What Lies Beneath - Great Balcony - but can you use it?

When building a balcony, the flooring chosen to go underneath the tiles can be more important than the tiles themselves. An inappropriate design and poor building materials can increase the chance of water damage. This can result in major damage to the deck and in severe cases render the balcony unsafe or the rooms below it unusable.

Balconies and decks are great outdoor areas and a nice feature for the house. All waterproof balconies and decks should be built with a slope to allow for water to run to a collection point where the water can run into a drainage pipe. This well help avoid water damage and a balustrade (this is the wall or railing used to stop people from falling over the edge) will ensure the safety of people.

A common defect on balconies relate to the water ingresses. The average cost to repair these can be between $12,000 and $15,000 each time. A common cause for balcony defects is builders trying to cut corners – not following the correct processes or using the poor materials, this can result in a poor waterproofing job.

Avoid poor balcony designs like chipboard flooring with no threshold below doorways and windows which can lead to water damage and unsafe structure. Using good quality products will protect the tiles, and prevent water damage. Products like James Hardies Scyon Secura exterior flooring will help you avoid costly balcony repairs. The boards are sealed on all sides with an advanced polymer coating which stops the board from absorbing moisture.

It also has mesh reinforcement on the underside which enhances the heavy duty performance of the Scyon material; this adds strength and resistance to the flooring substrate. For balconies that aren't over habitable rooms – verandas for example, no additional waterproofing membrane is needed once Secura exterior flooring is installed. For balconies over habitable rooms, a waterproofing system needs to be applied; but waterproofing and Secura exterior flooring give you peace of mind the easy way.

For more information check out these sites:
- James Hardie Scyon Secura

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