How Hot Will Composite Decking Get in the Sun?

The answer to that question depends on the kind of composite decking that you purchase. Studies have shown that when you install composite wood decking in direct sunlight, the surface temperature can reach 34° to 70° c. Most decking makers claimed that timber decking is excellent when it comes to keeping a lower temperature under the sun. Newer generation composite wood decking is made with an improved surface that reduces heat absorption. This write-up explains how hot can composite decking get in the sun.

What Is Composite Wood Decking?

Composite decking or wood-plastic decking is an outdoor flooring material. The purpose of creating composite decking is to solve the problems associated with wood decking. As an outdoor flooring material, wood-plastic composite is built strong. This makes it last longer than timber. Wood-plastic composite is also easy to maintain, and this sets it apart from timber decking, which is not. Homeowners have been using plastic wood decking for their outdoor space because it provides better resistance to the elements than timber.

 Decking and the Sun

Most decking materials are installed in the outdoor space except for those used to make patios. When you install decking outdoors, you will expose it to the sun. The glimmers of the sun will touch the surface of your decking. Most decking will absorb heat from the sun’s rays. This will make the decking surface hot and unbearable to walk on.

 Wood decking has been known to absorb little heat when the sun’s ray reaches its surface. But that depends on the paint that is used to coat the surface of the wood. Composite decking will absorb heat, but the extent depends on the surface pigment. The same goes for plastic decking. This means that how hot a decking can get depends on the colour.

Composite Decking Colour

Wood-plastic composite comes in different colours. There are light and dark colour composite boards. Light coloured composite has fewer bright pigments than dark coloured composite. Grey, brown and silver are all examples of light-coloured composite. Dark-grey, dark-brown, anthracite grey and oak are examples of dark coloured composite decking. Most homeowners do install black composite decking. Aside from colour, most wood-plastic decking has an improved surface. The surface will not get hot irrespective of the colour.

How Hot Will Decking Get in the Sun

How hot your decking will get in the sun depends on the colour. It implies that the surface pigment of your decking affects how hot it can get. We explained in the previous heading that there are two types of decking colour. The light-coloured decking and the dark-coloured decking. Light colours like grey, brown and silver are better resistant to heat. At the same time, dark colours like dark grey, dark brown and anthracite grey are not resistant to heat. 

This implies that if you install dark coloured composite, you should expect it to absorb more heat than light colour composite. When the rays of the sun reach the surface of a light-coloured decking, it will reflect it. This will prevent the decking from absorbing the sun’s ray. But when the sun’s ray reaches dark-coloured decking, it will not reflect it. Dark objects like cloth or cars are better absorbers of heat. The same goes for decking. Dark coloured decking will take in heat and eventually becomes hot.

If your composite decking has a dark colour, you should expect it to absorb more heat than a light colour. But if the decking has a light colour, you should expect less heat absorption. So, if you dwell in hot places, you should contemplate installing light coloured composite.  But if you dwell in cool places, you can install dark-coloured composite.

Wood-Plastic Heat Resistant Solution

Most composite makers have developed heat resistant composite solutions that are perfect for any outdoor space. This type of decking is best for the full sun. While ordinary composite can reach 142 degrees on a hot day, this decking will stay at a low temperature of 60 degrees. This makes the decking the best choice when building it under the sun. It is a lower temperature and high-performance decking with a surface that better resists the sun’s ray.

Conclusion

How hot can composite decking get in the sun? Plastic wood decking can become very hot in the sun if you install dark-coloured decking. But if you dwell in a hot area, you should install light-coloured decking. Or, you can n use a wood-plastic composite that has an improved surface.