DeckProtect.com
Protect your deck or patio from the heat of a fire pit.
TimberTech Composite Decking
This company from Wilmington, Ohio entered the composite decking business in 1997 with a single color. Since then the company has improved its product with several variations and colors. In 2012 TimberTech® was purchased by CPG Building Products, the company that also owns Azek of Skokie, Illinois. The corporate headquarters moved to Chicago in late 2018, but TimberTech manufacturing continues in Ohio.
Until recently Azek and TimberTech were distinctly different brands with different web sites. Now both are offered under the name TimberTech and on the TimberTech web site.
The company now markets its decking products three different quality and cost levels: Good, Better, and Best:
Good: TimberTech Edge®
Better: TimberTech Pro®
Best: Azek®
Until recently Azek and TimberTech were distinctly different brands with different web sites. Now both are offered under the name TimberTech and on the TimberTech web site.
The company now markets its decking products three different quality and cost levels: Good, Better, and Best:
Good: TimberTech Edge®
Better: TimberTech Pro®
Best: Azek®
Photo by Phil Dickinson
Above:
TimberTech Edge®
(Good) is a wood/plastic composite capped on four sides with a thin layer of PVC that provides the color and texture. The Edge® line is scalloped, which means it has less material and is priced lower. I have seen no evidence that the scalloping makes the board significantly weaker. There is a limited selection of 3 colors. Shown above is "Coconut Husk." It has a 25-year fade and stain warranty.
Photo by Phil Dickinson
Above:
TimberTech Pro®
(Better) is a wood/plastic composite that is capped on four sides, leaving only exposed ends of the board exposing the wood/plastic components to the elements. The Pro line offers a broad selection of 11colors. Shown above is "Driftwood." The colors are variegated, meaning they are not solid colors but have variations of color to simulate stained, rather than painted wood. The Pro® series has a 30-year fade and stain warranty.
Photo by Phil Dickinson
Above:
Azek®
(Best) is not composite decking. It has no wood content. It is what they call a "capped polymer." Polymer is the technical term for plastic. In this case, the plastic is PVC, also known as vinyl. The website does not explain what the polymer is capped with. It could be a different formulation of PVC, or it could be Polyethylene or HDPE (High Density Polyethylene). In any case, the capping provides the texture and color as it does with composite decking. The grain texture of the Azek is much more subtle than that of the TimberTech capped composites. The Azek line has a broad selection of 11 colors. Shown above is "Coastline." Also, note the "square" rather than "grooved" profile. All three lines are available in both square and grooved. The groove facilitates a hidden fastener system, while the square edge is good the outside edge of the deck. While PVC decking is more expensive and has some advantages such as being more resistant to moisture, less hot on sunny days, more slip resistant, and a 50-year fade and stain warranty, it also has some disadvantages. One disadvantage we discovered in our testing is that PVC decking is much, much more vulnerable to heat radiating from a fire pit. Check our page that shows the results of the test
Can you use a Fire Pit on TimberTech Decking?
Fair Question. To answer that question, we built a test deck and fired up a wood-burning fire pit on top of a grouping of composite decking samples. The resulting TimberTech sample shown here is dramatic evidence. To be fair, it was a fire pit that burns hotter than most underneath. All fire pits will cause some damage. We did another test with the same fire pit with DeckProtect protecting the decking samples, and the sample were completely unharmed. Read More.
The
TimberTech Porch collection
offers 9 different colors. Since porches are, by definition, covered by a roof and not open to rain and snow, porch boards are designed to have no gaps between them. The tongue and groove boards are offered in two widths: 3.5" and 5.5", which means you can use both for a more interesting and natural look.
TimberTech also offers weather-proof railing systems from a traditional New England look to a modern tropical look.
Nothing adds to the magical ambiance of a deck in the evening like well placed lighting. Timber tech offers a number of different types of lights to place strategically on your deck.
The photos on this page, not otherwise credited, are from the TimberTech web site: https://www.timbertech.com
