What's up with my Composite Deck?

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Composite Decks have been saturating the market for many years now. The common belief is that composite wood is maintenance free. This is far from the truth. Periodic cleaning and now staining is needed to keep them looking good.

Composite decks were introduced into the market over 10 years ago as a "maintenance free" material. Through the years it has changed to "low maintenance" due to several issues with mold and mildew. Composite wood is a very dense material. Due to this water will stay in the wood for a long period of time and mildew/mold will grow, especially in the sun. The result is small black spots the size of a quarter. This can be cleaned off with a mold and mildew remove such as the Defy Wood Cleaner or a watered down bleach. After cleaning it would be helpful to prevent water absorption by using a composite deck sealer or water repellent such as SuperSeal-M. This product will not stop the mildew permanently but will prolong the mildew or mold for a short period of time.

There is also issues with fading and discoloration through the years. Imagine leaving a pot or a mat in the same position for a few years only to find that your composite wood is a completely different color under them when moved. Or that your nice 'sadle" color has completely faded to a new different color. Well unfortunately the only way to fix discoloration is to stain your composite deck. This goes against the belief of composite wood never being needed to stain, unfortunately if you want the wood to look good again you will need to apply a Composite Wood Stain. Good news is that there already is high quality composite stains on the market.

Messmers Composite Deck Finish

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Disgruntled Homeowner  - MOLD SPOTS! |Y-m-d H:i:s I couldn't agree with this article more! I have had black mold spots on my composite deck since it was installed. I was completely mislead by the builder and lumber yard who told me it wouldn't need to be treated ever! I spent $15000 for a moldy deck!

DeckRestAdmin |Y-m-d H:i:s That's why these companies have class action lawsuits against them.

jmedgar  - Composite Decks Oversold |Y-m-d H:i:s No doubt composite decking material has been oversold. It is not maintence-free. No material is maintenance free. But why all the fancy cleaners. The best cleaner for mold and mildew on a composite deck is 10% household bleach and warm water combined with just a touch of elbow grease. We clean mildewed decks commercial, and this is how we do it. You cannot seal a deck to prevent mildew. It simply brows on top of the sealant.

iwiz |Y-m-d H:i:s I was bit disappointed when I saw my composite deck was with mold and mildew just within few months of installation few years back. Instead of crunching at the dealers or my carpenter, I applied once the above composite deck finish and nowadays taking care with household bleach.

prasanth5 |Y-m-d H:i:s Any wood for that matter cannot be totally maintenance free. In fact the composite decking needs a better way of maintenance to ensure longevity. The composite deck sealer contributes a lot towards its maintenance.

prasanth5 |Y-m-d H:i:s Since mildew grows composite decks can no longer be considered as maintenance free but on the other they may need low maintenance as rightly pointed out.

iwiz |Y-m-d H:i:s It seems better to have a regular cleaning or bleach and also applying sealer will save the composite deck from gathering major mold/mildew. Are composite decks manufactured from recycled materials?

DeckRestAdmin |Y-m-d H:i:s Yes. Typically a mixture of plastic and wood.