Why Are Wood Plastic Composites (WPC) the Green Building Alternative?
Posted on
Have you ever wondered how we make our building products sustainable at Teckwood? Wood plastic composites (also known as WPC) combine qualities uniquely suited to accommodating both domestic and commercial preferences in the construction market. They are the ideal green sustainable solution that makes use of organic material with virgin, recycled or renewable plastics, normally High Density Polyethylene (HDPE). These green building alternatives can be customized at low cost and without the need for high investment in new production equipment. The result is a cost-competitive product that offers a lighter environmental footprint, unique aesthetic appeal and vastly superior sustainable performance.
The Beginnings of Wood Plastic Composites
In the very early days of composite manufacturing, rice hulls, walnut shells and even ground oyster shells were all used as fillers that enabled manufacturers to cut costs while maintaining quality, there were a few downsides to using these fillers. More and more were added to the plastic and the finished product lost impact strength and became too rigid. Eventually organic materials were introduced. Extruders used waste materials and sawdust from sawmills. Using sawdust and other waste materials from sawmills proved to be an affordable and sustainable green tactic for making a wood plastic composite that was not only of high quality, but also visually appealing to consumers. Wood sawdust added a renewable material to the process that after being reclaimed did not add potentially harmful chemicals to the process.
The classic look of traditional timber can be effectively imitated, but with the added benefits of improved strength, durability, weatherability and extremely low maintenance. Wood plastic composites are emerging as the green building alternative for a wide variety of sustainable construction product applications.
Why is Composite Decking and Cladding so Popular?
Wood Plastic Composite is a familiar term in the decking and cladding industry and it is possible that most of us have heard of it. Initially Composite decking rose in popularity throughout in the early 1990’s as consumers sought a more maintenance free green building alternative to traditional pressure treated wood decking. Fast forward to today, homeowners and the construction industry are searching for alternative green building materials.
The Alternatives to Composite Decking
We all know understand that traditional hardwood decking was quite a poor choice of material to use if you want to minimise the environmental impact of your new deck. Most hardwood decking boards are made from tropical timber and the Earth’s tropical forests are disappearing at an alarming rate. Wood decking is a product of deforestation, and some of the sealants used to protect wooden deck boards contain potentially harmful chemicals and compounds.
Maybe we could look at plastic decking as a greener option, as plastic decking boards do not require any trees to be chopped down. Unfortunately all plastic products take an awfully long time to decompose. Once your plastic boards start to bow and crack, this is something that can happen to plastic decking quite quickly, you will have to replace them and the old plastic decking will almost likely end up in a local landfill site.
Why are Composite Decking and Cladding such a Green Building Alternative?
It is not really a surprise that composite wood is so popular given any one of the four main reasons listed below.
- Very low maintenance composite wood is moisture resistant and only requires basic cleaning.
- Sustainability. Teckwood use recycled plastic in their composites, increasing longevity, reduced maintenance resulting in fewer repairs.
- There is a variety of composite decking and cladding options including many different contemporary colours and wood grain patterns.
- The easy concealed fixing system eliminates almost all visible fasteners.
Teckwood Offer Wood Composite Decking and Cladding that are a Green Building Alternative and are environmentally conscious
Teckwood’s wood plastic composite products are made with reclaimed wood and high density polyethylene that would otherwise go into landfills. We keep tons of waste out of landfills every year, this waste product is reclaimed and introduced into our manufacturing process. Our excellent eco-friendly decking and cladding ensures that nothing is wasted, and unlike traditional wood, Teckwood’s composite decking and cladding do not require painting, sealing or staining. Traditionally some of the chemicals used in these processes could be potentially harmful to the environment.
Why use Teckwood for Wood Plastic Composites
The specifics of wood plastic composite formulations have been discussed and considered throughout the whole product design and manufacturing process. Teckwood have kept in mind that material decisions concerning wood particle size and species may have implications. Knowing the answers to these questions has helped Teckwood to become more comfortable working with wood plastic composites. It is why Teckwood have invested heavily to create the best Green Building Alternative building products that perform up to expectations.
For information on the green building alternative please call our team on 0800 799 9082.