What is the best hand saw for cutting composite wood decking?

[calopi]

Hi, I recently purchased some composite wood decking tiles from newtechwood to lay over my concrete patio: https://newtechwood.com.au/composite-decking-australia/deck-tiles/.  The installation guide says the tiles can be cut with a variety of tools including a hand saw (screenshot from guide attached). I need to make some cuts but don’t own a circular or table saw. My question is what would be the best hand saw to cut these with? Are there any carbide tipped hand saws as the guide suggests or does this only apply to circular/table saw blades? Thanks for your help.

[KatieC]

Hi @calopi,

First, let me extend a warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community! It is awesome you have joined us and asked a great question about selecting the right power tool for your decking project. Our resident DIY expert @MitchellMc will be online tomorrow to assist you, but in the meantime, let me tag our wonderful Workshop members @Adam_W and @Jewelleryrescue to check if they have any suggestions. In Adam's article Timber-free deck with steel frame he mentions he used a diamond-bladed wet saw.

We would love to see how your deck turns out, please keep us updated with photos. 

Katie

[Jewelleryrescue]

Hi @calopi  And @KatieC 

As you are entering in to DIY  I recommend  hand saw purchase as it will serve you well into the future  projects  too.

A good safe saw to buy next is the jigsaw it cuts to 50mm deep a variety of materials it can cut straight or in circlular pattern.   Next  saw is a circular saw 185 mm to start with not overly power full till you learn to handle it.

Extreme electric saw saftey tips. This  is also works for all hand tools and power tools as a a guide

1 adjust your saw blade depth to just past the thickness of the  materials

2 Have a good clean  work bench  and or trestles no clutter around or on them including saw dust as it is a slip hazard so a spinning blade and  loose saw dust best to keep clean not every cut 

3 always plan you cut by test moving the saw with power  off over the work  piece with good footing I hook the power cord over my shoulder so I know its  safe and I wont cut it under the job.

4 make sure people animals and children not moving around close to you as a distraction or other.

But here is some options.

The best  hand saw to use for the ease of use would  be  carpenters/ hand  saw as it is flat and will assist you in making straight cuts through composite and plastics too there are the long saws good for many applications and long  ripping cuts.  for your decking it can make a right angle cut Just tilt blade to 90 degree vertical cut position.  There are also the same type of saw that have a wide blade to self guide your cut called panel saws about half the length great for smaller  cross cutting timber usually have smaller finer teeth and cut slower.  here is an example

https://www.bunnings.com.au/spear-jackson-560mm-predator-x-hardpoint-hand-saw_p5710037

Spear & Jackson 560mm Predator X Hardpoint Hand Saw I/N: 5710037 $20.99

All in the $20  to $40 range.

But for  $70 you can move into a  Safe and easy to use electric  jigsaw it will  cut well it will cut vertically a 90 degree cut out and save you a lot of manual work depending on how  many decking tiles you have to cut. There are cheaper ones around $40 but  some are toys mid price range will last several years looked after wd40 oiled after use etc

Ozito 810W Pendulum Jigsaw JSW-8100  I/N: 0048823  $69.90

Or a  electric circular saw will cut more straighter and give straighter over all cut edge  some also have an edge guide that you set to hold thee blade  parrallel to the  edge of the tile. The saw is not good  for cutting out 90 degree cutouts  as  blade spins  Which  means you will need to over cut in length to cut right through material or  finish cut with  hand saw..  Ozito is  good all round bag for buck.

https://www.bunnings.com.au/ozito-185mm-1300w-corded-circular-saw_p6290237

Ozito 185mm 1300W Corded Circular Saw I/N: 6290237  $69.90

[MitchellMc]

Hi @calopi,

It's great to see that @Jewelleryrescue has provided some helpful information.

I'm not sure why they call for carbide-tipped teeth on the saw. Typically these types of teeth are only seen on masonry saws. I presume your decking is not cement-based, but perhaps that's part of the mix they've used? Our composite wood decking consists mainly of plastic and only requires a standard hand saw to cut. Perhaps you might like to contact the manufacturer to query the saw type before purchasing a specialised and rather costly masonry saw.

As @Jewelleryrescue mentioned, a circular saw with a carbide blade would likely give you the best results.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Mitchell