I'm going to extend an existing deck and would like advice on what decking material to use.

The existing deck is on the north side of our house, and is decked with pressure-treated 2x6 SPF (spruce/pine/fir) and is 2.5 years old. It is covered and receives no direct sun or rain. It has been stained with Sikkens semi-transparent, and has stood up well -- no significant cupping or warping. However, another deck that does have direct sun/rain exposure has some warped and cupped boards.

The extension to this north side deck will be parallel to, and will butt up against the existing deck. If I decked it with the same P-T SPF 2x6, you probably wouldn't notice it was an extension unless you looked at the structure underneath. This area will get full exposure to rain (~70 inches per year), and between 0 and 9 hours of sun per day depending on whether it's summer or winter. It's cloudy a lot here, and north side decks here tend get a little mildew on them if they're not maintained. Typical summer temperature is ~ 75 to 80, and winter ~ 25 to 40. We average ~ 5 days of snow per year.

This deck will be the main pathway from our house to the back yard, which is rock gardens with rock paths and no lawn. That means every trip to the yard will track grit back onto the deck.

I considered a composite material until I read this forum, and now I'm torn between using the same P-T 2x6 SPF (I'll have to clean and re-stain the old one every few years anyway); or making the addition either red cedar 5/4x6 or ipe 1x6.

What worries me about the P-T SPF is that it should be weathered for ~ 1 year before staining. That would mean if I want to stain all 4 sides, I have to remove it, stain it, and refit it. That would be a pain.

Cedar would probably stand up well to the weather. We'd stain it the same as our existing deck and restain every few years. But it's soft, and may scratch up a lot in the areas that are pathways to and from the rock garden.

Ipe sounds very attractive. We could let it weather to grey, which would match our house colour scheme. But where do you buy it in the Vancouver BC area? I don't like the idea of paying $2000 for wood, sight unseen, then having to ship it back at great hassle and my expense if I'm not happy with it.

What would you advise me to do with this deck?

Thanks,

Rick