“Just remember there will be a breaking point,” he adds. “Lumber futures tell us that prices will likely remain about twice as high for the rest of 2021,” Logan says. We’ll have to wait for our final test results, though, to see how alternatives stack up against wood.Īnd if the lumber shortage has made building a deck prohibitively expensive for you this year, hit pause. If, before the lumber shortage, the pricing of composite held you back-and you need a deck now-you could seize the chance to trade up to a material that resists staining, requires far less maintenance, and has long been viewed as a more premium product. “We’re able to react quickly and have been able to convert projects because of that.” “We have not had any deliverability delays and have inventory for quick turnaround times,” says Chase Moritz, director of marketing at Envision. Logan confirms that surging wood prices have also led to a run on composite materials in some areas and from some brands, though others have been able to meet rising demand. “The cost of the 6圆 posts used to support decks has tripled in a year,” Logan says.Īnd then of course, there’s the issue of availability. Many composite decks still require pressure-treated wood framing, and in some cases, these structural pieces have gotten pricey. But while that would seem to make building a composite deck a more appealing choice, there are limitations. “In stark contrast to historical norms, there have been times when composite decking has been cheaper than wood decking,” adds Logan at the NAHB. One of its products, the Ridge Premium collection, now runs close in price to traditional wood options. Envision Decking, a manufacturer of composite decking, hasn’t raised prices at all this year. With prices ranging from $5-$7.50 per linear foot, you’ll still pay a premium over what you’d pay for wood, but the gap has narrowed considerably. “We had a price increase this year of 10 to 15 percent,” says Don Garrison of Nexan Building Products, the company that makes Nextdeck and LockDry aluminum decking products. Cedar decking, a traditionally more expensive (and naturally rot-resistant) alternative to pressure-treated lumber, has seen a 150 percent price increase in the same time.Īlternatives have gone up, too, but not at nearly the same clip-and in some cases, not at all. Those early disruptions, coupled with a continued shortage of raw material, have caused the prices for pressure-treated decking boards to double since last year. “Early in the pandemic, supply-chain disruptions caused a shortage of the chemicals used to make pressure-treated wood.” “The problem really first emerged with pressure-treated pine,” says David Logan, director of tax and trade policy analysis at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). It was also the first segment of the market to be affected by the COVID-19 shutdown last spring. Pine is a softwood that’s treated with a chemical application to help it resist rotting in outdoor applications, such as a deck. More often than not, it’s also the wood used for framing any deck, even those made with a composite material such as Trex or Azek. Pressure-treated pine is the most popular choice for wood decking boards. The biggest appeal of alternative decking is that it never needs to be stained and requires little if any maintenance. Wood in general also offers better slip resistance. “Wood resists flexing better than composite materials, but composite, PVC, and aluminum decking all resist staining better than wood,” says Rich Handel, CR’s test engineer for decking. But some results are already in, highlighting distinct differences among choices. Consumer Reports plans to publish full decking ratings for 22 lines in the coming weeks. Wood and other materials each have their own advantages and drawbacks. “But that preference has also really been driven by cost, so it will be interesting to see if the trend continues.” “Wood decking has historically been the most popular choice, accounting for more than half of all the newly built decks in America,” says Min Kim Bryant, CR’s market analyst who covers decking.
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