Warm weather means spending more time outdoors, a season to enjoy relaxing in the garden on a sunny afternoon or getting together with friends for a meal outside. If you’re looking to better set up your outdoor space, whatever its size, a wood decking can add attractive square footage for lounging, cooking, dining, entertaining and even working. The most dramatic decks can show off your home’s architecture and boost the overall look of your outdoor space.

“Decks are a great extension to an interior living space and can extend the feeling of interior space,” says architect Lisa Bovell, principal architect at McLeod Bovell Modern Houses in Vancouver. Read on to discover five ways that adding natural wood decking can enhance your outdoor space and lifestyle, and learn the advantages of choosing natural, highly durable and sustainably sourced wood as a decking material.

2. Enhance Your Home’s Architectural Features

Wood decking is a good choice for any home style, traditional to modern. Whether the wood is light or dark, the surface textured or smooth, decking can complement and enhance the architectural features of your home. One of the best things about natural wood, Bovell says, is the variation in colour and texture between and within planks. “We find that this natural variation creates enough ‘noise’ and beauty as it is, so we try very hard to find a single wood that can be used in all applications and locations — horizontal siding, vertical decking, on soffits, sometimes on ceilings,” she says.

The architects used Accoya wood for the decking, soffit, exterior siding and exterior window screens of this contemporary West Vancouver home. Using the same material for all of these applications enhanced the minimalist look they were after, bringing the focus to the clean lines of the building and the gorgeous view. Choosing a material that would work both indoors and out and stand up to weather exposure was essential to the integrated style.

5. Cut Down on Maintenance

When assessing your garden as a whole, consider the size of the planted areas, including lawns that need frequent mowing and flower beds that require tending, versus areas that are hardscaped. The time that goes into tending lawns or beds, not to mention the irrigation needed, often far exceeds time spent keeping a patio or deck clean and in good condition. So including some areas of decking can not only boost outdoor living space but also the time you have available to enjoy it.

That being said, any deck will need regular maintenance since it’s exposed to the elements. In general, you should sweep it regularly, clean it yearly, repair any damage, and stain or seal the wood surface when necessary. Accoya’s uncoated decks are particularly low-maintenance compared with other decking materials and are made from naturally rot-resistant wood. However, any wood is susceptible to weathering and sealing or staining can help protect it.

The wood acetylation process that changes the cell structure of Accoya’s wood improves the decking’s dimensional stability — the amount it expands and contracts —making it scratch-resistant, helping coatings last longer and requiring less maintenance. “Any stain product that is used tends to last longer on the surface of the material because the wood goes through less expansion and contraction, creating a better barrier to the elements,” Bovell says of Accoya wood decking.

More: To learn more about the benefits of Accoya’s sustainably sourced, acetylated wood decking and choose a style that complements your home and garden, visit our decking page here.

This story was written by the Houzz Sponsored Content team.

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Timber remains the classic choice for outdoor decking, despite advancements in alternative materials, and it can certainly enhance the look of any garden. Choosing the right timber decking to complement your outside space is critical though, and there are some considerations to bear in mind including a budget, maintenance and style.

Timber is warm and beautiful and can give your garden a natural charm that you just can’t achieve with plastic. It is easily cut and shaped to work around your existing garden features and can be stained, treated or coloured with a vast range of coatings and textures to suit your look. Installation costs tend to be lower than other materials, and depending on your budget, there are plenty of different options, such as softwoods, hardwoods and modified woods such as Accoya®. When it comes to maintenance, more durable species or modified wood are good options with less regular upkeep required to keep your deck looking pristine all year round. Finally, don’t forget that sourcing environmentally friendly timber decking should always be on your radar, so look for the FSC® certification if in doubt.

A year of stay-at-home restrictions has elevated the need to fully maximise any outdoor space you may have, improving both functionality and aesthetics. According to Google Trends, searches for ‘outdoor kitchen ideas’ have surged by 60% in the UK since the start of the year, and they’re a great way to extend your available interior space for alfresco socialising with friends and family. If you’re missing that feeling of cooking outside on a barbecue in the early evening sunshine on holiday, this might be one for you.

Outdoor kitchens can be anything from a simple built-in barbecue to a full kitchen with a sink, preparation space and even a fridge. They can be built as a DIY job or made fully bespoke, but when buying make sure you consider durability just as you would with any outdoor furniture which may come under attack from the British weather.

Instead of more vulnerable materials like scaffolding wood, try a kitchen built with Accoya wood or Tricoya MDF board which have both been preserved through a unique acetylation process and will last far longer in wet (and dry) conditions – perfect for an outdoor kitchen that will last for many more summers to come!