Compare materials, choose railings, and understand permits — with practical guides for Ontario homeowners.
The full buyer comparison: durability, heat, warranty, maintenance, and colours, checked against what each brand currently publishes. It ends with the exact lines worth shortlisting for an Ontario deck, and the ones that are not sold here.
Brand-by-brand strengths, warranty limits, and how each family handles heat, water, and an Ontario winter before you commit to a collection.
The two board families compared on what an Ontario winter decides: water and freeze-thaw, surface heat, how far a board moves, and the gaps an installer has to leave in the cold.
What the cheapest tier actually gives up, what a lighter board asks of the framing under it, and why stairs, borders and diagonals decide a composite budget long before the collection does.
Advanced PVC versus capped composite, collection tiers, the warranty ranges that actually apply, and Ontario care advice.
Where Fiberon's composite and PVC lines are strong, where they are not, and what the current warranty and care rules require.
Real wood still wins on looks. These guides cover what it costs to keep it that way in an Ontario climate.
The umbrella comparison: pressure-treated, cedar, hardwood, composite and PVC over ten years. What each one asks of you, what the durability classes and warranties actually claim, and the half of the deck that is wood either way.
What ipe hardwood really does well, what it costs to own, how CITES sourcing works, and where composite is the better answer.
What cumaru actually is, what the published density and durability figures say, what the CITES Appendix II listing changed for buyers, and how it compares with ipe.
What the name covers, how durable larch heartwood really is, why Siberian stock is now hard to buy in Canada, and how to install and finish it.
What cooking wood at 212 °C buys, what it costs in strength, the clearances the board is built around, and the three thermowood boards actually sold in Ontario.
Guard rules come first, style second. Compare systems against what Ontario actually requires.
Wood, aluminum, composite, cable, and glass compared against Ontario guard rules, with planning allowances instead of guesses.
Views, cleaning, privacy, wind, code approval, and planning cost — decide whether glass is worth it before you price a system.
A guard almost never fails at the pickets. What the Ontario details and the manufacturers' manuals require at the post connection, and which published numbers are ceilings rather than targets.
Nobody sells wrought iron any more, and the powder coat is not why aluminum does not rust. What the Fortress, Trex and Century documents publish about coatings, salt and maintenance.
What the city needs to see, what the frame under the boards has to do, and in what order — so the build is not stopped halfway.
When a permit applies, the drawings the city expects, current fees, inspections, and what to do with an existing deck.
Lighting is a wiring decision with a deadline, not a shopping decision. When the cable has to go in, what ESA expects you to file, what a transformer will carry, and the 3 m rule beside a pool.
Footings, posts, beams, joists, ledgers and blocking explained before the frame is covered — and the point where the decision stops being yours to make.
Choosing composite is the first of about nine decisions, not the last. What is on a deck order besides boards, the sequence the choices lock each other in, and the published arithmetic for how much to buy.
Which free Ontario plan packages are real, what separates a layout idea from a permit drawing set, and why an American plan does not transfer.
What a finished deck needs each season — and, just as often, what it must never be given.
Which decks need an oil or stain, which must never be coated at all, what the label limits mean, and how to apply and dispose of a finish safely.
Size, material, stairs, and railings in, an itemized material estimate in Canadian dollars out.
Composite, PVC, pressure-treated, cedar, and hardwood side by side before you open a single guide.
The full project flow — plan, permits, frame, boards, railings, finish — with the guide for each step.
Use the quote checklist to gather your dimensions and preferred materials, then contact Composite Deck Shop for a current material quote.
