
It may seem like a good idea to use chicken wire over your timber deck or boardwalk to add a little extra grip, but it’s totally inappropriate. There’s several reasons why:
- Wire traps dirt and debris, such as leaves, increasing the potential for prolonged moisture contact and consequent premature decay.
- What seems like a cheap option will be more expensive in the long term as the deck or boardwalk will need replacing sooner that it should.
- Unless really well secured, the wire can work loose creating a trip hazard.
- The wire itself can become slippery in wet conditions.
This image illustrates that laying chicken wire across the surface of your decking or boardwalk is a sure way to shorten its service life and is potentially an accident waiting to happen.