Average life of wooden deck

[bobbydriver]

11 years ago I installed a wooden deck about 5m x 5m in the garden. I did it with basic deck boards from Wickes or wherever and have cleaned and treated it religiously once a year

However - this spring when I came to check it, multiple boards had rotted through and collapsed in places under my weight. Is 11 years an average lifetime for a deck that has been reasonably well looked after?

I can't help thinking that it the extended spells of wet weather haven't helped, plus, there are bits of it that are still totally sound, so maybe it was just some of the boards that weren't quite as strong

Anyway - have bitten the bullet and decided to redo the whole lot (the joists/frame are still totally sound). Any advice for future longevity appreciated!

 

[Koolpc]

Put a patio down instead!

 

[Lower]

Depends how it was built. Were any of the parts that have rotted in contact with the ground or built in such a way that they held water?

We've just replaced our old deck that was rotten in places. It was 17 years old, had been built with wooden posts set in concrete in the old fashioned way and had weed membrane between the decking frame and the deck boards which held water.

The new deck has been built on a frame that is held off the ground by threaded rod set into concrete bases. No wooden parts of the frame are in contact with the ground and we've used Millboard (at great expense) for the deck itself so hopefully this one will have a decent lifespan.

 

[Alec_t]

Any bare timber close to soil will be exposed to high humidity (unless very well ventilated) and at risk of rotting. Have you considered painting the under-side of the decking with bitumen? I used this ages ago on a wooden shed base, which was still in excellent condition when the shed was dismantled many years later.