Don’t wear out your knees and bum scrubbing teak decks—walk on plastic instead. Man-made teak is hard to tell from the real thing, and it’s better: It provides the beauty of teak, the secure footing of teak, it’s easier to clean than teak, it doesn’t start to go grey the minute you turn your back like teak does, and it won’t stain when a guest capsizes a glass of Pinot Noir onto it. Whether you’re replacing skeevy teak decks you already have, or classing-up garden-variety nonskid, consider eschewing real wood for low-maintenance, man-made plastic “faux teak.” Few of your neighbors will tell the difference, your body will thank you and the maintenance you save will give you more time on the water.
In days gone by, traditional teak decks were built of thick planking over deck beams, but most modern decks consist of thin planking glued and/or screwed to the structural deck, usually cored fiberglass. It
