Best decking surface for AGP: composite or wood with rubaroc?

[foodnstuff]

Hello,
I'm brand new to this forum and by browsing the topics I know that we have a LOT to learn. I'm sure we will be exploring all the different threads regarding plumbing and chemicals, etc.

Right now, though, we have a pretty immediate question on our minds that we are hoping to making a decision about asap. Our 33' AGP is being installed in April. We are hoping to have a deck surround built very soon after installation. It will be an addition to our existing wooden deck that was built five years ago. We've been in touch with quite a few contractors and are now at the estimates/bidding stage. The main question they have for us, obviously, is whether we want composite or wood decking surface.

Composite seems like the obvious choice, but we've heard reports that it can get VERY hot in the sunlight, and slippery when wet. (We have four young children so this is a big consideration for us.) we've also received reviews from longtime owners of Trex decking who report that it didn't age as well as they had expected.

So, the other option we are considering is wood construction with a Rubaroc finish. (This is an epoxy type coating, comprised of ground rubber and applied professionally, if you are not familiar.) We've looked at videos, spoken to a salesperson, and it looks almost too good to be true. It is most commonly applied to concrete/cement but its site and salespeople claim that it can successfully be applied to a wood deck as well. Is there ANYONE out there with personal experience?

Are there any other options we haven't yet considered?


Can anyone guide us here? Safety, comfort, and longevity are all of equal importance to us in this decision. We very much appreciate any feedback we will receive!! Thank you all in advance.

 

[pooldv]

Welcome to TFP!

All composite deck materials are not the same. There are lots of different materials, textures and finishes. I have installed hundreds of square feet of ChoiceDek from Lowes over the past few years and it is not hot, not slippery, made in USA from recycled materials and reasonably priced. It feels very nice and smooth on your feet. The only issue I have seen with it is that our Juniper trees drop something that sort of stains and darkens the color a bit. It is hard to describe, not too bad to clean up with some bleach and a deck brush though. And no impact on the material other than appearance. Decking away from the Juniper trees is good as new. Decking under roof in screen porch is pristine. Pics in my pool thread, link in sig.

 

[gwegan]

I would be wary of the Rubaroc product. The warranty, if any, is provided by the installer not the manufacturer. A warranty is only as good as the entity providing it. Second, while they say it can be applied over wood, I believe they are talking about a solid wood deck. Not a planked deck. They don't provide that much info online so its difficult to tell.
No planked deck has a uniform surface and I would be concerned here. Finally this is a poured product and most wood decks have more "give" and play than a concrete deck. A wood floor inside a structure is much stiffer than a wood AGP deck.

They also sell a planked product with the material inlaid in the planks. If you like this that is the product I would purchase.

RubaDec - Poured in Place Rubber Surfacing

 

[foodnstuff]

Thank you, we will look into more composite decking brands.

- - - Updated - - -

Thank you for your response.

 

[GaryT58]

I rebuilt our entire deck, including stairs with the Lowe's composite choice decking and am very happy with it. It has texture like wood, and while its not next to pool, I do not feel that it is slippery. You could examine this at Lowes or look at others taking a rag with some water, making it wet and see how much you hand slides on it.

 

[kywildcats]

If done right, treated lumber will do fine and probably out live you.