composite decking or cement patio

13 years ago

Our back patio/deck will be elevated and we have two small children, 3 and 6 months. We like the look of a cement patio slightly better, but we're concerned about putting a railing into cement. Also, should the stairs come off the house or should the patio/deck be elevated with stairs coming off of it? We really go back and forth between the patio and deck so any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

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Comments (2)

lavender_lass
13 years ago
Hi Cubbie- I would definitely start with the outside area the same level as your home. Maybe a deck area, with stairs down to the patio?

As for what to do with each...the BBQ and table might be on the deck (or at least the BBQ) so you don't have to climb stairs while carrying food. More entertaining space, down on the patio, means less railings and easier access to the yard.

My mom has trex deck and loves it. You might want to get the vinyl railings (less splinters) and easier maintenance. If there are several stairs, from the deck to the patio, you might want to do an L-shaped stair, with a landing. It takes up more space, but easier to catch yourself, if you slip...especially for the kids. (We did this on my mom's deck.) A small gate at the top of the stairs, from the deck to the patio, might be a good idea, too...but you've probably already thought of that :)
nini804
13 years ago
I agree with Lavender...regardless of what you choose, I would rather walk straight out from the house. We are doing a brick terrace from our family room and breakfast room to the outside, then there will be steps off the terrace to the patio (which will either be brick pavers or (more likely) stamped concrete.) I think composite decks are beautiful as well, and depending on the style of your house, might even work better than a brick or concrete terrace. Our house is brick, so that is why we went with that.
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We opted to go with concrete. I didn't stamp it since most other decks/patios I've seen that were stamped collect and hold dirt in the grooves. We also didn't stain it since that option tends to need to be repeated once traffic areas wear through. You also have to keep the surface of the concrete clean from spills and stains during the build. Everywhere something spills is a spot where the stain may not adhere. Instead of all of that we worked with the concrete company and had our concrete colored. They added color dye to the entire batch of concrete and when it was poured it had a nice mellow brown tone. This blended in nicely with the house. Almost all of the synthetic wood decks I've seen have their issues. Some can be simply keeping them cleaned and free from mold, others I've seen suffered from sagging and swelling. All of them require some type of maintenance. We're going on two years and I've done absolutely nothing to our suspended concrete deck, patio, or covered concrete patio below. They are solid and sound. Not sure if you can utilize concrete or not, but look into seeing if your concrete company will add dye, maybe another option for you. FWIW - I would never install a wood deck - way too much maintenance.
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We debated the same issue last year. We chose pavers that will be installed grade level. The cost was lower than the Trex, cooler to the touch and less fading. I know people say composite needs no upkeep and never fades, but I am not so sure about that. The difficult part to the pavers is that steps are necessary since a raised paver was unaffordable. One guy did suggest laying paver tile over the existing deck joists/beams but I did not trust this idea either. And sure enough, once we removed the deck floor boards and joists, we found rotting and splitting footings. It would have been the proverbial lipstick on a pig type of thing. Make sure your deck footings and beams are truly sound before laying paver tile over the existing deck.
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composite decking or cement patio

Comments (2)

lavender_lass

nini804

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