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  1. Expert Member
    Michael Maines | | #1

    Do you mean for decking floor boards? I usually specify eastern white cedar, though it's on the soft side and is getting expensive. Last year I used eastern Larch (aka Tamarack, aka Hackmatack) for a small deck at my house. Friends who have access to black locust say it makes a great deck, but it can be hard to find.

  2. ethan_TFGStudio | | #2

    How about recycled composites? Some are up to 95% recycled, I believe, they last a long time, and will even take offcuts back as scraps to recycle.

    1. Expert Member
      Michael Maines | | #3

      The ones with a resin/wood-flour core tend to fail, from what I've seen. Manufacturers of any type that claim to use recycled material often use post-industrial (i.e., pre-consumer) waste, which is probably a good thing but not as helpful as using post-consumer waste. Plastic decking gets very hot in the sun, it sags between joists, it either gets moldy or it's treated with mildewcides that have negative environmental impacts, etc..

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