Walden’s Farm, located in West Grimstead, Salisbury, is one to pin to the top of your sustainable building materials board, incorporating Accoya for the cladding, decking, and doors for the property. It was vital for the architects that the strong farming roots of the location be celebrated, and the natural Accoya timber cladding assists the stone features of the land, such as existing barns and outbuildings, to achieve just that! Not only has Accoya helped maintain the property’s character, but also its high performance and durability will make these features last a lifetime! To keep in tune with the natural theme, Accoya is derived from fast-growing sustainable forests, contributing to lower carbon emissions for a healthier planet.

This exceptional home is California’s very first “zero-carbon” home, meaning that 100% of the home’s energy must be renewable and 100% of the embodied carbon emissions associated with construction are offset (by using things like sustainable lumber).

FSC-certified Accoya wood is used in several areas of the home for exterior cladding, interior ceiling cladding, and interior wall cladding. Along with Shou Sugi Ban, this is a traditional Japanese method of charring wood cladding to make it waterproof.

The design and construction plan included “carbon sequestering” techniques using sustainable wood and recycled concrete. For example, instead of using 80,000 pounds of steel, they replaced it with FSC mass timber. These materials were built together to not only look and feel exactly right, but to do right by our environment, so it was only right to include this project in the top 10!

This private home illustrates that timber is a great material to use in your home. Accoya timber has been used for windows and doors in the main property, as well as for garage doors, out-buildings, a pedestrian gate with a pergola, driveway gates, and a picket fence.

The homeowners used Accoya-approved manufacturers, Against the Grain, for all elements of Accoya.

The Accoya wood has been coated in a variety of colours for this project. Accoya is the ideal material for coatings as it is so stable, and the limited movement all year round will prevent coatings from deteriorating. The stability will also allow windows and doors to move freely, as Accoya wood will shrink and swell much less than other wood species.

Ritikaa Wood Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. supplied Accoya wood windows, louvres and cladding for this newly built home in Vasco city.

Young homeowners used Opolis Architects to design their unique cantilever home with multiple courtyards to connect the inside with the outdoors seamlessly. This was achieved using the eight-foot high Accoya louvres.

All Accoya wood used has been coated in the same dark brown colour.

A pair of newly built single-family houses reside in the heart of the forest near Vilnius.The adjacent plots were designed at the same time and use similar styles of architectural expression.

For one of the properties, alongside floor-to-ceiling windows and doors, cladding covers the entire exterior; however, two contrasting materials have been used. The front of the home is covered in rough ceramic bricks, each coloured dark brown. With textured edges and surfaces and vertical installation, the façade creates the appearance of tree bark. For the back of the building, natural Accoya wood cladding was chosen, also installed vertically in very narrow battens. Accoya was also used for the garden decking and walled garden snug, creating comfort and warmth.

The clients themselves requested to use Accoya wood, but the architect, Architektūros linija chose the style and finish of the cladding. Accoya is ideal for cladding in this environment because the quality material is warrantied to last, even in the harsh conditions of extreme cold in the winter and heat in the summer.

The surrounding natural environment heavily influenced the design and material choices. All of the cladding and decking was installed by a local Accoya sub-distributor, Argilla. The Accoya wood was finished with ferrous sulphate to give the impression that weathering had already begun by turning the wood grey.

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.

Visit the Accoya Houzz account here.

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!