The events of the last 12 months have certainly made us redefine how we regard our private outdoor spaces – simply precious. Forced to spend long periods of time cooped up at home, such spaces have become our havens, increasingly important for mental health and well-being.
It seems more and more of us have turned our attentions to improving our gardens, with many people opting for timber as their material of choice. The huge increase in demand for timber decking has resulted in many retailers reporting record year turnovers, re-enforcing the fact that the nation is back in love with wood.
It started in the late 1990s – a quiet revolution in the back gardens of Britain when we first discovered timber decking. Spurred on by celebrity gardeners and major retailers helping to drive new trends, demand for timber decking went from zero to a multimillion- pound industry in a few short years.
From simple low-level decks in the garden to high-level public access boardwalks and decking structures on hotels and restaurants, the timber deck had arrived.
Fast forward to 2021 and it’s interesting to see a new breed of garden makeover programme hitting our TV screens. ‘Your Garden Made Perfect’ sees two garden designers compete to create the homeowner’s dream garden. Clever virtual technology allows the design to spring to life before their eyes. The programme challenges our thinking about traditional gardens, inspiring us to regard them as an extension of the home – with the programme having a strong leaning towards the use of hard landscaping. The TDCA believes this will further fuel the appetite for garden decking as it lends itself well to such a concept. It is certain to further inspire people to invest even more time and money modernising their outdoor spaces.
So that’s demand sorted, what about supply? The word in the wood yard is ‘tricky’.
With the demand for decking being high, add a pandemic and Brexit to the mix and there is no wonder there are unprecedented challenges affecting the timber supply chain. But the timber industry is regularly faced with market challenges and those with good supply partnerships will be better placed and more resilient. With trading conditions far from easy, TDCA will do whatever it can to help its members turn tricky into triumphant.
The TDCA exists to provide key support and information to help ensure that all decks are built to a high standard, using quality materials. Well specified, designed and installed decks will perform and last as long as they are expected to. It’s a simple business principle; happy customers who get what they were promised will always come back.
Yet evidence suggests that substandard products and installation practices are becoming a problem affecting the public’s trust of timber decking.
To that end the TDCA is proud to be supporting a new educational campaign ‘Make sure it’s 4’. Members of the Timber Trade Federation and Wood Protection Association are working together to help buyers understand the importance of timber treatment and how to identify timber products which are fit for purpose.
The campaign will also encourage the timber supply chain to adopt the practice of pressure treating all softwood timber decking substructure components previously treated to Use Class 3, to a Use Class 4 level.
Use Class 4 is a higher level of treatment required for ground contact timbers. Giving timber the added durability and labelling it as such will provide absolute clarity about where the timber should be used.
The recommendation to specify Use Class 4 treated joists and other substructure products has been around for several years but has been largely ignored.
Hoppings Softwood Products was one of the first TDCA members to supply a Use Class 4 joist and now its SmartFRAME product (an incised redwood joist), offers a 30-year desired service life. It carries the TDCA DeckMark accreditation and is ideal for use with all types of deck board.
Some have suggested that deck boards should also be treated to a Use Class 4 specification to give added confidence to the decking market – an interesting idea which the TDCA will be canvassing opinion on in the future.
