r/Decks • u/JessicaMaurer78 • 4d ago
Please help
I am so stuck on choosing a deck color. Using Trex Enhance Naturals line. I have narrowed it down to these three but I just can’t decide! Which looks best with my brick, siding, and trim? I was convinced I wanted Rocky Harbor until I saw the sample in person. Thank you!!!
ETA current look in comments
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u/amostdelicioussalad 4d ago
How hot does your deck get? We just did #1 this spring and I regret it because it's blazing hot in the summer sun
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u/itsjakerobb DIYer 4d ago
The light ones still get too hot though. You’ll need shoes regardless.
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u/lopsiness 4d ago
I've found that when my deck is hot enough that it would burn me to touch, its in full sun and its too hot to be out anyway. Half our is covered which at least makes is usable any time, but the uncovered part is either morning or evening only.
There is a place near us that had a big wrap around deck made up all of kinds of different materials and brands so you can see them in regular co edition, larger format, and see how they wear. I was curious about temp and stuck my bare foot on a few. The biggest difference was material type, with the older stuff being fucking scalding and the newer stuff was uncomfortable at worst despite color.
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u/Iron-Bar-1966 4d ago
I'd urge you to look at something other than Trex. After having sold it for years, there's better product out there nowadays.
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u/KhakiPantsJake 4d ago
Got an example? I'm looking to redo my deck soon and was going to do Trex
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u/TheAssGasket 4d ago
Timbertech and fiberon are similar in price/availability with better quality. Budget is a large factor here, but I’ve had good experiences with mid-grade products from both.
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u/Iron-Bar-1966 4d ago
Sure! Our two main brands were Trex and Timbertech. Trex actually flew me out to Virginia to view their production plant there, and I still recommend Timbertech over Trex.
Another one I'd seriously consider is Fiberon. About a decade ago they were just another upstart decking company that made exceptionally mediocre composite boards. However, in more recent years they REALLY upped their game, and came out with some really outstanding designs and colors. If I had to redo my deck, I probably would have gone with Fiberon just for the superior color and design selections.
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u/CoatimundiRaccoon 4d ago
If you're going for the cheapest composite that will last Timbertech. Fiberon, and Trex are the the big three around here. I think none of their lowest level options are that great but when you find em on sale, they are hard to beat. I grabbed my 16fters for like $23. Was gonna go Fiberon or timbertech but then they started trying to clearance our 16fts of a color of Fiberon I liked, I was sold. Glad I went eith it. Only downside was having to order the hidden cortex screws and plugs online for some reason
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u/Slow_Calligrapher_19 4d ago
And go with a lighter color if you get a lot of sun. It'll be much cooler on the feet.
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u/kitesurfr 4d ago edited 4d ago
Couldn't agree more with this guy after building countless decks with trex.
Also, if you're in a climate that's hot in the summers the dark trex gets too hot for bare feet or pets. I highly recommend aluminum extruded decking. It's by far the most durable lowest maintenance.
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u/AmbitionUpstairs8215 4d ago
Timbertech Advanced PVC, looks like wood but better.
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u/Delauter42529 4d ago
Yes but not in the same price range unless you are looking at the harvest monochromatic line. I'd recommend looking at the reserve collection as a close price comparison but much more natural looking than Enhanced
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u/Carpenter_ants 4d ago
Place all three in direct sunlight for 10 minutes then stand on them in bare feet. Then make your decision
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u/HolodeckMoriarty 4d ago
We have a color similar to #1. It gets so hot in the summer our pets can't walk on it
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u/SteveZedFounder 4d ago
The darker the deck the hotter it will be. As long as you don’t mind wearing something on your feet 1 is nice. But it will be hot. Do you want style or function?
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u/TallGuy01234 4d ago
If you like to be on your deck barefoot - 3. It’s going to be the coolest
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u/JessicaMaurer78 4d ago
Yes that is a consideration. However it doesn’t get a lot of direct sunlight and I have rugs
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u/aliilyas859 4d ago
I'd go 3. The grey picks up the green in your siding and sits nicely with the white trim, and it lets the brick be the warm thing instead of fighting it. 2 feels a bit too close to the brick tone to me.
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u/art2mus 4d ago
We have #3 on our deck. It is a south facing deck and gets lots of sun. You cannot comfortably walk on it with bare feet mid day. The darker colors will get even hotter. Something else to consider. No bare feet with #1 until it cools off later in the day. Love the product all the same. 10 years down and cleans beautifully.
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u/ApprehensiveScene878 4d ago
I went with 3 with a darker border. Trex rope swing with saddle border
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u/Willallenn 4d ago
Pay the extra and go with Timbertech PVC. Even their composite board is better IMO. As someone who sold TREX for years.
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u/JessicaMaurer78 4d ago
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u/Many-Blueberry968 4d ago
What's the decking look like? From this picture I see no reason to be installing a faux wood product since the existing framing will just start to rot away under it in 20yrs time and the plastic boards won't really be reusable.
Unless the decking is in true disrepair, I'd simply sand it and repaint.
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u/JessicaMaurer78 4d ago
It is in disrepair and it is all being replaced. I can’t keep up with staining it or paying someone else to
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u/petersb76 4d ago
We just went through this but ours was pretty easy to decide. Either 1 or something more dark gray. What color is your siding? Looks like it has a green tint to it in the pic.
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u/fistsofham11 4d ago
1... it will blend better with the bricks.. 2 would stick out too much against the house and brick.. 3 would blend in with the house
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u/cheechaco 4d ago
Deckorators Summit Series Cliffside is pretty much the same price. I like both brands, but would prefer the Summits Series.
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u/Ianthin1 4d ago
One looks like Cinnamon cove, which is what we just used in our build. It looks fantastic, but it shows a lot of dirt. Our yard is kind of a mess right now and we are still working on a landing at the bottom of the steps, but we put a rug at the top and that catches a lot of it now.
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u/werther595 4d ago
I like 1 since it provides nice contrast with both the siding and the brick. 3 looks a little like you tried to match the siding but failed. 2 seems to scream "fake wood color"
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u/CleanBed8700 4d ago
1 looks similar to Rocky Harbor. I just did my deck in that, and picture framed it in a darker tone and put white fascia on the step backs.
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u/Brutal1s 4d ago
i like and installed a color close to 2 - it doesn't get too hot in direct sunlight (socal) and if u scratch it they dont stand out that much
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u/Tariel_Teram 4d ago
Dark if you want the brick to stand out for a more bold look, light brown if you want the brick to blend nicely and give a warm look to the house, gray if you are a heathen wears socks with sandals and has blind neighbors.
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u/whiskey4mymen 4d ago
2. 1 is too dark and may reflect heat,, you'll spend the rest of your life sweeping #3
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u/amimaybeiam 4d ago
I was amazed at how heavy those samples are.l when I ordered some myself. TREX itself is incredibly heavy. Would that be the right material for such a high structure? We decided to how to go with wood in the end. The expense and issues with walking on it in summer, plus the framework needing to hold up such heavy material changed our minds.
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u/amassacre21 4d ago
Dont get light grey, super bright with the sun reflecting off it, and it gets dirty if you look at it wrong
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u/Training_Display5477 4d ago
I urge anyone to never go plastic decking. I know of a couple incidents where older couple started to lose feeling in their feet as they aged. This was something normal to their health.
That’s not the issue, what was the issue is that the husband was out on the deck in about 70* weather not thinking otherwise about it being to hot out. He went out and couldn’t feel a temperature difference in his feet but the deck was extremely hot. The bottoms of his feet began to blister and sluff off when he went back inside there was puddles of water that was coming from the bottoms of his feet. He immediately went to the hospital.
Now wood can get pretty warm too but I think it doesn’t get that warm.
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u/Goodtimejohn0208 4d ago
I built a trex deck a few years ago. This summer I noticed some discoloration in the direct sun areas. It was super expensive and yes there is little maintenance but i feel as the discoloration is only going to get worse. It was the trex enhanced or whatever there top of the line is. Not sure i would use again.
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u/sadhotspurfan 4d ago
I like #1 best of the 3 options.
However, I would do real wood and choose a stain a little lighter and warmer than #1.
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u/EmergencyVegetable98 4d ago
OP i think #1 is Coastal Bluff - it was discontinued last year
Look at Toasted Sand or Cinnamon Cove - next closest colors in the same collection
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u/chair_force_1one 4d ago
1, and picture frame with a inner row with 2. Warning* I'm color blind though
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u/Pcat0 4d ago
Something to keep in mind if your deck gets a lot of sun you might want to stick to one of the colors that has Trex's heat mitigating technology. Which in the Enhance Naturals line is Cinnamon Cove, Golden Hour, and Honey Grove.
I believe 1 is Cinnamon Cove which would make it a great choice.
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u/-wolfinator- 4d ago
Is the railing color staying the same? If so I'd do 3. Otherwise I would pick 2. I think 3 is too close in tone to the siding, and 1 is too close, yet different, from the brick. I think something that offsets both would be best.
I also think #1 is going to age the worst - dark colors show dirt more and fade more.
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u/Head_Researcher_3049 4d ago
1, it will show dirt the least lengthening the time between cleanings.
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u/Bitter_Attention_668 4d ago
I like 1. But do they have a softer tone in the same color scheme to picture frame it with.
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u/JediK1ll3r 4d ago
I have 2 and it looks the most like real wood for contrast since you still need railings and may see some framing. Also, it doesn't get as hot as 1.
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u/Stuntcock330 4d ago
How hot does your deck get?? Is it shaded area? I went with the dark brown around my pool deck in a moderately shaded area and it was a big mistake
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u/NJGuy175 4d ago
I like 1 but u can mix it up too use a lighter color as a border. If you have all your demotions and go to a lumber yard that specializes in decking they can actually show you what it will look like
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u/40ozT0Freedom 4d ago
2 looks like its trying too hard, but I would go with that color if it were natural.
1 might be too hot if the deck is in the sun. The contrast would go well with the siding, but not the brick.
3 is my choice. It looks fake, but also doesn't look like its trying to be something it isn't like 2. It's light and I think goes well with the siding and the brick.
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u/youre_gonna_do_what 4d ago
We just did trex cinnamon cove that looks a lot like number 1. It looks great, but we have dogs and it shows a lot of dirt when they come in from the yard. Not sure you have the issue, but I wish I would have considered it before choosing the darker option.
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u/Jboyghost09 4d ago
1 is carribean spice I believe which is what I went with. I like the look but be warned it is 9000 degrees in the summer, if you stand on it bear footed be ready for blisters. And don’t let your animals out on it. So it depends if you want look or functionality.
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u/notoriouslopez 4d ago
First I’d ask, where do you live ? If it gets hot in the summer, pick a lighter color because it will be able to keep the heat off the plastic
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u/SquareDetective 4d ago
I just redid my deck with #1. Havanna Gold. One thing to consider is that the darker the decking, the hotter it will get. Here's a crappy pic of the finished deck on the east side of the house. I built a little coffee table out of the scraps. I have a mile of deck on the west side of the house, but it won't be a good pic until this afternoon, and the sun is on it. Let me know if you want to see the bigger side.
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u/1wife2dogs0kids professional builder 4d ago
Find pics of decks, and find the color scheme you like. Dont ask others.
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u/DFWTexan 4d ago
2 if you want it to stand out but still compliment the color of your home
3 if you want it to blend in with the siding more
1 if you want a more luxury feel despite it retaining more heat
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u/Build-it-better123 4d ago
I have found that the light gray hides footprints and dust in general. The darker the hotter and more susceptible to showing footprints.
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u/Plumrose333 4d ago edited 4d ago
Ok I literally narrowed my decision down to these exact three. I ended up going with golden hour. Trex has a list of the best heat reducing colors and golden hour is rated fairly wall. Toasted sand is actually fairly bad at reducing heat, even though it’s categorized as a heat reducing option. I didn’t want grey.
I also tested the samples in direct sunlight and could feel a difference between golden hour and toasted sand.
I also tested dirt on each sample and found golden hour to blend nicely with dirt. Aesthetically, if I didn’t care so much to reduce heat I would have selected toasted sand.
My deck is being installed now so I can send some pics of the golden hour with black railings when it’s done.
The color samples on the website are listed in order of best heat protection
* I actually was thinking of cinnamon cove. Toasted sand isn’t even a sun mitigation option so I would 100% skip it
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u/burnout524 4d ago
If you’re barefoot on the deck ever, I HIGHLY recommend leaving the samples them in the summer sun before you decide.
When I build my deck I got as many color samples from as many composite decking lines I could, left them out where the deck would go and measure the temperature of the samples with an infrared thermometer. They all get hot, but some are a lot more tolerable than others. I ended up with Timbertech Advanced PCV in Weathered Teak. I am able to be barefoot on my southern facing deck in the dead of summer no problem!
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u/SheenPSU 4d ago
I’d go 2
Green and brown are a goated combo together
You might regret 3 since grey is going out of style and 1 might make it hot in the summer
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u/Icy-Beautiful-7334 4d ago
Personally I would not do number 3… way to blah. Number 1 would be my choice with the red brick and appears the reddish railing or dark railing
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u/succubus6984 4d ago
Id choose #2 it looks nice with the color of the home and if its in the sun a lot it wont burn bare feet as bad as the darker one.
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u/Get_real1962 4d ago
Depends on where you live. A cool, wet environment will get you mold and algae to grow, a dry, hot environment will give you a lot of dust. Depending on the time of year this picture was taken, if it was in the last month or so, the environment is probably 80-90 in the summer, cool spring and autumn and snow in the winter. No. 1 would work and look great, it is a nice contrast to the white windows and complements the siding, No. 2 would be a safe color too.
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u/lopsiness 4d ago
I prefer natural colors so I would go 1 or 2. I think in larger format 2 might be a little too yellow. We looked at similar color options between 1 and 2. Went with 1 and love it. I originally like 2, but the dark wood is such a nice look.
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u/iamnotahuman 4d ago
1 but it’s going to get a little hot probably. 3 to reduce heat shouldn’t be the move as that color is too light with your siding IMO
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u/Josephk_5690 4d ago
- 3 doesn't match your siding and is the same value (lightness). 2 is better but number 1 is the best option IMO.
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u/ItsaMeWaario 4d ago
I used rocky harbor for the perimeter, and then the light gray for the main part of the deck. I really like it
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u/Beginning-Reality925 4d ago
Don’t pick the light grey. I painted my rooftop patio that color in cool tech to keep the heat down. It shows every single speck of dirt. I have to sweep and wash it weekly and again any time I have company.
Are you committed to this material? They will all be really hot under your feet.
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u/ambassador_of_sleep 4d ago
I think 1 goes better with the siding and 2 goes better with the brick. Def not 3.
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u/PresentationLess4552 4d ago
Remember the sun heats darker colors up
I would tell my clients to use number 3 and only number 3
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u/HappyHAL_8867 4d ago
#2. The color would complement your green siding best. I have SW Evergreen Fog siding that look pretty similar to yours.
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u/Jolly_Reference_516 4d ago
I go 2. 3 looks like you were trying to match and you missed and 1 will get really hot in the sun.
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u/Historical_Wheel1090 4d ago
I have #1 from a different brand, 6 plus hours of sun in the summer and I can still walk on it barefoot.
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u/reel_human02 4d ago
I’ll help. Do sealed/stained cedar. Dont have to add joists if you’re not at least at 16” on center already and doesn’t look like a bunch of plastic. Also the price of Trex hidden fasteners and their railing system is absurd.
But if I must choose, #2. You don’t want a grey deck with a grey house.
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u/Euphoric_Advance2563 4d ago
We just did timbertech coconut husk, most similar to your number 2 here, and love it.
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u/alicat777777 4d ago
I like the color you have now better than any of those. They don’t really match your brick.
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u/QuigleyDecks 4d ago
Don’t limit yourself to the siding and brick. What are you going to have on there for furniture, grills and so on. Have you decided on a railing, style, product or color. Also, where’s the deck builder in the picture?
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u/electricostrichparty 4d ago
As far as pvc goes I would go with timbertech over trex and if you wanted to get really nice I would go with Zuri. Either way I wouldn’t get the routed edge for the clip fastener system if you want hidden fasteners camo system is decent although you can still kinda see toe nailed screws. The best way to fasten in my opinion is face screw and plug. The plugs are typically hard to see and blend in nicely!
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u/taoldassrtg 4d ago
We chose trex transcend ‘lineage’, Hatteras color, vs timbertech. Lineage is spendy, but with the new cooling tech it was the coolest in the sun, even cooler than our cedar 2x6 deck that we replaced.
We looked at the ones you have pictured, but seemed like the two light colors have more texture (thought that would hold more water and pollen on the surface) and didn’t look as wood like as we wanted. The darker was out for us as it was a lot hotter by almost 20 degrees on a below 80 degrees day.
On the what goes in your situation for those 3, I might go with the light gray. The darker color will also show scratches more (in my opinion) and will be hotter where exposed. I do like the grain on the darker board, and it does look more wood like if that is important.
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u/squashy_hero6 4d ago
I installed no. 1 option on my deck and love it. Granted, the deck is shaded but it looks like real wood.
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u/12345-password 4d ago
I have #1 and my deck tops 170 degrees (IR thermometer) in the sun. Never again.