First, it's important that you understand the difference between real wood decking, be it engineered or solid, and plastic composite wood decking. It can be very confusing because prior the introduction of plastic composite wood decking into the U.S., a lot of decking dealers referred to engineer wood decking as a wood "Composite wood" decking. First let me tell you about wood decking. There are a few different types of wood decking available to you. The first and perhaps the oldest in existence are the "solid wood deck". These decks are generally 3/4" thick and can be purchased raw or pre-finished. The other style of wood decking which is actually now becoming much more popular is the "engineered wood deck". Engineered wood decking is the type of deck that is most commonly confused with plastic composite wood decking. This is a wood deck which has a top wear layer, usually 1/8" thick on better products, and then has one or more layers or "piles". The top layer is generally made out of oak, maple, cherry, etc. These engineered wood decks are gaining in popularity because of a lot of applications they will be more stable than the solid wood deck, cost less than the solid wood deck, and can be replenished like a solid wood deck. Engineered wood decks are also able to be installed using methods not available with solid wood decks. They come in styles that can be glued down, free floated, or stapled.

Now we'll talk about what is now referred to as "Composite wood" decking. These days when we say composite wood decking, we're talking about "plastic composite wood" decking. A lot of consumers don't even refer to it this way. They simply say "Pergo" decking. The reason for this is that Pergo, a brand name, was one of the first to introduce their product in the U.S. We have a page dedicated to Pergo to our manufacturers' section. We've heard that as of about six months ago there are now close to one hundred different brands of composite woods decking on the market worldwide. The easiest way to describe composite wood decking would be to say that it is similar to your mica countertop only much stronger. The surface is actually a plastic type composition applied to the core using heat and pressure, the core is usually made of high density fiber or particle board, and the backing can be a paper or another layer of composite wood. Plastic Composite wood decks are extremely durable however they cannot ever be refurnished or repeated once they are scratched or worn. That is generally the main difference between plastic composite wood decks and real wood decks. Another downside to the composite wood decking is that the pattern is printed and many of the boards. In some cases all of the boards are identical in appearance.

Regarding question number 1, let's says that you paid $100,000. For your home and that's about the maximum priced home in the neighborhood. It really won't make much difference whether you go with real wood or the composite wood. Unless you plan on being in the home beyond seven to ten years, you may want to consider staying with the composite wood decking. Chances are if you go through the expense of installing a good quality wood deck, you won't realize any type of gain when you sell the home. On the other hand, if you paid $200,000. Or more for your home, and the houses in your neighborhood fluctuate in price depending on the upgrades, then the real wood decking may be a benefit whether you're in the home for one year or ten years.

Regarding question number 2, whether you're in a $100,000. home, or a $500,000. Home, if you're planning on being in that home beyond seven to ten years, and don't want to replace the decks again for the duration of your stay, then there is no doubt that a good quality real wood deck would be the better choice. The main reason for this being that you will be able to resurface the real wood deck when it shows signs of wear and tare, whereas you will have to replace the composite plastic wood deck altogether.

Regarding question number 3, if you have established a budget of let's say $3.50 per square foot or less material, and don't plan on exceeding that budget, than the plastic composite woods should absolutely be your choice. I say this because although you can get real wood decking for $3.50 per square foot or less, but the type of the real wood decking available to you at this price level will not give you the same performance you can expect out of plastic composite wood decks at this price or less. To get a real wood deck with a good quality finish that will have a durability level close to that of the composite plastic wood decking, you should expect to pay somewhere between $3.75 to in some cases over $7.00 per square foot. An average price range for what we consider to be a good quality wood deck is $4.00 to $5.00 per square foot. As an added note, we are basing these unit prices on the prices that we sell wood decking for. If you were shopping retail, you would add anywhere from 15% to 30% of these figures.

Regarding question number 4, the level of traffic and/or abuse in your home will also play an important role in your decision. Let's say you have a normal happy family with three kids, two dogs, plenty of relatives that visit often, and a lot of friends that take advantage of your big screen television and endless supply of free beer. If this is your home, then you better make sure that you either go with a composite plastic wood or a "very good" quality wood deck! If you have heavy traffic such as this in your home, a low quality wood deck will be a mistake. It will not hold up to your expectations whatsoever. As an added note, although the composite plastic wood decks may be more resistant than inexpensive wood decks, there are also lower quality composite wood decks that will not hold up well under high traffic either.

Regarding question number 5, if resale and the value of your home are a concern, then you definitely want to consider good quality real wood decking. If you speak with any realtor that knows their business, they should advise you that real wood decking is considered an upgrade to your home and increases the value, while plastic composite wood decking does not. Real wood decking is truly an investment into your home. The composite plastic wood decking, while holding up well during your stay in the home, really does nothing for the resale value. Considering plastic composite wood cannot be resurfaced. It is considered temporary. Anyone buying a house where composite wood decking is installed knows that it will need to be replaced most likely during the period of time that they will be living there.

Please understand that while I've listed these questions and situations as a way to help you make an educated decision, you will need to consider all these factors combined. In some cases, your individual situation may differ from these examples. For instance, if you don't have heavy traffic in your home, and you like the look of real wood, then there's nothing wrong with using an inexpensive real wood deck. This also holds true if you only plan on being in your home for a short period of time and want to increase the value for resale. Another case where inexpensive real wood might be a good choice is if you are buying and remodeling a home strictly for the purpose of reselling it at a profit.

Summary

I'm sure that there still may be some of you that would like to ask. "okay, so I've read all of this and want to know what you personally think"? My own personal feeling on this subject is that if you can afford the real wood decking, go for it! In the long term, good quality wood decking ends up being not only an investment, but also a better buy since it can be resurfaced. Additionally, nothing beats the look and feels of real wood. On the other hand, if your kids, pets, friends, and/or family are just plain nuts and love to treat your house like a war zone, and you don't want to put a lot of money into your home, but also don't want the hassle associated with carpet and/or tile, than go with the Composite wood decking.

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