Deck Materials that are Water-Resistant

When building a new deck, you’ll make a ton of important decisions, perhaps the most important of which will be what material you’ll construct it from. There are many different deck materials you can use, and the benefit is that some of them are inherently water-resistant by nature. Whether it’s that these materials damage extremely slowly in water or they’re not porous, allowing them to form a tight, natural seal, these materials are wildly popular due to their ability to withstand the harshest of Los Angeles weather. Here are some of the most popular water-resistant decking materials and some of the advantages of each of them.

Vinyl

Vinyl has rapidly become a popular decking material for many different applications. For one, its cost is dropping dramatically as manufacturing becomes cheaper and more readily-available. Likewise, more and more options are hitting the market what seems like every single week at this point. While many of these different nylons have different advantages, they all inherently share some of the same properties: they’re cheap, require little maintenance, are lightweight, and easily replaceable. Additionally, the interlocking design these nylon “boards” use to stick together often creates a tight seal, making them virtually completely waterproof without any additional coatings.

Concrete

Concrete is a popular deck material for commercial installations because of its ready availability, fairly low cost, and extreme durability. Concrete doesn’t crack and splinter in the sun like a wood or some vinyl materials do: it’ll hold its form for decades with few to no issues. In fact, at the most you might see just a few thin cracks develop in areas where the building itself may have shifted or where air bubbles may have formed under the concrete surface. The only real downside to concrete is perhaps the most obvious one: weight. Concrete is extremely heavy, and any deck structure needs to be durable and capable of withstanding the load of thousands of pounds in order to serve its purpose.

Aluminum

Aluminum has many of the same favored properties as concrete, but in a much lighter package. Aluminum is much stronger than concrete for its weight, making it great for rooftop deck installations or other places where a major structure can’t be built. However, it’s one of the most expensive options out there, and that means you’ll be spending a lot more per square foot to install one. While resurfacing with aluminum is also fairly simple, you’ll have to pay particularly close attention to its condition, and you will need to re-seal it periodically to ensure its durability and strength last for as long as possible.

For more information about building a deck out of these materials or the great waterproofing options we can provide your deck with, speak with the Los Angeles deck waterproofing experts from Capital Deck & Stair Waterproofing by dialing (888) 508-2966 today!