DECKING
When fixed deck furniture is removed or repositioned during a refit, holes in synthetic decking can be filled and sanded to make it appear as good as new
from the weathering process that turns natural teak that silver grey colour beloved by many yet hated by an equal number.
Because the company is based in Indonesia it has a constant and fully traceable supply of teak and, says Peter, “There are many major differences between one product and the other. Teak is a finite source and very few people want to invest in the planting of new teak given that it takes between 30 and 50 years for each tree to mature enough for harvesting.”
Teak is only grown successfully on a large scale in Indonesia or Myanmar (Burma). Peter affirms that, “Teak said to have been grown in China, Malaysia, or Thailand is more often than not in fact smuggled from Myanmar and illegally transhipped across borders because there is no large scale, industrial teak growing in those countries.” He adds, “In Indonesia all teak comes from plantations. There are no and never have been areas of wild growing teak in that country and that most of the plantations were established more than 200 years ago.”
PUT A CORK IN IT Yet another natural alternative to teak is cork, a product gaining a strong foothold in the superyacht deck market. Dominique Radier is the CEO of Aegir Cork Group SAS a company headquartered in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. His company produces SeaCork. The company has been making cork decking for 20 years now and is developing a product called Cork Spray to insulate hulls and stop condensation forming inside boats and yachts. “There are many
CORK DECKING Cork is comfortable to walk on barefoot. It never gets hot. And looks are deceiving. Cork is soft and spongy but it is also one of the most durable materials known to man. It doesn’t rot and isn’t harmed by salt water or by everyday cleaning products. When wet it has unmatched anti-slip properties. Cork’s natural colour is stunning and you can sand it every few years to make it look new. It costs the same as teak or PVC and lasts longer than either. Their first cork decks, now 20 years old, are still in place and don’t show their age. For more details Tel:+33 (0)5 58 52 32 01 or visit
www.seacork.com
advantages to be gained by using cork as a teak substitute,” he says. “First among these is the fact that no trees are felled during the harvesting of his raw product. In today’s eco friendly world that is a big plus!”
“It is also,” he maintains, “infinitely less slippery than teak when wet.” He adds another is weight saving. “Teak can be heavy and using it on the uppermost decks can have adverse effects on stability. Cork is light weight by comparison.” Dominique believes owners are demanding green, eco friendly yet durable products when it comes to decking material. He understands why the use of teak is considered to be, somewhat anti-social but is confused by the trend towards plastic decking as an alternative. He says, “Surely if we use plastic we know that fine particles of plastic are harmful to the sea and fish but we used more and more plastic decking actually”. He asks the question. “What happens when we walk on those decks?” He answers himself saying, “Small plastic particles must go directly into the sea, and for me that is a good enough reason not to use it?
HOT UNDERFOOT
Many complain that synthetic decks are unsuitable for use in the Mediterranean as they get too hot in the sun. While some manufacturers have pale colours to help overcome this, many owners and their guests complain that they still get unacceptably hot. The feeling among purists is that a genuine teak maintains an acceptable temperature on the surface while suggesting that some synthetic decks can become so hot that in some
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