Wooden Floors for Exteriors: What Types Exist and What Is Their Maintenance

The arrival of good weather is the time when more attention is paid to the exterior of the home, and it is even likely that you will consider making an improvement. One of the most common and those that bring about a more significant change is to change or incorporate a new soil .

While it is true that there are many options on the market, it is also true that if you decide on a wooden floor for the exterior, the safest thing is that you will get a product with a superior aesthetic, very comfortable and easy to install.

Types of exterior flooring

Weather resistant, decorative and functional. The outdoor wooden floor allows you to cover an area in the garden, the entrances, entrances to the house and the common space around the pool. It has different solutions depending on the use, the benefits and your tastes.

Among the types of wooden floors we can list some of the most common:

Pinewood

Tiles are the most economical option . In various cases they include an autoclave treatment, a chemical process to protect it from fungi, termites and insects. For proper maintenance it is recommended to apply a specific protector twice a year.

Tropical wood

They are the densest, hardest and most resistant than pine wood; in addition, they also need a protective treatment at least once a year.

Composite

The composite is a combination of wood fibers and plastic resins, normally they can be made of PVC, high or low density polyethylene. It has the warm and decorative appearance of wood and the advantages of a plastic floor, as it has a very high resistance to fungi, termites and other insects that attack wood.

It is non-slip due to its surface grooves and it is ideal to place it outside, for example around a swimming pool, since it is one of the most resistant woods to humidity and chlorine.

Installation of wooden floors

Before installing wooden floors, it is necessary to plan for a slope of approximately one centimeter for every two meters. This is done to facilitate the evacuation of water, and the most important thing is to take into account the terrain where it is going to be placed:

• Concrete floors : they must be flat and smooth.
• Ceramic floors : the pieces must be removed or placed directly if the tiles or slats have a plastic base. For the wooden ones, it is necessary to place crossbars on a layer of sand five centimeters thick and an anti-weed mesh.

Maintenance

Most woods suitable for exteriors require periodic maintenance. The ideal is the annual application of some protective varnish or similar. If the conditions are not extreme, this treatment can be applied every two years, although it will largely depend on the area where you are.

As for synthetic flooring, we suggest following the recommendations of each manufacturer. In many cases, it will simply be a matter of cleaning with water and a non-soapy solution,  as if they were tiles. You can also use pressurized water, although not too high to avoid damaging the floor.