If you are considering installing a new patio, you are probably weighing up whether to install a wood or concrete patio.
Wood patios seem to have becoming increasingly popular over recent years. You may even have visited a friend or relative recently who has wooden decking installed, and you may have thought to yourself how nice it looks.
Well, if their decking still looks great I’m willing to bet that they have either recently installed it – or else spent a heck of a time maintaining and repairing their decking!
Just as with any comparison, there are pros and cons to both construction materials. However, I am very much of the opinion that the pros for concrete far outweigh the pros for wood decking.
For one thing, concrete patios offer a wealth of versatility in the their installation and design that wood simply cannot compete with. It’s not simply the case that your concrete patio will look different from a wood decking design – that should be obvious after all.
Rather, concrete offers such opportunities for unique designs that I’ll guarantee your concrete patio won’t even look similar to another concrete one – or even another ten.
Concrete can be colored, it can be stamped it, in the hands of a skilled worker it can truly be a true blank canvas. Therefore, you will see some concrete patios that will be dyed different colors, some will be stamped to look like natural rocks arranged in a path or a specific shape.
Wood, on the other hand, pretty much comes in one shape and color style. Yes you could always stain it, but wood will never give the range of color availability that concrete brings to the table. Wood also of course can’t be stamped or molded like freshly poured concrete. The grain and surface finish it comes with is exactly what you are going to get – and it is going to be essentially the same as any other wooden decking at any other home you visit.
That rigidity can also present problems with installation. If you are planning any kind of patio that is not laid out in straight lines and 90 degree angles, the installation of a wooden patio becomes that much harder.
Concrete patios on the other hand do no present such a problem. As a poured material, you can plan any shape or intricate design you wish to have – and concrete will happily adapt to your plans.
Finally, if you are really planning for the long-term, then concrete is most likely the material to go for.
Just consider weathering. After all, a patio is by design going to spend it’s entire life outside, completely at the mercy of the elements. You will know your local weather systems better than anyone, but even in a temperate climate a wooden patio will not take long to show the effects of weather damage.
Cracking, splitting, warping can all happen and happen after just one or two winters in the rain. Concrete on the other hand, provided it is installed correctly by a competent construction company, will give decades of service with only minimal maintenance required.