Trex Deck Installation
Handis Trex deck installation builds a new composite deck using the Trex residential line — Transcend (premium capped, 50-year warranty), Enhance Natural or Basics (mid-tier capped, 25-year warranty), or Select (entry-level capped, 25-year warranty) — with the Trex Hideaway hidden-fastener system, color-matched Trex fascia at the rim, and Trex composite or aluminum railing — built on pressure-treated framing at the Trex-specified joist spacing, ledger through-bolted and Z-flashed per IRC, and Trex warranty registered on your behalf after final inspection — from $30,000 for a standard Enhance or Select build on a 300 to 400-square-foot footprint to $65,000 for a premium Transcend build with cap rail, mitered fascia, picture-frame border, and aluminum baluster railing on a larger footprint. Trex is the market-leading composite brand in North America with the longest residential track record of any of the four major composite lines we install — the safest pick when the homeowner wants the proven brand and the 50-year warranty on the premium line. We install all three Trex residential tiers and we will tell you on the booking call which fits your color preference, your warranty appetite, and your budget.
Service
What Does a Trex Deck Install Include?
A Trex deck install is a full new-construction build with Trex composite decking — covering site staking and footing layout, concrete piers and post bases (or helical piers on engineered builds), pressure-treated framing at the Trex-specified joist spacing (12-inch on-center for Transcend, 16-inch on-center for Enhance and Select), through-bolted Z-flashed ledger on attached builds per IRC R507.9.1.3, Trex decking install with the Hideaway hidden-fastener clip system, color-matched Trex fascia at the rim joist, Trex composite cap rail and railing (or aluminum baluster upgrade), low-voltage stair lighting, final cleanup, and Trex warranty registration on your behalf after final inspection. Handis covers Trex builds from $30,000 on a standard Enhance or Select build up to $65,000 on a premium Transcend build with mitered fascia, cap rail, picture-frame border, and aluminum baluster railing.
The Three Trex Residential Lines
Transcend is the premium capped composite — Trex's deepest wood-grain emboss, the widest color range (Tropicals like Spiced Rum and Tiki Torch, Earth Tones like Lava Rock and Vintage Lantern, Naturals like Havana Gold and Rope Swing), and the longest residential warranty (50-year limited fade-and-stain, 25-year structural). Built at 12-inch on-center joist spacing on Handis builds for the longest flat-life on the wood-grain side. The right pick for the homeowner who wants the longest warranty and the premium look.
Enhance Natural and Enhance Basics are the mid-tier capped composites — a narrower color range than Transcend, slightly less-deep emboss, and a 25-year limited fade-and-stain warranty (25-year structural). The right pick for the homeowner who wants the Trex brand and the hidden-fastener install without the Transcend price.
Select is the entry-level capped composite — Trex's most affordable line, a smaller color range, and a 25-year limited warranty. The right pick for the budget-conscious build where the brand name and the long warranty still matter.
Hideaway Hidden-Fastener System
The Trex Hideaway clip system is the manufacturer-specified hidden-fastener install for Trex composite decking. Clips set in the groove of each board edge, screw driven into the joist below at every clip, with the recommended 5/32-inch gap between boards. The result is a screw-free deck surface — no top-driven screws to wear, pull, or rust, and a cleaner look that aligns with the premium category Trex sells into. Using a generic clip on Trex (or vice versa) voids the manufacturer warranty.
Color-Matched Trex Fascia + Trex Railing
Every Trex deck Handis builds gets color-matched Trex fascia at the rim joist — covering the framing edge with the same color and texture as the decking — and either Trex composite railing (cap rail with composite balusters) or the aluminum baluster railing upgrade (composite top rail with powder-coated aluminum balusters for the more modern look). Both railing options are Trex-specified products with matching warranty coverage.
12-Inch on-Center Joist Spacing on Transcend
Trex specifies 16-inch on-center maximum joist spacing for all lines, but Handis builds Transcend at 12-inch on-center as standard practice. The closer spacing adds about 30 percent to the joist count and a couple of working days to the framing, and it adds significant flat-life to the wood-grain side of the board over the 50-year warranty horizon. On Enhance and Select builds we build 16-inch on-center per Trex spec when the budget calls for it; we will explain the tradeoff on the booking call.
How a Trex Deck Install Works
Seven sequential phases from site staking through Trex warranty registration — the actual sequence Handis runs on every new Trex composite build.
Site Staking + Footing Layout + Permit
Estimate visit confirms the footprint, the Trex line (Transcend, Enhance, Select), the color, the railing, and any add-ons. Site staked, footing locations marked, the Seattle DCI permit pulled under Handis's general-contractor license. Stamped engineering coordinated if the build requires it (multi-level, hillside, elevated above 8 feet).
Concrete Piers (or Helical Piers) + Post Bases
Pier footings poured to engineer's spec (or to prescriptive depth on standard builds) — typically 18 to 36 inches deep depending on lot, frost depth, and load. Galvanized or stainless post bases set into the wet concrete or anchored to the cured piers. Helical piers driven on the engineered builds with the installer logging torque per pier.
Pressure-Treated Framing + Ledger
PT beams set on the post bases, joists hung at the Trex-specified spacing (12-inch on-center for Transcend, 16-inch on-center for Enhance/Select). On attached builds, the wall behind the ledger gets opened, the bottom plate inspected and replaced if rotted, then the ledger gets through-bolted with 1/2-inch hot-dipped galvanized or stainless lag bolts at IRC R507.9.1.3 spacing and Z-flashed under the siding with the flashing leg behind the WRB.
Framing Inspection
Seattle DCI (or jurisdiction equivalent) framing inspection scheduled with the permit office. Inspector verifies pier spacing, joist hangers, ledger bolt pattern and flashing, post bases. We hold the decking install until the framing inspection passes.
Trex Decking Install with Hideaway Hidden Fasteners
Trex boards laid out with the picture-frame border at the perimeter, field boards butt-cut clean to the inside of the frame, Hideaway clips set in the groove of each board edge, screw driven into the joist below at every clip. 5/32-inch gap between boards per Trex spec. Mitered corners on the fascia and the picture-frame border on premium builds.
Color-Matched Trex Fascia + Trex Railing + Cap Rail
Color-matched Trex fascia installed at the rim joist covering the framing edge. Trex composite railing (or aluminum baluster upgrade) installed at 36-inch height (or 42-inch on raised decks per WA Residential Code), with the 4-inch sphere baluster spacing rule met. Cap rail set flat across the top.
Final Inspection + Trex Warranty Registration
Final inspection scheduled with the permit office. Inspector verifies the railing height and baluster spacing, the stairs and stair railings, and the overall completion. Permit closed out, permit copy provided to the homeowner. Handis registers the Trex warranty on your behalf within 60 days of purchase with the original paperwork — you get the registration confirmation, the certificate, and the warranty terms.
Trex Deck Pricing
Final pricing depends on Trex line (Transcend vs Enhance Natural/Basics vs Select), deck square footage, color and grain selection, railing system (Trex composite vs aluminum baluster upgrade), and whether stamped engineering is required. Engineering, Seattle DCI permit fees, and any licensed-electrical portions are pass-through line items named in the project total. Request a free in-home estimate for an accurate quote.
Tell us the square footage, the Trex line you are leaning toward (or that you want a recommendation), and the railing material — we will quote the project with permit and engineering included.
Why Homeowners Book Handis for Trex Decks
Trex earned the residential category. The brand has been on the composite market longest, has the widest dealer network in the Pacific Northwest, has the most-tested warranty terms in the category, and Transcend at 12-inch joist on-center is the deck that quietly disappears into the back yard for two decades and looks the same on year 19 as on year 1. The trick on Trex is not the brand pick — it is the install detail. The Hideaway clip system has to be the brand-specified part (not the generic look-alike clip that voids warranty). The fascia has to be Trex-color-matched (not a stained PT rim that fades on a different cycle than the decking). The joist spacing on Transcend has to be 12-inch on-center for the long-flat-life on the wood-grain side. The picture-frame border has to be the same Trex line as the field. The cap rail has to sit flat across the top of the railing without lipping. Every one of those details is what separates a Trex deck that ages well from one that ages around the install errors. Handis builds for the install detail — every Trex build, every time.
Hideaway hidden-fastener system on every Trex install
Trex Hideaway is the manufacturer-specified hidden-fastener clip for Trex composite. We install Hideaway on every Trex build. Using a generic clip voids the Trex warranty — and the warranty is the single most important reason a homeowner buys Trex over a cheaper composite line. We do not save 80 dollars on clips to give up a 50-year warranty.
12-inch on-center joist spacing on Transcend
Trex specifies 16-inch on-center maximum joist spacing across all lines, but Handis builds Transcend at 12-inch on-center as standard practice. The closer spacing supports the wood-grain side flatter over the 50-year warranty horizon. We build 16-inch on-center on Enhance and Select where the budget calls for it; we will explain the tradeoff on the booking call.
Color-matched Trex fascia + Trex railing, not a stained PT rim
The rim joist of every Trex deck Handis builds gets a color-matched Trex fascia covering the framing edge — same color and texture as the decking. The railing system is Trex composite (cap rail + composite balusters) or the aluminum-baluster upgrade (composite top rail + powder-coated aluminum). Stained PT rim fades on a different cycle than the composite deck on top — a tell-tale install shortcut that we do not take.
Trex warranty registered on your behalf, within 60 days of purchase
Every Trex line requires the install to be registered with Trex within 60 days of purchase for the limited warranty to be active. Handis registers the warranty on your behalf after final inspection — you get the registration confirmation, the warranty certificate, and the original paperwork. The warranty stays valid for the original homeowner and is transferable once to a subsequent owner.
IRC ledger schedule, through-bolted, Z-flashed, bottom-plate-inspected
Every attached Trex-deck ledger gets through-bolted with 1/2-inch hot-dipped galvanized or stainless lag bolts at 16-inch on-center staggered top/bottom per IRC R507.9.1.3, Z-flashed under the siding with the flashing leg tucked behind the WRB, and the wall behind the ledger gets opened, the bottom plate inspected, and replaced if rotted. The composite board on top does not change the structural standard underneath.
Insured, background-checked, 2-year structural warranty + Trex limited warranty
Handis carries general liability and workers' compensation; every carpenter has cleared a background screening. Two-year Handis warranty on structural framing — joists, beams, posts, ledger flashing. One-year Handis warranty on decking install, railing, cap rail, and fascia. The Trex limited warranty (25 years on Enhance/Select, 50 years on Transcend) covers the boards themselves under the Trex terms; the railing carries its own Trex warranty.
Estimate
Tell us the square footage you have in mind, the Trex line (Transcend, Enhance Natural, Enhance Basics, or Select — or you want a recommendation), the color preference (the Trex catalog has 9 to 12 colors per line), the railing system (Trex composite standard, aluminum baluster upgrade), and any add-ons (stairs, built-in bench, low-voltage lighting, hot-tub framing). We send a clear estimate with the Trex spec, the warranty terms, and the permit/engineering pass-through line items named.
Customer Reviews
Recent Trex deck reviews from real Handis customers.
460-square-foot Trex Transcend deck (Spiced Rum color) on our flat back yard in Ballard. Hideaway hidden fasteners, picture-frame border, color-matched Trex fascia, capped Transcend railing with aluminum balusters. 12-inch joists. Handis built in 13 working days, pulled the Seattle DCI permit, registered the Trex warranty within a week of final. The deck reads exactly like the showroom sample at twice the size.
320-square-foot Trex Enhance Natural in Coastal Bluff on an attached deck in Bellevue. Mid-tier line, 16-inch joists per Trex spec, hidden fasteners. Handis explained the difference between Enhance and Transcend on the estimate visit and we picked Enhance to fit the budget — happy with the call. Came in right at $34,500. Through 18 months and no fade in the high-traffic walkways.
Trex Select (entry-tier, Saddle color) on a 280-square-foot floating deck in our Queen Anne back yard. Sub-30-inch elevation, no permit needed. Handis recommended Select specifically because the warranty was still 25 years and the budget was the driver — said the homeowner who picks Transcend at this size is buying brand more than value. Pragmatic, honest. $29,200 total.
540-square-foot Trex Transcend (Tiki Torch color) on a multi-level build in Sammamish. Stamped engineering, helical piers, three elevations following the slope. Handis brought the structural engineer in early, framed in two weeks, decked and railed in another week. Total install $62,000 including engineering and permit. Best material decision we made — the Transcend reads as upscale-wood at every visitor's first comment.
380-square-foot Trex Transcend in Vintage Lantern on a Mercer Island remodel. Picture-frame border in Spiced Rum (contrasting color frame on a darker field), aluminum baluster railing in matte black, low-voltage step lights at the stairs and post lights at the railing corners. Handis built the picture-frame detail exactly as the rendering showed. Premium look at $51,000.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Trex deck installation — line comparison, warranty terms, install details, and color selection.