Decking Maintenance – How to Winterize a Deck

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Preparing A Hardwood Deck for the Winter

Fall is here and many people are starting to prepare their deck for the Winter months. What do you need to do to ensure your garden deck stays healthy?

How to Winterize a Hardwood Deck
Learn the best way to keep your deck healthy during winter.

Keep Gaps Clear of Debris

Leaving your deck dirty and covered with debris over the winter months is a recipe for disaster. If you allow the gap spacing between your deck boards to get plugged up with debris, you won’t just have a lot to clean up come springtime. You might also be looking at a warped deck due to excess moisture being trapped underneath your deck. Proper ventilation will also ensure that mold and decay don’t rear their ugly head. Keep your deck boards looking good by sweeping away dirt, leaves, pine needles or any branches.

Got mold? Use these tips to eliminate mold from your hardwood deck before winter.

Just ask any homeowner who owns a deck how hard it is to get rid mold watch their face get red with frustration. Mold (aka mildew, aka the bane of composite deck owners everywhere) needs to be dealt with as soon as you see it. Mold can grow and prosper during the months when your deck is being used the least. Mold feasts on moisture so snow and melting ice might as well be a t-bone steak with all the fixin’s to mold.

How to get rid of mold on hardwood decking:

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Hardwood Lumber 101 – Poplar Wood

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Woodworkers and turners rely on AdvantageLumber.com to supply high-quality hardwood lumber. One common utility hardwood that we offer is Poplar Wood. For centuries, Poplar has been used in countries throughout the world. In fact, Poplar was such a useful wood that scientists have recently found a Poplar wood door made in the Stone Age! Read …

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DIY Deck Installation Tips #4 – Check Local Building Codes

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Deck Installation Tips
Uh, oh. It looks like Doug forgot to make sure that his deck was up to code.

From the looks of it, it’s safe to assume that Doug forgot to contact his local building department to check his plans. If he had, he probably wouldn’t look so upset.

To avoid Doug’s fate, it’s important that you know what parts of your deck building plan need to be up to your local building codes.

Here are some critical parts of the deck construction process that you should pay close attention to.

Be sure to inspect and/or repair the following:

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What is Capstock Decking? New Composite Decking Review

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Composite PVC Decking - capstock
Is the new composite decking option right for you?

You might have heard about the latest type of composite decking. There are multiple decking brands using what’s known in the plastic industry as “capstock.”

What is Capstock decking? Basically, Capstock is a new kind of composite decking material that combines composites (plastic and wood fiber core) with a “durable” exterior layer of vinyl (PVC). Think of it as a composite and PVC deck hybrid.

Like with most new products in the decking market, the companies that sell this kind of synthetic decking are doing their best by spending millions of dollars  to convince you that, FINALLY, this is a composite wood product you can trust. These brands are also trying their best to convince you and deck builders across the country that it is “as good as, or better” than natural hardwood decking in terms of durability and looks.

They even offer a 25-year warranty on their product. However, if you’ve done research, you will learn that, for many, composite decking warranties aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on. Many people complain and have sued these artificial decking companies for not complying with the terms of their warranties.

Ironically, even a reputable publication like Professional Deck Builder says about the latest trend in capstock composite decking, “The lengthy warranties – most up to 25 years – indicate that manufacturers stand behind these products (though perhaps you’ve heard that before).” That’s a direct quote, folks. Even the home-building press is skeptical about these products and for good reason.

Another interesting fact that arose out of our research is the resistance of all composite decking companies to disclose the chemical makeup of their new decking materials. In fact, when FineHomebuilding Magazine was conducting their own research into these products for their article entitled “In Pursuit of the Perfect Plank” the author noted, “None of the manufacturers I spoke with would reveal what was in their proprietary polymer.” Why is that?

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