The Block NZ winners Ben and Kylie Crawford spent a long time looking at their options for the decking of their brand new build. While they loved the look of hardwoods, they quickly realised they'd be paying a premium for a timber that would drastically fade and eventually crack and splinter with age.

They looked into hardwood alternatives, knowing they wanted a material that would look like its hardwood counterparts, but not have any of the pitfalls associated with hardwood timbers. They came across innovative kiwi company Outdure and their superior Resortdeck range made from carefully selected recycled wood fibres and polymers — a technically advanced sustainable alternative to tropical hardwoods. The boards are encased in a waterproof protective layer, creating an impermeable barrier to mildew, mould, rotting, UV, stains, colour fading and splitting.

Resortdeck is engineered for durability and low maintenance. Ben explains, "The biggest reason we went for Resortdeck in the end was the fact it's fade resistant, so will look the same as it does today, in ten years time." This means they can spend their time enjoying and entertaining on their deck rather than maintaining it. Plus it is slip-resistant, and comes in a range of nature-inspired colours and surfaces to complement all styles of architecture.

Ben and Kylie's builder, Garrick laid the deck behind the master bedroom, and thanks to Outdure's innovative concealed Qwickclip system (no screwing off needed) he finished in around four hours. It was an impressively fast and easy install compared to traditional fixing methods which need to be pre-drilled and screwed off every 400mm.

The end result is a beautifully finished, low-maintenance, stylish exterior space. "We're thrilled with how it’s come up," says Ben. "It looks incredibly natural, so much so that it was mistaken as a hardwood deck in the valuation report we had to get done for the bank."