Commercial Building Materials Priced for Domestic Use

At NexGEN Decking, we love decks as much as anyone does! Whether it’s firing up the barbeque for a great meal for family and friends, setting the stage for a romantic evening with a candlelight dinner or enjoying the comfort of a safe place for the kids to run and play by the pool, we love decks. A pleasant day begs for a pleasant place to relax and enjoy our outdoor activities (preferably maintenance free).

As much as we love decks, it is important to understand that not all decking materials are created equally. There are many factors to consider when selecting the material for your deck. High traffic areas, poolside applications and the use of deck furniture and barbeques all factor into determining the best commercial building materials to optimise your deck investment.

Outdoor decking materials have greatly evolved and improved in the past 15 to 20 years. Let’s discuss how things have changed by looking at the five categories of commercial building materials for decking:

1 – Wood Products

Wood, of course, has been a standard for many decades. The choices for wood decking materials range from simple pressure treated timber to exotic Philippine mahogany. Long term wear from foot traffic, furniture and especially weather takes its toll on timber and the subsequent extensive maintenance required leaves us asking, “Can we do better?”

2 – Plastic PVC Decking

A definite upgrade from wood and timber, plastic decking or foamed PVC decking can withstand exposed, outdoor environments better than wood, but it is not without its own problems. Aesthetically plastic decking looks like, you guessed it, plastic. Expansion and contraction issues with changes in temperature, smaller spans meaning increased costs in subframes along with wear and tear from heavy use of deck furniture and BBQ’s makes us pursue and even better solution.

3 – Wood Plastic Composite (uncapped)

Even better again and having the best of both worlds with timber and plastic combined. The timber content means that there is less expansion and contraction issues and it is usually stronger so it can span further reducing subframe costs. The plastic content ensures that the rotting, warping and twisting issues associated with timber is solved however the exposed surfaces are porous, so spills (red wine, bbq grease, coffee etc.) will stain it easily. Mould / mildew also causes problems and these uncapped products are very susceptible to scratching and fading. Aesthetically this product fails very quickly and over time still requires a level of maintenance that we find unacceptable so we know there is still much more room to improve.

4 – Capped Composite Hardwood and HDPE (high density polypropylene)

Now we’ve got a great product, the gold standard in commercial building materials. The hardwood (only hardwood no softwoods) mix reduces expansion and contraction even further, the HDPE enhances and strengthens the product. The game changer with this product is the capping, using golf ball cover technology, we co-extrude a specially engineered cap stock that substantially enhances the overall durability of the NexGEN boards. Our proprietary cap stock is designed to resist all the problems that plague regular composite decking products. This capstock is incredibly hardwearing, weatherable and provides excellent stain, fade and scratch resistance.

5 – Aluminium Decking

Another gold standard for commercial building materials. Impervious to insects and able to withstand prolonged exposure to the elements, aluminium decking is now the benchmark standard for commercial quality decking. Lighter and stronger than anything else on the decking market. long lasting, cool to touch, rated for use in BAL-FZ (flame zone) areas, slip resistant, non-corrosive, seamless, resilient, recyclable and DIY friendly.