Name:	cottonmouth -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/2/2023 9:22:48 PM

Does anyone have any good experience on composite wood for a dock/pier?  We are planning on building a new dock this year and would like to use composite.  We have replaced our treated lumber twice in 14 years.  It is now time to do it again and would like to use something that will last longer.  We have pressure washed and stained the pier yearly and it still splits, cracks and warps. There are a lot of products on the market and hoping to find the best.  TIA

Name:	GoneFishin -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/2/2023 9:45:34 PM (updated 8/2/2023 9:47:00 PM)

While I can't answer you question directly, read the attached and then go to the library and read the ratings.

ARTICLE FOR COTTONMOUTH

Name:	Rooster -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/3/2023 7:48:57 PM

Don't have composit and never will.  Friends have it and it will blister your feet.   If you have done all you say u have done yearly then u need to look at how you doing it and the products used.  I pressure wash and use Thompson Water Seal ( clear ). Once every 3-5 years.   I have experienced no problems.   Mine is all treated lumber from Home Depot.  Granted quality of wood is not as good today as it once was!  I'm happy!

Name:	Lifer -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/3/2023 8:04:43 PM

There are some out now that have a honeycomb pattern instead of being solid.  The solid ones are so dense they hold so much heat that you can't stand on it in summer heat barefooted

Name:	Talullahhound -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/10/2023 8:45:30 AM

We have composite on our dock.  It does get hot, but I'm told there are newer products that don't get hot.  We chose composite, because the sun does a number of wood and I got tired of replacing it.  Make sure you get someone that knows how to work with composite.  The first guy I hired didn't know that they were doing and it buckled.  The next time I had it done, I got someone that knew what they were doing and it's been fine.

Name:	MartiniMan -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/16/2023 2:32:58 PM

We put Trex on our dock.  Several observations.  First, it is hot in the sun, hotter than wood but not significantly so.  Both the wood and the Trex are too hot for bare feet in the summer sun.  Second, despite the heat issue we really like the Trex over wood. No more splinters and no more having to seal it every year to keep it in decent shape.  With the change in wood treatment processes the current treated lumber is not nearly as durable as it was in the past.  Third, it is more expensive than treated lumber but it will last a lot longer and is less expensive over the long haul.  Fourth, you need to look at the spacing of the support beams on your dock.  Composites need a relatively small spacing to prevent warping between support beams.  We realized that ours was too wide so we installed the Trex over the current wood floor which worked like a charm.

One thing we did to help with the heat was to buy some outdoor carpet (looks like grass).  We had it before when we had wood but bought some more to go on our floating dock as well.  Definitely helps on hot, sunny summer days.

Name:	Maverick -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/19/2023 10:34:59 PM

Composite floor joists have to be a max of 16" on center -- just updated our dock - also we put butyl tape down on all the joists.

Then what you could do if needed is add a spray mister on the dock - connect water hose on low and you have a mist of water as needed.

And agree no more sealing, splintering, algea, etc etc -- still have to clean periodcally but not like wood.

Name:	Summer Lover -	Reply
Subject:	Composite wood for pier
Date:	8/24/2023 1:10:25 PM

Sorry about being late to the party, but my $200 ($.02 adjusted for Brandon's inflation).

After replacing 5/4 treated decking boards more times than I wanted, when we had Sunrise Docks add a boat lift and rebuild our peir in 2020, we went with MoistureShield Vantage and are very pleased.  We recently had a deck added to our house and used the same material on it and a new set of steps to the porch.  

Cons: Yes, it is much hotter than wood, but we just throw a couple of buckets of water over it if we are going to be on the peir.  Cost is higher, but if you factor in having to start replacing boards after a year - purchased from Russell and Home Despot - I feel it is cost effective.  Joist spacing is 16" O.C. max, but that is not a big deal.

Pros: It is stable.  Put it down and you don't have to worry about shrinkage from all sides.  I had treated decking shrink so much that the ends of 16' boards were almost totally off the rim joist in less than a year.  There is no "top" or "bottom" on the Vantage, so if you have some 45^o cuts, you can flip the board and lose no material.   

MoistureShield does have a CoolDeck version that is supposed to help with thee heat, but we did not go that route.  Perhaps it would be the best way to go.