Is Trex composite decking really worth the extra money?
Adding a deck to your home is one of the best investments that you can make. Decks expand your living space outdoors and add value to your house. While most homeowners would agree that Trex decking is both a durable and an attractive building material, the cost can scare off potential customers. Is the price for composite decking too high? Continue reading to find out what our panel had to say on the subject.
Chris Michaels, Founder of Frugal Reality.
Trex deck is worth the money
Here are the reasons I think replacing a traditional hardwood deck with a Trex deck is worth the money:
Maintenance – I spend less than an hour per year maintaining my Trex deck. The only maintenance I have is removing the mold and mildew due to my northern exposure. Simply buy a bottle of Wet and Forget and spray it in the spring and fall to maintain a mildew-free composite deck.
Time – With my hardwood deck, I was spending considerable time each year re-staining the deck, replacing rotten wood, and hammering boards and nails that kept constantly coming up. None of these are a problem anymore. I am saving time and money each season with a composite deck.
Safety – I have babies and small kids crawling and walking across the deck. A composite deck is much safer because I don’t have to worry about splinters while the kids are running or crawling. It’s also a nice feeling to walk across a composite deck barefoot. The texture feels good on your feet, and it’s reassuring that I don’t have to delicately walk across it to avoid uneven and rotten wood.
Self-fixing – You can take sandpaper and sand-away the blemishes because the composite boards are the same color throughout. Amazingly, my Trex composite deck looks the same as it did 15 years ago when I had it installed.
Unique design – Unlike traditional hardwood, Trex composite is flexible. Builders use a machine to heat the boards so they can bend. Instead of having a rectangular deck, the Trex designer can create an oval or circle that matches your landscaping.
Opportunity cost – Ultimately, I chose to spend more money upfront on a Trex composite deck instead of spending endless hours and money each summer on lumber replacement, re-staining, and repair. If you have the money, it’s worth it.
Yes, worth it!
Yes, composite materials on decking and trim are worth the money. The labor to install composite is the same as the labor to install wood, which will rot and require a lot of maintenance. For example, the labor to replace a deck with Trex or wood might both be $4000. The only difference is the cost of the materials.
Wooden decks need to be maintained and re-stained at least every two years, and the cost to do so is about $1000 for an average sized deck. The reason for the constant staining and maintenance of wood decks is that horizontal surfaces don’t shed water. It tends to puddle and pool on the surface. Sun beaming on the wood deck and foot traffic also is very damaging to wood.
Paige NeJame, CertaPro Painters of the South Shore.
Trex is absolutely worth the money!
Tyler Forte, Founder & CEO of a Nashville-based real estate brokerage called Felix Homes.
We recently had a client purchase a home, and the first thing he noticed was the Trex decking. As a real estate agent, I can say that Trex is a major appeal for homebuyers. It definitely has a positive impact on the home’s value compared to a traditional wood deck.
Composite decking is worth the money.
It costs more upfront, but thanks to minimal maintenance costs and long life, the annual cost for the life of the fence is significantly cheaper for composite materials.
If what you have in mind are the Trex decks of 15 years ago, you’d be surprised to see how far they’ve come. They look much more like wood and are available in a wide range of colors and styles.
Melanie Musson is a home insurance expert with USInsuranceAgents.com.
Worth the extra cost
In my opinion, Trex composite decking is worth the extra cost, and here’s why. Generally, treated decking has a lifespan of about ten years when it’s exposed to the elements such as sun, rain, hot, and cold. Though you can try deck paint to make it last longer, it doesn’t seem to adhere to wooden decking for very long. Depending on the batch of treated decking you get, it may not even last the whole ten years.
If you had just installed composite decking (Trex) the first time, you wouldn’t have to pay the labor cost of installing decking twice, as well as the cost of removing it.
Unlike wood, Trex decking is very low maintenance and doesn’t require any sanding, staining, or painting. If it needs to be cleaned, you can just pressure wash it or use a brush with some soapy water. Ultimately, you’ll be able to spend less time working on your deck and more time enjoying it. It will last much, much longer. When it’s all said and done, the extra upfront cost actually saves you time and money in the long run.
Richard Dickson has over 30 experience in the construction industry and is a licensed contractor at Dickson Plumbing LLC.
This is a crowdsourced article. Contributors are not necessarily affiliated with this website and their statements do not necessarily reflect the opinion of this website, other people, businesses, or other contributors.
