5 Types of Outdoor Decking in Singapore
In Singapore, outdoor decking products are slowly gaining its popularity as new private homes and HDB flats are introducing the balcony and patio space areas for the home owners.
Wood Decking: The most common one is none other than wood decking product. In terms of wood decking, chengal, iron wood and teak decking are commonly found in Singapore buildings today. Wood species are graded in different strength and durability due to its age, janka hardness as well as dimensional stability properties. Wood decking naturally give your decking area a fine texture of nature.
To make the wood decking last longer, it is important to maintain it at least once every 6 months, giving it a fresh coat of paint or varnish. It is also important to install wood decking property to avoid unnecessary warping of decks due to improper installation, hence engaging of experienced outdoor decking professionals is important too.
Eco Wood Composite Decking: is considered as one of the latest entry into the Singapore decking market. It is the advanced improvement of conventional composite decking which we will discuss later on this article. Eco wood composite decking is manufactured in a eco friendly manner with a mixture of wood and composite that further adds to the strength and durability of the entire decking. Good quality eco wood decking can be relatively more durable and stronger even to wood decking and mostly other conventional decking. As it is slightly way more advanced, eco wood composite decking is relatively stronger in terms of UV resistance than conventional composite decking.
This is something important for home owners to know, as most less quality conventional composite decking may change colours due to UV. In terms of heat resistance which is another important aspect home owners should look into, especially when the decking is installed in an outdoor fashion with no shelter such as a swimming pool, eco wood composite decking will have relatively better heat resistant properties to conventional composite decking. This is due to the large proportion of wood properties in it.
Resilient Tiles Decking: Resilient tiles decking is not so common in Singapore, but we are starting to see it in some commercial properties. These are simply designed tiles that are installed in outdoors. They have a level of resistance and durability to rain and shine. However, resilient tiles may not be suitable if the decking is constantly under strong sunlight, which may result in colour changes. The other thing is some resilient tiles may not have relatively stronger slip resistant properties, hence may cause slippery if the decking is left wet for a longer period of time.
Treated Soft Wood Decking: These are mainly soft wood species that may not be recommended for outdoor decking or high walk in traffic projects. However, due to chemical treatment, the soft wood becomes stronger, durable and even harder than some wood species with high janka hardness. Thus, making this type of product good for decking purposes. However, as such softwood are typically not grown in tropical countries such as Singapore or Malaysia.
The surface of such soft wood decking may easily result in wear and tear such that the surface may look unclean. Therefore, coating has to be done at least more than 3 times a year using darker wood paint instead of clear or light wood paints.
Conventional Composite Decking: The group of conventional composite decking is another common type of outdoor decking products in Singapore. We can say that even in conventional composite decking products, quality varies. It is relatively difficult to define that one particular conventional composite decking is of high quality. The reason is because such decking products is relatively easy to mass produced, thereby causing the market to have multiples brands of conventional composite decking.
Other than depending on one’s luck to find a reliable conventional composite decking product, choosing a credible decking supplier in Singapore is more important. This is because credible decking contractors would select good quality composite decking so as to ensure consistent quality in their residential and commercial projects!
In summary, it is important to understand the types of outdoor decking products options in Singapore, weigh its pros and cons, and then decide on the best possible outdoor decking products to install in your balcony, rooftop terrace, backyard, planter or patio area!
