PuraPro Composite Decking

PuraPro, Our Best Value Composite Decking

PuraPro composite decking is the entry point to our composite range, and the board to choose when you want a deck that never needs oiling but the budget has to cover a large area. It is a square hollow board: four rectangular chambers run the length of the core, which takes weight and material out of the board without taking away the stiffness a deck needs. That is why PuraPro gives you the lowest cost per m² of our five composite ranges, and why it suits back gardens, holiday lets and big family decks.

The board is a blend of wood fibre and HDPE, a tough polyethylene plastic, pressed through a single die. The colour runs right through the board rather than sitting in a surface layer, and hidden clips hold it down, so the finished deck has no screw heads showing.

PuraPro Board Size

Every PuraPro board is 135×25 mm, so the only choices are the colour and which face goes up. At 25 mm it is the thickest of our hollow boards, which is why it feels solid and quiet underfoot, and the 135 mm width keeps the lines tight on a smaller garden deck. Unlike a timber board of the same thickness, it has no splinters and needs no yearly oiling. Enter your deck area in the calculator on the product page and it works out the boards, clips and fixings for you.

Grooved or Wood Grain: Two Faces on Every Board

PuraPro is reversible. One face carries deep grooves and the other a wood grain texture, and you choose which side goes up as you lay it. Both faces were rated low slip risk in wet and dry pendulum tests, which matters on a deck that stays damp through an Irish winter. The grooved face gives the most grip and the traditional deck look. The wood grain face reads more like a sanded hardwood board and suits a contemporary house.

PuraPro Colours

The five shades suit different houses and different light, so look at them in daylight before you decide:

• Silver Ash: a soft, pale grey like weathered driftwood, which lifts a shaded deck on an overcast day.
• Slate Grey: a cool, slightly blue grey that suits modern render and dark window frames.
• Charcoal: a deep, even grey that stops short of black, as on PuraPro Charcoal decking.
• Oak: a warm mid-tan that sits well beside sandstone, brick and cream render, as on PuraPro Oak decking.
• Walnut: a mid to dark brown, the closest of the five to a traditional hardwood deck.

Mono-Extruded or Capped: Where PuraPro Sits

Composite decking is made in two ways. A mono-extruded board, like PuraPro, is one blend of wood fibre and plastic all the way through, with no protective cap. A co-extruded (capped) board has a polymer shell bonded over the core in the same pass, which resists stains and fading better. PuraPro wears well, but not to the level of a capped board, so it opens our composite range, which climbs like this:

• PuraPro: square hollow, 135×25 mm, the best value per m².
• PuraPlus composite decking: the same construction on a wider 145×21 mm board, for fewer joints on a big terrace.
• PuraPrime composite decking: reinforced round hollow, 140×22 mm, with a finer grain and an anti-slip reverse face.
• PuraShield composite decking: capped all round, 138×22.5 mm, with the widest choice of lengths in the range.
• Puraboard solid composite decking: solid, 175×22 mm, a polyurethane board with no wood and no hollow chambers, screw fixed with no clips.

If your deck sits in full sun, under trees that drop fruit, or beside a barbecue, step up to PuraShield. For a typical back garden, PuraPro does the job and keeps the cost down.

Fire and Slip Ratings

PuraPro is classed Cfl-s1 under EN 13501-1, the European reaction-to-fire standard. The “fl” means it was tested as a floor covering, “C” is a middle class on a scale that runs from A1 (non-combustible) down to F, and “s1” means it gives off very little smoke. In pendulum slip tests to BS 7976-2, both the grooved and the wood grain face were rated low slip risk, wet and dry.

Installing PuraPro

A PuraPro deck is only as good as the frame under it, and the hollow ends need finishing. The PuraPro installation manual has the full detail; the basics are:

• Joists: space them at 350 mm centres or closer, measured from the middle of one joist to the next, on composite or timber decking joists, with a double joist where board ends meet.
• Clips: PuraFix hidden starter clips along the first board, then one hidden clip per joist, from our decking screws and fixings.
• Gaps: composite grows and shrinks with temperature, so leave about 3 mm between boards, 5 mm at board ends and 20 mm at walls.
• Balconies and slabs: set the joists on adjustable decking pedestals and twist each one to level the frame.
• Edges: cover the open chambers with fascia and corner trims from our decking trims and fascia range.

Care and Maintenance

PuraPro never needs oiling, staining or sanding, and there is no yearly treatment to plan around. Sweep it regularly so grit does not scratch the surface. Wash it with warm water and a stiff brush a couple of times a year, with an extra rinse in autumn while fallen leaves are still fresh. The colour mellows slightly over the first year in daylight, then settles, so order all your boards together to get them from one production batch. PuraPro is backed by a manufacturer warranty of 15 years for residential use and 10 years for commercial use.

PuraPro is one of five ranges in our composite decking collection. Compare them in our Dublin showroom, or order online for delivery anywhere in Ireland.