Blog – Grassawayuk

Help save the planet by installing composite deck

Admittedly a bit of a tall order alone, but we all need to do our bit of collective responsibility. Ok, end of the save the planet speech but it is comforting to know that installing a composite deck system over the traditional wood boards can play its part. If you are considering adding an outdoor space to your home, understanding your available options will save a considerable sum of money in the long run.

There are several products on the market today that can help you create the outside space you’ve always wanted. Composite decking is one of the most popular decking products available due to its longevity and durability when compared to a traditional wood deck. For many customers, the biggest questions are, what materials are in a composite deck and why does it last so much longer?

Composite is made up of a mix of recycled wood and plastic. The wood particles can be anything from sawdust, wood chips, and wood fibre pieces. The plastic components can be either virgin or recycled plastic materials. Thus the use of recycled or recovered materials in the composite decks are considered a more environmentally friendly product for deck building.

There are two main processes for creating composite decking. One process is extrusion.

This is defined as a forming process in which the raw materials of recycled wood chip and plastic resin are mixed and extruded [forced] through a machine rather like the process of making steel to produce a product that maintains a consistent size and shape, this process solidifies the shape and desired dimensions.

The second process is called compression moulding.

This takes the raw materials and compresses them under extream heat and pressure to create a physical bond. You will notice that composite boards are much heavier than the equivalently sized wood boards due to this compression method, making the composite boards extremely strong and hard wearing. To compensate for this added weight most composite deck are hollow profile, which maintains the strength but drastically reduces the weight.

Extrusion usually produces the hollow lighter board and compression the solid heavier board, both are extremely strong and durable. We find the extruded boards are generally the preferred option, particularly when the price is taken into account.

Composite has a lot of the same characteristics of wood, but none of the disadvantages. The outer shell is a coloured resin finish which totally encloses the recycled wood inner, giving it a textured waterproof shell, this colour will never fade, never needs painting or oiling and is impervious, to stains, rot, fungi and the dreaded warping and splintering so often seen on traditional wood boards.

When you are looking to keep your outdoor space as low maintenance as possible nothing fits the bill more than composite decking alongside a suitable artificial grass lawn to create a beautiful place to relax and enjoy life without the hassle.

Pro`s – Environment friendly -Strong -Hardwearing – Water resistant – Anti rot / fungal – None slip – None scratch – None warp

Con`s – Price [approximately twice the cost of wood boards ]

Verdict – Higher initial cost of boards although installation and subframe construction will be about the same cost. Once the life of the boards is taken into account the composites comes into its own. The composite only requiring the minimal cleaning with soapy water over its life span in excess of 15 -20 years, while the wood boards will require constant annual maintenance to prevent rot and fungal build up. The application of a good quality oil or deck paint to seal the grain to prevent water absorption.

By adminAudio PostMarch 7, 2019July 6, 2019

Making the most of the summer months

This project completed in autumn 2018 was just a pleasure to work on. The weather was great, the customer so accommodating and easy going, it’s fair to say we were well looked after in the coffee and sandwiches department and one of the few jobs ive worked on where I have actually gained weight 🙂 The job was in two parts, an artificial grass surface and composite deck patio. In this instance, I will just comment on the decking as the grass installation is covered in other blog posts.

There was already an existing stone slab patio laid which the customer said was becoming a chore to keep clean and required a lot of maintenance, so after viewing some samples chose the chocolate brown deck board as it matched in nicely with the fence panels. There was a small perimeter wall around the patio dividing this area from the garden, which the customer wanted to keep, as this was built on the slabs it was decided to leave the slabs down and build our frame off them. The slabs were very secure so we saw no problems with this.

As we had a more or less flat surface to work off we went for 100mm x 50mm tanalised wood substructure, with 500mm centers between the joists, with bracing every 500mm, set onto rubber support pads and spacers to help with leveling and prevent the frame from coming into contact with the ground. Once the frame was level and secure we started adding the composite deck boards.

The beauty of these is not just that they look fantastic but that they require very little looking after, a mop down with some warm soapy water now and again will keep them looking as good as new. Another major benefit is they never need painting or oiling like traditional wood boards, they are water repellant, moss and fungal resistant and don’t warp in the winter. All in all a great product and, more importantly, we had a very happy customer. It’s no surprise that we are being asked more and more for this product, especially alongside our artificial grass as they complement each other perfectly. Installation time composite deck 3 days / artificial grass 2.5 days

By adminGallery PostFebruary 21, 2019February 21, 2019 No comments yet

The key is building a strong foundation

One of the most common misconceptions, in particular where artificial grass is concerned is that of undervaluing the foundation work. In this case, we are not talking a concrete or wooden substructure but a solid, flat, permeable base which will be solid but allow a little give underfoot to provide a cushioning effect. Without this, the quality of artificial grass is more or less irrelevant. Preparing this surface is where the real “graft and craft” is, it’s quite labour intensive but is absolutely paramount to achieving the perfect finish.

The removal of the existing natural grass surface is necessary, this prevents future degradation of the artificial surface due to the turf beneath dying away and creating voids or hollows into which the artificial grass will fall. This creates the all too common scenario where after 6 months your new, flat, beautiful lawn is now full of craters. This is the most common fault we see when going to a DIY installation. It is absolutely critical that the material used as your sub-base has the correct qualities so that it binds together well and compacts solidly and easily, most importantly of all it stays compact. We use a combination of two materials depending on the integrity of the ground below, either a 10mm – crushed stone, or heavy grit sand.

The second most common problem I’ve encountered with DIY installations is that often, there was no provision for a border, either, wood, metal, or block, this is not purely decorative but is an integral feature as a containment edging to prevent the sub-base being simply washed away. It will not happen overnight but over a few months or after a serious heavy downpour it becomes evident very quickly as the sub-base is quickly eroded.

The edging you choose can be either hidden below your new artificial grass surface as a containment frame or around the edge to enhance it, such as with a railway sleeper border, great for a nice chunky modern feel. Whatever your choice we have the perfect solution. A solid wood containment frame is always fitted as standard below the grass surface to maximize the surface area.

By adminImage PostFebruary 16, 2019February 21, 2019 No comments yet

Want to add value, then go off road

There are many reasons why you may want to create a block paved area, usually, its to add some off-street parking or increase the numbers of vehicles you can fit onto your driveway. Adding a good quality block paved driveway will add value and improve the kerb appeal of your home if it’s done correctly. This video is designed to show you just how we go about laying your new driveway or patio area. The amount of excavation [digging out] depends on several factors, such as the existing sub-base ground conditions [soil] and the load [weight] that will be imposed on it. This video shows a typical sub-base for a driveway which will be taking maximum load [vehicles] and hence needs the full depth hardcore [150-200mm] compacted.

Typically a pathway or patio will not be subject to such a load and depending on the ground condition can be 100mm compacted with a 40mm grit sand screed.

By adminVideo PostFebruary 13, 2019February 21, 2019

Quality supersoft artificial grass project

This particular project was one which required a little pre-thought and certain design elements to bring the whole project together. In particular, the levels between the artificial grass finish and the sleeper edging and the way they connect with the block edging and paved area.

Our aim was to incorporate the existing plant borders while giving them a more defined area whilst increasing aesthetics. The old natural grass surface was removed to a depth of around 150mm. As the soil was quite porous we decided to add around 100mm of 10mm crush [hardcore] to assist with drainage. Once compacted we added a 100gm weed membrane to prevent future penetration of weeds. At this point, we set the exterior sleeper edge and infilled with heavy grit sand which is compacted and leveled ready for the grass surface.

This was the critical level, as we wanted to keep the grass surface 50mm below the sleeper top finish and bring the block edge in level with the sleeps. Once this was set we could proceed.

The area to be slabbed was stripped back to a depth of 200mm and a 20-40mm type 1 MOT [hardcore] sub-base was installed and compacted. This was topped with 10mm/dust crush and screeded ready to accept the slabs. A block edge was used to define the slab and sleepers with a more uniform pattern.

We allowed 24 hours before returning to install and trim the artificial grass surface. In all 6 days of installation time and a total area of lawn 46m2 and paving 76m2.

By adminImage PostFebruary 5, 2018February 21, 2019

I'm at the stage in my life where cutting the lawn has become a chore. I can't say I enjoy it anymore, so I'm looking for a product that will let me have more leisure time but look great all the year round

– Sam Lakin

Throw away the lawn mower and relax

It`s not unusual at a certain time in life or with a hectic work and social schedule that finding the time and effort to maintain a lawn in pristine condition becomes something of a chore. There was a time when I was younger where I liked to get out into the garden with the strimmer and mower and feel the sun on my back as I pampered the old lawn. It gave me a sense of accomplishment once it was finished. I hated the cleaning up process if I’m honest, sweeping up the leftover cut grass from the paving, cleaning down the tools ready for next time

As I’ve got older everything has become just a little bit too much like hard work, nowadays I just prefer to sit outdoors and relax. It was with this in mind I started to look around at a way to make our lives easier. I came across artificial grass, when I first looked 10 years ago I wasn’t so keen on what I saw, it didn’t look real and felt terrible to the touch, so when I asked to view a few samples I wasn’t holding out any great hope that I would be over impressed. How wrong I was, I couldn’t believe how much it had changed, the first couple I looked at were a little shorter than I really wanted, nice and soft, and looked very realistic but more like a putting green than a real lawn. The next one was perfect, very soft and realistic with that just cut look.

The wife saw it and immediately said thats the one, lush shades of green and brown thatch to give it a very cushioned feel, perfect for the grandkids to play on.

We had the survey and got the quote, which wasn’t as bad as I had imagined, then had a good think about it. Could we afford it? Well it was no more than we had just spent on the new bathroom, and hopefully, in the summer we would be spending more time in the garden than the bathroom, so we decided to go for it. Our old garden had seen better days it was starting to get neglected so what did we have to lose. The work started around 2 weeks later, the guys turned up and by midday had stripped the old grass off and had the weed membrane down. I watched as they made put in the edging and fixed the membrane to it. By the end of the first day, they had covered it with what looked like several tons of sand. The next morning they more or less finished the job, leveling and compacting the sand ready for the artificial grass surface.

Day three was the best day for us as it was the day we got to see our new lawn for the first time. It looked fantastic, the wife couldn’t wait to get her shoes off and feel how soft it was. As we walked about on it, the lads tidied up and made sure everything was ok. All in all, a very pleasurable experience and one we won’t need to repeat in a hurry as we got a 10-year guarantee with it. So now bring on the summer so we can get some use out of it, I’ve bought a hammock and its time for some well-earned rest.

By adminQuote PostJanuary 20, 2018February 21, 2019

It`s easy when you know how!

How to lay an artificial grass surface and make it look easy. Any trade whether, plasterers, brickies, block pavers or whoever, when they are good at their job they make it look so easy. The finish you see once your new lawn is laid hides the labour intensive work that went before it. The beautiful, soft, natural looking grass hides a lot of blood [hopefully not too much] sweat [usually quite a lot] and tears [none at all I hope] that went into producing the final finish. There’s not too much to say apart from just watch the video, it will give you a better understanding of what exactly you are paying for.

The labour time and materials used depend on many factors, such as the soil structure, if it’s very claylike we add more hardcore to help with drainage if drainage isn’t a problem then it’s not an issue, the size and complexity of the garden, and any additional edging work such as block or deck finish.

I will add that since this video was made the quality of our supersoft range has improved significantly and we no longer need to lay the dried kiln sand into the grass surface on completion, as all of our current grasses have self-leveling fibers which don’t require the sand to keep them upright. A good quality grass above 2.5kg/m2 will hold itself down under its own weight, so again doesn’t need the extra weight of the kiln sand.

By adminVideo PostDecember 20, 2017February 13, 2019

Enjoy the summer with an ultra low maintenance deck

If you’re looking for a long lasting maintenance free durable finish then we have just the product for you. Manufactured to the strictest EU standards they not only look beautiful they are going to last. We always give a 15-year guarantee against colour fade, warping or splintering. Lots of colour options available. Ultra low maintenance means that all your deck will ever need to look as perfect as the day it was installed is a little warm soapy water and a mop over every now and again.

What’s not to like, it lasts far longer than natural wood, it looks like natural wood, it will never warp in the sun, will never get covered in moss, is none slip, none scratch, and never needs painting or oiling. That’s what we mean by low maintenance!

By adminVideo PostAugust 20, 2017February 21, 2019