New composite decking - pools of water when rains

fizzy

Not sure if I should be posting this here or in Gardening.

My Mum just got new composite decking done. It's just a small area - less than 18x12 foot (she just has this small space at the back, no garden as such). It was expensive to get done, but she was told it was basically maintenance free. However, what she is really disappointed about is that whenever it rains, huge amounts of water gather on it and she is left looking out the window at these pools of water in several places.

I would really appreciate it if others with composite decking could let me know if this happens their decking too, especially the fact of deeper pools accumulating in random spots? Does it tend to dry out by itself, even in Winter, and how long does that take? Or is it a case of needing to mop it up regularly? Finally, does algae/green stuff tend to build up over time, and is that easily cleaned?

Many thanks for your time.

galwaydude18

It's pooling because the fall is not enough for the water to run off. It's sounds like it was put in completely level which is incorrect

fizzy

Thanks for the quick reply. So should it slope slightly down away from the back of the house? My Mum was never conscious of her old decking being sloped. Where does the water run off to?

galwaydude18

Where it is fixed to the house it should slope away from the house. The water runs off the edge. And in between the gaps in the boards

fizzy

Thanks for explaining - my Mum had great faith in the guy doing it
Is this the kind of thing that can be fixed post install, or is it a case of putting up with it or starting from scratch?

galwaydude18

No it's done when building the frame before laying the deck boards. It could be sorted but the boards would need to be lifted and relayed to sort it out.

fizzy

Many thanks for the advice galwaydude