decking question

[onceinabluemoon]

My garden is 1/3 patio and 2/3 'garden'.

In the autumn, winter and most of spring and summer the children get to use the 1/3 patio as we have clay soil and the garden turns into a bog with the rain...

I have a man coming tomorrow to measure up to have decking put down for about 2/3 of the garden so we have an all weather playing area.

My questions are:
How do you clean it? (I am going to have to put rabbits cages onto it so need to be able to give it a good clean)

How do you prevent it from getting slippery?

Is it noisy with kiddies running around?

Is there any reason why I should not get decking?

[kel1983]

Our decking is now under cover so it doesnt really get slippery but before we put the roof over it it was very slippery during the winter months and when it was really wet.

We use to power wash it every once a year and coat it with clear stain although the man in the shop said if it was treated when we bought it, it shoulnt need coating. But it makes it look much better.

Ours is noisy when the children are pushing prams and cars around it but i thing that is because we have th eroof over top and it echos.

It is a great bonus having the deckingespecially in the winter months when the grass is like a bog. Ours covers a large area and we still have a large grass area for the nicer months.

I like it much more than boring patio.

[Pipsqueak]

It should be pre-treated timber so that it doesn't get slippy.

If its decent stuff then you should not have to retreat for years - remember you get what you pay for.

No its not noisy - well I don't think it is but I suppose if you got kids using it as a drum and bass addition....:D


To clean it.... will have to ask the other half when he gets in later.....

[onceinabluemoon]

Thank you

I know they have some decking at school and when it was wet my LO ran and jumped in it and slid badly banging his head. I dont want that here or we'll be in the same place as now, they cannot use it when its wet...

[sweets]

i know a lot of people say that it gets slippy but mine never does! but it is in a sunny position in the garden.

i have jet washed mine but only because ive had it out to do the patio, the decking doesnt need cleaning really. ive stained mine only because i wanted a bit of colour on it to make it look better rather than just weathered wood. The only thing about staining it is that once you have done it it really needs doing every year as it wears off and looks patchy.

[heidicat]

my decking became leathal this winter - Ive got a south facing garden and it was good quality wood but somehow it was like an icerink without the ice! I slipped coming out of the back door and did some impressive moves before landing on my bum! Very painful! :laughing:

Its fine now though so I think it must have been due to the rain/snow that we had.

[Angela234]

we had a decking done last year south facing and sun trap position and it wasn't slippery at all in the winter. It dries out very quickly

[onceinabluemoon]

I dont really understand what south facing means... :blush:

I think its south facing(ish), its in full sun from about 11am onwards. We have to be careful as it gets boiling hot, but obviously not sunny in the winter...

[mushpea]

we have a little patio then block paved the rest of the garden as ours was a muddy bog in the winter too, its so much better and we can use it all year round, we ar thinking of turning the last bit of paito in to decking,, my OH lays the stuff and says that as long as its cleaned properly it shouldnt get slippery.

[heidicat]

If the sun comes from the left and goes over your garden and sets somewhere on the right then its south facing... Means you have sun pretty much all day. Sounds like yours is.

You can buy stuff from B&Q etc to treat the decking if it does get slippery, but I think mine only did it because of the bad weather this winter. Its coming up for its 3rd year and I've not treated it all yet. Will do this summer just to make sure I dont fall over again!!

Not much noisier than a patio to be honest. And if its done well, it looks really nice
x

[mushpea]

OH says if you clean it twice a year with a preasure washer and dont let the dirt build up it shouldnt get slippery,, apparently if the dirt builds up then thats what makes it slippery.

[onceinabluemoon]

Thanks ladies :)

Those whose OHs have said pressure wash it... I dont have one so will have to buy new, what do I need to look for please?

[buildingblocks]

Thanks ladies :)

Those whose OHs have said pressure wash it... I dont have one so will have to buy new, what do I need to look for please?

best brand as far as I know is Karcher but expensive check out Ideal World website as they have good deals sometimes

[onceinabluemoon]

Thanks everybody :)

The guy came yesterday and we had a long chat about why some decking gets so slippery and how to deal with it. Your advice gave me lots of things to ask. :)

Now I'm just waiting for the quote...

[youarewhatyoueat]

I saw some fab decking at my local special school, they have just had a large area done but it wasn't wood it looked exactly the same but was a plastic type of material. I think its made out of recycled bottles but thats a guess.
It was really effective and wouldn't look out of place in a garden, it was even ribbed like wood decking, slightly darker in colour. Just another option for you.