Composite & PVC Decks in Long Island, Maine

Composite and PVC boards fit the way most Long Island homes are used. With nearly three-quarters of the island's houses held for seasonal use, owners want a deck that is ready in June without sanding or staining, and capped composite needs little more than a wash. It resists the checking and splintering that sun and salt cause in wood, and hidden fasteners leave a surface with nothing to pop up over a winter nobody is there to see.

Product choice still matters on the coast. Capped boards resist stains and fading better than older uncapped composites, and lighter colors stay cooler underfoot on a south-facing deck in full sun. Decks tucked into the island's woods, where shade and damp linger, are more prone to mildew, so good airflow under the framing and a capped surface help. Composite decking is heavier than wood, which means planning the order around the barge. Beneath the boards, the frame is still lumber and needs frost-depth footings, a flashed ledger and corrosion-rated connectors, and joist spacing has to match what the chosen decking brand specifies.

Census estimates count about 423 housing units, and the median year built is 1938. About 66 percent of units predate 1940, and about 68 percent predate 1960. Almost nothing was built between 1960 and 1979, only around 3 percent, and about 15 percent went up in 2000 or later. Roughly 95 percent of units are single-family detached houses, and about 88 percent of year-round households own their home. Seasonal use dominates: about 307 units, nearly three-quarters of the stock, are held for seasonal or occasional use. The town's comprehensive plan counts about 50 homes converted from year-round to summer-only use over a recent 25-year stretch and describes many summer houses as unheated or poorly heated. Many trace back to the summer-cottage boom of the 1890s and 1900s.

The Code Enforcement Officer meets by appointment through the Town Clerk. The town's building permit application covers new structures, additions, alterations, replacements and repairs, and it must include a scaled site plan and proof that a construction debris container has been delivered to be barged off the island. Every job gets at least three inspections: foundation, framing and final. Height is capped at 35 feet, and several zones limit structures to 15 percent of the lot. In the shoreland zone, new structures sit at least 75 feet from the upland edge of a coastal wetland, and the permit form warns that shoreland work may also need a Maine DEP permit.

Long Island lies about six miles out from Portland along Hussey Sound, a main passage into the inner bay. Wind reaches it from every direction, and the town's comprehensive plan notes that the first settlers built on the south side of the island to shelter from northerly winter winds. Portland International Jetport, the nearest long-term station, averages about 69 inches of snow a season under the 1991 to 2020 normals. A January 2022 winter storm badly damaged the wave break, floats and pilings at Mariner's Wharf, and the plan lists sea level rise, stronger storms and upkeep of the island's bluffs among the town's concerns.

Composite and PVC decking do not need staining, do not splinter, and resist rot, which is why they have become the default for new decks in Maine. Composite boards blend wood fiber and plastic under a protective cap; PVC boards are all synthetic and lighter. The North Deering farmhouse on this site got a rebuilt deck with AZEK composite decking. The framing underneath is still wood, so it is built to last as long as the boards on top.

• Layout, size and board color are chosen with the owner at the estimate visit.
• Footings and framing are built to code, with joist spacing that suits the board manufacturer's span rules.
• Joist tape or flashing protects the tops of joists and the ledger.
• Boards go down with hidden fasteners or color-matched screws and the expansion gaps the product requires.
• Matching railings, stair treads, fascia and landings finish the deck.

• You are done staining and sealing a wood deck every year or two
• The deck is in shade or near water where wood stays damp
• You want a deck that stays barefoot-friendly with no splinters

• Composite versus PVC, and the product line
• Deck size, height and shape
• Railing system and stairs
• Hidden-fastener versus face-screw installation
• Footing and framing conditions

Every job is priced from a free on-site visit. Typical ranges for the trade are on our deck building page, and the details of this service are on the composite and PVC decks overview.

Back to the Long Island exterior services overview, or see every town on our Cumberland County service areas page.