the issue with trex and most composit decking is its "limpness"

when using it over 16" joists, or even closer together, it holds flat, but if you pick up one end and lift it to your waist, it will flex A LOT....

that being said, if you are willing to put posts/support close together, so it wont bow, it would be great! and likely last forever.. remember to get the proper screws, they have special ones that dont make the ugly mushroom marks....

I posted below in the permanent raised bed thread about my Trex box.

...I built an L-shaped planter box out of Trex (4x6x8 wings, 4x4x12 center box). 7 years later, it looks as good as it did on Day One, no noticeable wear-and-tear at all, no bowing, no loose screws. I'm extremely pleased with it and would have used it for the other raised beds in my garden (four 4x4x10s) but it wasn't available in the dimensions I wanted.

Here's a pic of part of the box.

Yeah I hear your concerns.

My problem is this stuff is only 1.25 " thick - not sure it would work, i'm so torn on whether to buy it or not!

I'm sure trex with 4x4 would be great.

But 1 X 6 i'm not sure would hold up flex wise the same.

JW,

I think you're mixing up the measurements from Sparks (Sparks correct me if I'm wrong). His TREX bed is 4x6 feet in width/length, 8 inches high, using 1.25 thickness TREX. It's good stuff, and the way he mounted it, with a top sitting rail at a 90 degree angle to the vertical piece keeps everything from warping and strengthens it quite a bit. It's an excellent design. It looks like he used some 4x4s in the corners, or was it the TREX corner pieces Sparks?

Anyway, the proof is that the bed looks great 7 years later. Nice job Sparks!

At that price, I'd jump on the TREX. How can it go wrong!

David

Ok I guess I'm confused.

I've heard this stuff isn't very "stiff".

How did you reinforce the sides? Or is the fact that you did it 4 X 4 make it small enough where you didn't need too?

My husband recently built two flower beds for me out of Trex left over from building a deck for our new house. The sides are about 3.5 feet each and it is a 2.5 foot reach to the center of the beds. There is no flex apparent. You can see a photograph of the bed here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/loghillroger/2707397701/

Pictures of the chickens the fence is meant to keep out are here if you're interested:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/loghillroger/sets/72157604539728035/

Gail

You may want to consider using a different brand.

I built a planter for my garden with LifeTime Lumber and it works great. It is VERY stiff, and it is not water soluble, so it will not decompose. Also, LifeTime Lumber is garden friendly, since it does not release toxins into the soil.

http://www.ltlumber.com/

I built my planter on the balcony so that my dog would have a little grass to play on and it has a small aquarium in it to. Just Goldfish, since they are pretty tough and cheap to replace in case they die. Still sad when they die, though.

:(

Here is a link that might be useful: LifeTime Lumber

Bad news, I guess Simon (my dog) is now into sushi...

I tried to find information about composite lumber for reised beds for a long time and found nothing until today , thank you so much to all , specially for te picture! that is a beautiful bed =)

Christy,

We had not really expected anybody to make a planter out of LifeTime Lumber, but after reading your post it looks like a great application.

Can you please post pictures of your planter built with LifeTime Lumber?

Here is a link that might be useful: LifeTimeLumber

sparks5478 can you please send me the plans for your Trex garden boxes? I want to do some that are the same size and like how yours look especially being so old. Thanks a lot -