Does Composite Decking Fade?

Does Composite Decking Fade? The Honest Truth About Sun Bleaching

If you are thoroughly investigating and comparing composite options, you will undoubtedly come across the term “fading” or “sun bleaching”. Rightly so! This is by far the most common question Ultra Decking is asked by decking installers and new clients planning their garden projects.

You need to be careful with low-quality, cheap imitations claiming that their composite decking boards will never fade or bleach under the sun. If a supplier provides you with this type of advice, you should seriously question the integrity of their product.

To properly answer the question of fading, you first need to understand the different generations & types of composite decking currently available in today’s market, and how they react to the elements.

The Science of Sunlight (UV Rays)

It is worth noting that the sun breaks down most materials and their colours at an atomic level. While it may sound overly scientific, there is no denying the facts: almost all man-made materials will experience some form of degradation from exposure to Mother Nature’s elements, especially the sun’s harmful UV rays.

How First-Generation Decking Weathers

The first generation of composite decking surfaces still being manufactured today are made from a blend of wood fibres and recycled plastics. Because the surface texture contains up to 60% real wood to achieve a natural appearance, these boards will go through a natural weathering process for the first 3 to 6 months of their service life.

As with all wood products, when exposed to the elements, the colour will lighten. This happens in two distinct stages:

Stage One: Extractive Bleeding

The first natural process uncapped (first-generation) decking boards go through is called extractive bleeding. This occurs because of the natural wood oils present in the wood fibres. Generally, this stage lasts for the first 8-10 weeks. Once installed, these oils are gradually washed out by rain and moisture in the air. Lighter-coloured boards often go through the most noticeable changes, as more natural wood oils are used to achieve their specific colour.

Stage Two:

UV Fading The next stage of the natural weathering process is caused by the sun’s UV rays. A high-quality first-generation board will incorporate UV stabilisers during manufacturing to help control this process, but it will still lighten over time.

Expert Tip: The Unexposed Test To gauge the true UV fade rate after the first six months, take an off-cut sample that has been kept indoors and place it next to your exposed deck. This will give you a true reflection of the colour difference and show you exactly how your deck has stabilised for the remainder of its service life.

What to Expect: Fading Rates and Stabilisation

All first-generation decking boards will fade to a lighter shade. In the first 3-6 months, you can expect an average colour reduction of 30-40%.

How aggressive this bleaching is depends entirely on the quality of the raw materials used. Not all composite decking boards are made the same way, even if they look identical on the shelf. (If you want to test the raw quality of a board before buying, we highly recommend performing a 10-hour boil test on your samples).

After this initial 3-6 month period, the colour of the decking will stabilise. While fading will technically continue, it happens at a microscopic, much slower rate.

A Decade of Learning: How We Reduced Fading

We regularly conduct feedback tests, and for almost a decade, customers have asked us a crucial question: “Can fading in uncapped, first-generation boards be reduced?” Like any feedback, we listened, researched, and tested.

Without giving away too many of our trade secrets, we discovered two key things that drastically improve performance:

The Starting Colour Matters:

In uncapped composite boards, the lighter the colour, the higher the percentage of fading you will see. This is exactly why we intentionally manufacture our boards darker than the target shade to compensate for those high fading rates. Our advice is simple: always start with a darker board to achieve the final, weathered finish colour you actually want.

Evolving Production Techniques:

How a board is physically produced completely alters how it performs. We spent over a year perfecting our manufacturing methods. While our 2018 to 2020 range of boards saw standard fading rates, we launched a brand-new uncapped board in 2022 using advanced production techniques. After extensive trailing, we have seen almost a 10% reduction in overall colour change, as you can see from the image below.

Real World UV testing on Enhanced Composite Decking Board Upgrade

The Alternative: Second-Generation (Capped) Decking

If the idea of your decking losing its initial colour concerns you, you should look at second-generation composite decking.

Second-generation (capped) boards feature a protective plastic “shield.” This technology was specifically developed to reduce and almost entirely eliminate the fading issues seen in early composite decking.

However, it is vital to understand that not all capped boards are made the same way, even if they look identical on the surface.

The Plastic Quality Matters:

The quality of the plastic shield dictates the performance. High-quality High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) will see significantly less fading. If a manufacturer uses cheaper Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE) to cut costs, it not only causes structural issues but will also lead to an increased rate of colour change.

Real-World UK Testing:

While high-quality capped boards are vastly superior at retaining their colour, they do still experience a very minimal colour shift over time. You can see this honesty in our real-world testing. In the image below, you can see a brand-new, long grey capped board placed next to a short off-cut of the exact same board that we left out in harsh UK weather for over a year. The colour retention is exceptional, ensuring a highly stable look for decades.

Conclusion

Mother Nature is aggressive. The surface of all first-generation composite decking will experience fading during the first 3-6 months before stabilising. If you choose these boards, you have the flexibility to easily refresh the colour or change the style completely after 6-8 years if you wish. However, if you want a strictly “fit and forget” solution with locked-in colour, second-generation capped decking made with premium HDPE is the ultimate choice.

Need more advice? If you are concerned about fading, please feel free to contact us for honest guidance, even if you aren’t purchasing from us! Use our contact form to speak directly with our engineering team today.

Does Composite Decking Fade? - Facts You Need To Know