Thanks For the inspiration Julie. I’m thinking we might go with a darker colour for the back wall like one of your photos. I’m not sure if we will retain the jasmine creeper or go with another approach to planting. There is only about 1m between the pool edge and the walll The main view is at the end of the pool and that will definitely stay!

Summer in Australia is all about the outdoors. For many homeowners, spending summer lazing around on the back deck or beside the pool is the best way to enjoy that Aussie sun. But which deck is the right deck? There are a few questions you need to consider when choosing a deck. Is the material fire safe? Does it have a great appearance? Will it resist salt and chlorine? What is the slip resistance? Is it safe to walk on? Is it pet friendly? DECO explored 4 main types of decking around pools and spas. TIMBER The three main types of timber decking available are Pine, Rainforest Merbau and Hardwood. Timber is a really beautiful decking material, however, it requires a lot of maintenance including painting/oiling every 6-12 months, stripping and re-sealing every 3-4 years, and over time it will deteriorate. A timber deck has great dimensional stability, although it is subject to shrinking and warping, as well as having a poor fire safe rating and poor resistance to salt and chlorine. COMPOSITES Composite decking is manufactured product from either China, Australia or America. Chinese and Australian composites are inclined to fade rapidly and have some dimensional stability issues. American composites have a higher plastic content, making them the most durable of the three. The plastic, however, retains a lot of heat and becomes impossible to walk on with bare feet in direct sun. All composites fail for slip and chemical resistance and have a poor fire safe rating. FIBRE CEMENT SHEET + TILES Fibre cement sheets and tiles are another decking option; however, they do not provide the traditional appearance of a timber deck. This material is a durable, pet friendly and water-resistant (although the decking will become slippery when wet) decking as well as maintenance free. This particular type of decking is a good option for bush fire zone areas (BAL FZ). ALUMINIUM DECO product DecoDeck combines the natural look of timber with the strength and durability of aluminium. The decking system features a strong box section extrusion, anti-slip polyurethane powder coating and allows for expansion and contraction. DecoDeck is manufactured using powder coating sublimation technology to achieve a beautiful natural timber appearance. There is no maintenance, painting, sanding or oiling required. It is comfortable to walk on and will not retain heat like other decks do. DecoDeck withstands harsh environmental conditions and is a non-combustible product. For more information on DecoDeck please visit www.deco.net.au

On average, 15 – 20% of the materials purchased to build a deck are wasted during installation – regardless of the product used. This can be due to deck sizes, board length, required spacing between boards, positioning of joins around joists and other factors. For example, in the past, DecoDeck required a joist spaced at 600mm to join two pieces together, often resulting in 13% wastage of each length of decking, or more on a larger project. By failing to fully utilise decking materials, and therefore spending money on large amounts of material that are not used at all, deck installers are losing money on their projects. DecoDeck has created an innovative solution to this problem, developing a remarkable product to reduce decking wastage. The DecoDeck joiner is a piece of aluminium specifically designed to join two pieces of DecoDeck anywhere along the span of a deck – even between joists. This allows customers to utilise their DecoDeck materials up to 100%, as it reduces the need for cuts that align with joist positioning. For just a small cost when ordering a DecoDeck, deck builders can use more of the decking material they paid for, making a saving of around 15 – 20 %. As DecoDeck requires fewer joists than timber or composite products, which require 450mm spaced joists, the cost of the subfloor itself is also reduced. To find out more or to order a DecoDeck joiner, contact DECO at info@deco.net.au

The colours are awesome, now for the rest of the house.