking skips these steps. This can make your project go much faster.

Composite decking systems often come with hidden fasteners that make the surface look clean without visible screws or nails. These not only look better but also keep you from snagging clothes or getting hurt on protruding fasteners.

Both materials need a solid foundation. Whether you're building new or redoing an old deck, your support structure must be:

• Clean of mold, mildew, and rot
• Well-fastened
• Level with proper spacing between joists

Never put composite decking right on top of old wood boards - it can cause big structural problems. Composite decking also moves differently with temperature changes than wood does - it expands and contracts lengthwise instead of across its width.

Some extra things to remember with composite decking:

• Let the boards get used to outside temperatures first
• Make sure air can flow under the deck
• Use the right fasteners and techniques the manufacturer suggests

Choosing the Right Deck for Your Home

Your choice between wood and composite decking boils down to what matters most to you as a homeowner. Wood decking brings natural beauty at lower original costs. But maintenance needs and a shorter lifespan affect its long-term value. Composite materials need more money upfront yet deliver excellent durability with minimal upkeep that saves money down the road.

Your home's location should shape this decision. Regions with harsh weather make composite decking an attractive choice because it stands up better to moisture, UV rays, and temperature swings. People who plan to stay in their homes longer will appreciate composite's lifespan of 25-30+ years compared to wood's 10-20 years.

Smart budget planning goes beyond the initial price tag. Wood deck's maintenance costs of $5,620-$12,500 over ten years make composite's higher upfront cost look more reasonable in the long run. Homeowners need to balance their current budget against future expenses.

The environmental impact deserves a closer look. Wood remains a renewable resource with negative carbon impact when harvested properly. Composite manufacturers have made great progress in sustainability. Most products now use up to 95% recycled materials and eco-friendly production methods.

The best deck combines good looks, practical use, environmental responsibility, and financial sense. Your choice of material, backed by solid research and quality installation, will create an outdoor space you'll enjoy for years while adding lasting value to your home.

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