Decks, Patios, Porches and Docks - Deck Materials/Hard Woods

I am having the deck in my house rebuilt (the deck that is there has rotted over the years and would probably not benefit too much from a washing and treatment). I have brought two contractors in to bid on the project and am trying to decide on the material to use.

Both contractors have bid with tight knot cedar and one recomended that I look at alternative materials, namelly Trex and Rhino Decking. I went down to the lumber store and decided that Trex looks too artificial. Rhino deck looks pretty good and makes a lot of claims to be much stronger and longer lasting than Cedar as well as requiring no after care. If the claims are true I think I will use this material (the bid for Rhino deck is $4,900 as opposed to $4,000) but I want to make sure I know what I am buyng before I commit to that much money.

I am hoping that someone who has had experience with Rhino Deck may be able to reply to me or post what they know about it. Is it easy to work with? Does it look pretty natural once installed? Is it really care-free and as durable as they claim it to be (lifespan of 30 yrs+ says the literature)? And most importantly: how does it hold up to mositure? This deck is going into a house in Portland Oregon (as in raining more often than not) and will hold up a Sauna (as in even more water for the deck!).

Any feedback is appreciated.

Have you considered pressure-treated wood?
If it is manufactured by a company like Weyerhaeuser, it usually has a 50-year limited warranty.
It is probably less expensive than either of the other alternatives.
Good Luck!
Mike

2X6 cedar is real nice.

Trex is particailly artificial. But it will not rot. Ever

I have considered preasure treated wood... but it is preassure treated wood that got me into this situation. The previous owners did not re-treat it yearly and the deck rotted. From what I have been told IronWood should hold up for years (decades) without the need for treatment... plus I have been told that the wood is so strong I can use 1" boards.. with half the wood the cost increase is nominal.

I know the feeling. There are some "dippers and shippers" in that business.
When I built my home in 1977, we used "pressure-treated" wood for three large decks bought from a local independent "wood treatment facility". Half of it rotted within five years, and by that time, the jerk had gone bankrupt.
We had to tear off the decks, and build new ones.
THAT is when we learned that one should only buy pressure-treated wood stamped with the "American Wood Preservers Bureau" (AWBP) stamp for top-of-the-line quality control.
Name-brand wood treaters (Weyerhaeuser, Georgia-Pacific, and other members of the AWBP) do it right...with 50-year warranties.
Good Luck!
Mike

Though it is expensive, I have built 2 decks with Pau Lope wood (an environmentally grown tropical wood). It is hard to work with, but its proponents suggest it would stand up well to your conditions. The downsides are its cost and its density -- you have to screw the boards in or use special attachments. But it looks great and seems to be unchanged since I installed it (I use Penafin to keep it looking nice, but that is a preference rather than a requirement).

I have researched the environmental claims and they seem to be valid. Search the web for a dealer. (I believe Pau Lope is a brand name for Ipe.)