Ya know,after Many Years of Wallets geting on and witching with a B about composite material I am thinking there has to be, at least in some part, something wrong with the Folks that buy it.

In this Web savey world not geting on google with say :composite problems: before you invest is really Silly. Even a search on this site would be a good start.

All Man Made Decking Product has its problems/limatations,and maintance. Do not expect them to be totally Work Free. Sorry Kath but really, I just cant see buying that stuff with out doing your homework. J.

Point taken. We seniors are not as computer savy as we ought to be. Didn't even know what a forum was until we got help to register. We thought using a reputable lumber yard was enough. Too late for us but hope we can help somebody else avoid our mistake.

Point taken John! We seniors are not as computer savy as we should be. Didn't even know about forums until somebody showed us. Too late for us. Hopefully we can help sombody else avoid our big mistake in buying Portico.

Its a bad deal Kath, all the sales staff at the retail leval can do is repeat the product instrustions. The composite guys will say and print Anything to push the stuff out the door. X 10000 with trex.

One thing you could do put a coat of finish on the decking. Most of the better finish co sell a cleaner for composite, portico might , anyway get the stuff clean and put a high grade finish like twp on. I have done this with Choice decking with good sucess. J.

It being in the sun doesn't mean it isn't mold. Maybe you're thinking of moss. Mold doesn't care sun or not.
Your deck probably just needs a spring clean. All kinds of good cleaners out there - one trick to make cleaners work better is to put them in a garden sprayer and spray on - that gives you even coverage and is easier to do. Let it sit on the deck awhile before hosing off - easy job. Your deck is and will be fine. You can also stop the spots from coming back with Envirocare Moldex or similar.

Hey Martin,,good to see ya Man! is Business bad or What. J.

Hi everyone,
Thought I would add my 2cents. I understand completely what Kathleen is talking about. I am a former Remodeler and Builder with 40 years back ground with building turn key projects. I know products. I did research this product and was satisfied it would live up to its claims. Big mistake! Less than a year after building a beautiful south east facing accent deck (only about 250 Sq. ft.) with built in benches with very intricate angles and cuts the deck became covered in very dark spots. I agree with Kathleen that it looks diseased. I called my Lumber Yard, Shelly's of Souderton, Pa. and was put in contact with Regional Rep.. He told me I had to put in a claim before he could come out (the old run around). I did email the company Feb. 23, 2011 and to date have not heard back. No one should have to clean a deck less than 1 year old and no one would buy this product if they knew this problem existed. Anyone else out there with similar problems contact me at my email. FOOTNOTE: I am also a Home Inspector and am a IRC Certified Residential Building Inspector. I have seen hundreds of decks and have not seen this on any other installed products.

Yo Mike, you must have never looked at a trex deck before.

This condition is normal with composite decking.

Everyone will have to clean a composite deck yearley. That is common knowledge. J.

Same experience as described by everyone above on 3 year old deck. We have used two different composite deck cleaning products that we applied with a 2 gal pump spray for even application. The first product we also scrubbed with a brush before letting it sit and then washing off. The second product applied with out scrubbing - let it set for the designated time and power washed off. Deck looks like it has absorbed some of the cleaning product - spots are different and there are more of them!! Have washed it 2 more times and then quit. Contacted both builder and lumber yard - no longer using or selling the product. Waiting for portico regional sales rep to contact us - not hopeful. Reviewed the product warranty - not covered. Any ideas???

Just a suggestion - try a 50/50 bleach and water mix, sprayed on liberally with a pump type garden sprayer. Do it in the late day at dusk so the sun does not dry it immediately. Let is sit over night, then hose down the deck the next day. For really aged decks or a lot of mold, may require a little elbow grease with a brush. I found this application 2-3 times a year works pretty well, low cost, and no need to add sealers. Bleach kills the mold, and soaks into the wood to prevent growth again for a while.

Consumer-rights law firm Hagens Berman filed a lawsuit on behalf of owners of Portico composite decking alleging that it the decking is defective and prone to mold and fungal growth that results in large black spots. The lawsuit claims that manufacturer Fiberon refuses to live up to its warranty obligations to replace or repair the decking. Consumers can learn more about the lawsuit here: www.hbsslaw.com/portico.