Our actual back-backyard is pretty small. We are anxious to get the fence finished in the next couple days because we know that will help define a larger backyard for our family that will include our expansive side yards, but as for the back–this is what we’re working with:
Womp, womp. That scalloped fence belongs to a neighbor, btw. We have french doors leading out to this area from the living area in the great room. When we were thinking about what to do with this back area, we knew a large deck would be perfect. Trying to make use of a small grass area seemed pointless since we have so much grass elsewhere.
What we didn’t have was an outdoor entertaining space and converting this small patch into that   is something that makes us giddy. Outdoor lounging and eating is something we haven’t really had before. In our chats about the deck plans, we keep getting stuck on the detail of composite decking vs. wood decking.
When we polled you for the half bath vs. pantry–you had so much insight. It gave us the courage to definitely ditch the 4th bathroom and make room for some big plans. So let’s hear from you again–would you rather composite decking or real wood decking and why? Or maybe you have had to make the same choice. We’d love to hear your experience!
I have no deck and no opinion one way or the other. But since I’ve seen ipe mentioned a few times in the comments, here’s a blog where a couple has built a garage surrounding as well as fence out of it. They’ve just finished it (the garage, the fence was a bit earlier this year), and also talk about considerations of oiling vs. letting it age etc. Maybe you’re interested:
http://afirepoleinthediningroom.com/2014/07/10/ipe-wrapped-garage/
There are more posts in this year’s archive. On the fence-posts (ha!) they also showed how the pre-routed part for assembly works.
I think the wood looks so much nicer than the other one, in my area a lot of people also go for stone which looks awesome too! The only thing I say for wood though is that it can be so slippery when it gets wet, which in Ireland is 99% of the year though I hope you have much better weather there :-)
We struggled with this decision too 2 years ago and decided to go with ipe wood (aka, brazilian ironwood). It’s as dense as can be. A piece of ipe is at least twice as heavy as pressure treated wood. The is an extra cost, but it’s worth it because you don’t have the plastic look and feel of a composite, and you don’t the maintenance issues with other wood. Ipe is insect proof, fire resistant and is so soft underfoot that I often find myself lying down on our deck!
We chose to apply and ipe oil to keep it looking dark/rich, but I’ve seen pictures ipe decks left bare and it grays so nicely. This wood needs no treatment at all if you choose to have none.
Ipe probably costs 25% more than pressure-treated pine, and your deck builder will probably up-charge for the labor because it wears out saw blades very quickly and is tough to screw into. We used hidden fasteners — the ipe boards come with a routed edge to accept these types of clips.
Good luck!
Just bought our first house in the PNW and our wood deck is shot. We got some structural upgrades done through our contract, but before winter hits, we will probably have to put in some serious love. (And money.) I know nothing of composite, other than a big expense. I think real wood is seriously beautiful, but as others have mentioned, factor in cost of maintenance and care in your estimates. But it’s a family thing. We just chose laminate floors over real wood because it makes way more sense in our neighborhood (selling in a few years) and with a dog and a soon to be toddler. Go with what works best for your family.
I just finished stripping and staining our 25 year old deck (pressure treated lumber). It is back breaking work! If I had the choice to rebuild it I would combine it with composite. Wood for the structure and the deck floor and stairs and composite for the spindles, rails and lattice. The only parts we have replaced are the tops of the handrails and the lattice underneath. We do restain every 3 or so years. I stripped it this time to change the color.