Building a Composite Deck with a Hot Tub

These days, it’s common for outdoor living spaces to become destinations. For many people, this means creating a relaxing oasis to enjoy the outdoors while taking a well-deserved break from everyday life. As this trend continues to gain traction, it’s not surprising to see more deck building projects incorporate a hot tub.

Even though it’s a great feature, building a deck with a hot tub can present a unique set of challenges during construction. If you’re wondering how to build a deck to support a hot tub, the experts at Envision Outdoor Living are here to help with three useful tips.

1. Choose Composite Decking with More Traction

Before your project enters the construction or installation phase, be sure to pick composite decking boards that provide increased traction. With a hot tub, it’s inevitable that water will make its way onto the deck. Deck boards that aren’t designed to provide a solid grip will increase the risk of people slipping or falling.

For your hot tub project, it’s worth considering Envision Outdoor Living Products. For starters, our Ridge Premium Collection of composite decking boards boast 37% more traction when wet compared to the average competitor.

Part of the reason why our composite decking is less slippery is the deep non-repeating grain pressed into every board. Not only does this give our deck boards a more nature-inspired look, but it also gives your feet a better grip.

2. Make Sure You Can Access the Deck Underneath the Hot Tub

When you’re putting a hot tub on a composite deck, keep ongoing maintenance top of mind. During the design phase, you’ll want to make sure there’s an access point underneath the deck where the hot tub will be. Some contractors build an access hatch or even elevate the section of deck with the hot tub. An access point makes it easier for homeowners or technicians to inspect the hot tub’s electrical systems. Adding this feature in later will be costly for the homeowner and often leaves them unable to enjoy a crucial part of their outdoor living space while it’s being installed.

An access point also lets you inspect how the deck boards are holding up against the weight, water, and moisture of the hot tub. Aside from having the right amount of structural support (see below), you’ll want to choose composite decking that absorbs the smallest amount of water possible. When a board absorbs large amounts of water, there’s high risk of it warping, which could compromise the structure holding up hot tub over time.

Our Compress Technology? manufacturing process enables our full profile composite deck boards to absorb 61% less moisture than the average competitor. It’s a great choice for any outdoor living project that has a hot tub in the design.

3. Have the Right Amount of Structural Support

One of the reasons why hot tub manufacturers recommend using a flat concrete slab as a foundation is because they know it can hold the weight in most cases. The process of putting a hot tub on a composite deck takes more prep work. For starters, you’ll need to calculate the structural support required. This involves adding the hot tub’s dry weight, the weight of the water, and weight of the maximum number of occupants and dividing it by the hot tub’s square footage. Let’s walk through an example:

• A 50-square foot hot tub with dry weight of 800 pounds, holds 3,000 lbs. of water, and holds a maximum of five people.

• 800 lbs. of hot tub + 3,000 lbs. of water + 950 lbs. of people (5 people X an average weight of 190 lbs.) = 4,750 lbs. of total weight.

• A total weight of 4,750 lbs. divided by 50 square feet = 95 lbs. / square feet that needs to be supported by the deck framing.

This quick calculation will assist in your composite decking design and help ensure there are no issues once the hot tub is installed.

Use Composite Decking That Gives Your Project 100% More

If you’re building an outdoor living space with a hot tub, choose composite decking that will give you 100% MORE. Our composite decking is less slippery and absorbs less water than the average competitor. Order a sample today and help keep your project moving forward.