DIY Case Study: Trex Enhance Clam Shell

Project: Private Residence, County Durham, United Kingdom

Completion: April 2020

Inspiration: The homeowner found himself on furlough because of the COVID-19 global pandemic, with plenty of time on his hands. A sales manager with a stone importer, he imports and sells natural sandstone paving and porcelain for domestic garden installations. With a passion for garden spaces, his garden was lacking a contemporary and modern feel and he and his wife decided to makeover their lackluster patio.

Why Trex?

"I'm in the landscaping supplies industry. I'm always coming across Trex products and know that they are of great quality," said homeowner Andrew Maxwell. "There are other products on the market, but they don't look as good. We went for Trex Enhance Clam Shell as it was an anthracite colour which is what we wanted. With it being your basics range, it fit the price point we could afford at this time."

"I recognise that to have too much of one type of paving in a landscaped space can be overpowering. I wanted to have a more balanced garden with an extra feature area.

"Decking is coming back into fashion in a big way here in the UK but the traditional timber decking is outdated, high maintenance and required treating each year. Composite decking is definitely the future, with its wide range of colours and easy to install features. As I’m from the industry, I know that you generally get what you pay for so it was important to go for a trusted brand with good customer care backup and support and that I could get it from a trusted stockist such as JT Dove Ltd.

The Supplier

"I'm familiar with many of our builder merchants. My closet merchant, JT Dove Ltd., is an independent business and local to the northeast of England. I like to support local businesses when possible. I had my decking delivered within the week."

The Install

"The existing paving consisted of galvanized steel frame and sandstone slabs adhered to the framework. I removed the sandstone flags, cleaned up the frame and prepped it, ready to install the decking.

"When the decking arrived, I decided to put a double picture frame around the outside edge to make the decking fit the frame. Otherwise, I would have had to install extra timber framework to support the edges of the deck boards. I hadn't considered this until the boards arrived.

"The other issue I found was that the hidden clips supplied were for a timber frame and not for metal work. The metal frame clips were not available so I had to improvise. I ended up having to predrill every screw hole and cut a wedge of decking from the off-cuts to put below the metal frame to act as an anchor to screw into and hold the boards in place. Although this was a time-consuming job, it has worked very well and the decking is solid and sound as it would have been installed on a timber frame. The message here is to ensure that the right fittings are supplied."

The Finished Result

We now have a perfectly, level, sturdy and secure decked patio area that complements out artificial grass, Buff Indian Sandstone pathways and gravel borders

"The garden is low maintenance, which suits our normally busy lives, but currently gives us a much-needed, pleasant and safe environment to enjoy during lockdown."