How do you avoid sanding before sealing the deck if you are trying to deal with water stains? Is that what the sodium percarb solution or the Oxiclean is for?

Again... Im no expert.... (heck, im not even a novice).. but i did see you have posted about this in multiple threads... I would go out and get some kind of sodium percarb. Although the oxyalic I said in the message above might take care of the stains.... Wait for Ken (pressurepros) to wake up and answer this if you want precise instructions....

Hello!
I am building an ipe deck. The contractors have been good thus far, but have spilled coke and various other drinks today. I tried soap and water on the spots, and no luck.

The deck also has a screened porch. We replaced our roof and where the new porch roof meets the old, there is a big valley that pours water onto the deck. (I am getting gutter estimates as we speak)

To add to my problems, the roof was taken off one day and tar paper was added. The new shingles were going down the next day. Between the old and new roof that first night, we had a huge rainstorm. Water came down onto the deck heavily, (along with tar paper residue)

I now have coke stains and water/tarpaper stains.

The contractors are leaving tomorrow as their job is nearly complete. My plan is to put the recommended oil on the deck to bring out the natural colors (not sure what to use -- any advice would help) - but what can I do, if anything to get rid of the stains prior to putting oil down?

Time is crucial here, so please advise.

Thanks!
From a novice

The problems are all the fault of your contractors, don't let them leave without fixing your issues. Tar is petroleum based and very difficult to remove. Soda is acidic and has dyes which present another set of problems. I have to use stripper to remove tar and even then had to sand to completely get rid of shadows.

Thanks for the reply. I am certainly going to hold them accountable, I am just afraid they only know how to build a deck and not how to care for it... as I have asked them pointed questions regarding maintaining it etc and they just looked puzzled.

Any advice on what I should get them to do?

Should I get them to replace the actual boards that were damaged?

Thanks for the reply. I am certainly going to hold them accountable, I am just afraid they only know how to build a deck and not how to care for it... as I have asked them pointed questions regarding maintaining it etc and they just looked puzzled.

Any advice on what I should get them to do?

Should I get them to replace the actual boards that were damaged?

I have an Ipe deck that I stained days after it was completed. The sun hits it 90% of the day which has caused it to lose its stain two months later. I'm in the process of sanding and prepping for stain and wondered if anyone can suggest a stain? Also, is there something I should pre treat the wood with and something I should use after the stain is applied? Any suggestions would be helpful.

My deck also gets sun most of the day. I'm amazed at how much the IPE has already silvered in 6 weeks. I'm guessing no matter what stain I apply it's not going to last a year. I'm hoping my wife can live with silver!

To answer the original poster, don't us a redwood stain on Ipe. They are 2 different animals. Use a stain formulated for hardwoods. I use Austrailian Timber Oil. Penofin also makes a semi-transparent stain for hardwoods. It is very similar to ATO.

6 weeks to weather driftwood grey is very fast.

Most semi-transparent stains do not last more then a year, in any climate. Despite the claims otherwise.

There are no products that will prevent Ipe from silvering on a sunny deck (unless you seal it every 3 months). I use Penofin, and it looks great when I'm done...but it's only temporary.
Built a pergola over the deck...the more shade, the better

steve

"6 weeks to weather driftwood grey is very fast"

Let me clerify...It did not completely silver but it has lightened considerably from the original color it was when installed.

Wow,

It's amazing the problems and frustations folks are having with their Ipe decking. I see a couple of common threads here. Number one is do NOT trust what the "expert" tells you; just read the label on the can and/or go to the manufacturer's website. We have worked with many of the products discussed on this forum and followed the manufacturers' instructions with no problems. Number two is give the product a chance. Many products will require stripping before reapplication. This is a lot of periodic work and seldom good for the plants. Pick a product that does not cause a build up surface film that must be stripped. Penofin has worked very well for us. Just retreat with it when the Ipe starts to turn 'blonde'. It maybe 6 months the first retreat, and then 12 months after that, and then 18 months after that. Give it a chance.

Penofin has good midecides and fungecides to mimimize mold.

Regarding Cabots' Australian Timber Oil (ATO), we have had to strip it off every Ipe deck we have come accross. It gets shinier and more splochy with subsequent coats and looks horrible. The can tells the user it has to be stripped before recoating, but folks seem to ignore that step.

As one that works with these coatings all the time and has for years, I can tell you with certainty that these manufacturers do change the formulas without any notification. Perhaps at one time ATO was the best around. Nowadays I could hardly agree based on our hands on experience.

Please just read the instructions and if you think you know better than the manufacturer, perhaps you should be using some other product.

Ipe and other exotic hardwoods are not maintenance free or even what I would call low maintenance. Heck Pressure Treated Southern Yellow Pine (PTSYP) is less maintenance than Brazilian hardwood.

If folks out there are building Ipe decks because they expect to save maintenance expenses, they better like it dingy and gray.

It's been a while since my original post (I started this thread) so guess I'll follow up. First of all, the Penofin I used was purchased specifically for use on the Ipe so I assume the vendor gave me the right stuff. Redwood was the color, not the intended wood. Anyway, I was so frustrated with the original results I thought I might try letting it turn silver and see how that looked. Silver might be OK but black is not (mildew) so last summer I washed it with OxyClean (yes, I know, not the best cleaner but I had it on hand so thought I'd try it) and a stiff scrub brush. It worked great, removing the mildew and the old Penofin (came off in a goopy mess) by just rinsing with a nozzle on a garden hose after the scrubbing. I let it dry completely for a few days and in the meantime started researching stains (again). After finding countless conflicting opinions I went to Consumer Reports (been a member for over 20 years and have learned to trust their research) and found the Sikkens products. I applied their Cetol SRD 250 (translucent stain made specifically for use in the PRC). I did one thing not in the directions... I applied a very heavy coat and wiped it down with a stain-soaked rag before it dried completely. It's only been five months so it's too soon to tell but so far it looks good. I'll report back in a year or so. As to the Anchorseal wax soaking into the cut ends of the boards, it is still there in some places, but not nearly as noticeable as it was before I cleaned and restained. A couple of the boards did develop cracks on the ends despite the Anchorseal, but most did not. The deck still looks good (great now that it's restained). One thing that's noticeable is that the boards closest to the house, under the eave, were originally darker than the others (more shade) but now that I've cleaned and restined they are lighter color. That's because the stain soaked in more on the more weathered wood.

This summer a carpenter friend and I built a substantial Brazilian Redwood deck.
I learned allot of things and wanted to posts what I learned to this forum but have not had the time.

Regarding CABOTS ATO, there are two formulas with the same names. The 3000 series is good, the 9000 series is bad. (Example 3459 Mahogany Flame is good, 9459 Mahogany Flame is bad.) The 9000 series does not look the same, takes forever to dry, does not repel water, hides grain, Â.. I have run it three people who have experienced this same series 9000 problem, some with restraining there old decks (they had no problems before) or with new decks both on Mahogany and Brazilian redwood. I only stained three boards with the 9000 series and you can still tell them apart especially when it rains.

On end waxing, I discussed with Cabot's and they felt I should be able to use the ATO in place of the wax. I did and seemed to soak in well to the end cuts. Just for a precaution, I also waxed the ends a couple of hours after the ATO dried. This mitigated any end waxing color problems.

we just paid a company--3 weeks ago--a lot of money to clean and seal our ipe flooring. They used cabot oil-based stain. 10 days elapsed between the cleaning process and the staining process because of the rain. Our deck has now turned black--spotty, but black. Is this in fact mold? Can mold spores get on wood that quickly? They say it's not their fault-help.

I have heard that Ipe can be a challenge to work with. I recently cleaned and stained my Ipe deck with EFC-38 followed by Citralic to brighten the wood. I stained it with Wood Tux. I am very pleased with the results so far (my friends are in awe of the Ipe!) It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be to apply. I will keep you posted as to the durability.

We had an ipe deck installed about 6 years ago. Originally the workers used Silkkens stain, but the following year I asked them to use Penofin. It looked great. Last year, less experienced workers did another coat of Penofin and did not apply it correctly. One area was extrememely sticky where it was very hard to even lift your foot off the deck. We power-washed that area and the misc. debris as well as the stain washed away. So I don't know what to do this year, do I have them sand and start from the beginning again? If so, do you stain right after the sanding or wait? So many people have had different experiences, I don't know what is best. Any advice?

www.woodrich-brand.com

These guys sell strippers/oxalic acid wash/ outdoor finish. Not bad Customer support. J.

Here is a link to a variety of Pergola Plans.
Scott

Here is a link that might be useful: pergola plans

Is anyone familial with sanding Ipe material?

Hello All,

I just joined and am not sure if this thread is still active ...

I have an IPE deck that's about 8 years old with no maintenance. It gets a lot of sun and has grayed quite a bit. There's also blackish dirt on it, and some has a greenish hint where it doesn't get as much sun.

My question is: is there a way to clean it that won't compromise an existing stain/sealant/water-resistance?

Thanks!

LW

If the deck is 8 years old and has never been maintained, why would you be concerned over preserving "existing/stain/sealant/water resistance" as whatever is there is nonexistent and should have been done at least 6 years ago?

My professional installer completed an Ipe deck on my San Francisco Bay Area home and finished it with Australian Timber Oil in early August. We have had one light rain and a couple of days of fog. It is rapidly turning black. Draw your own conclusions.

Here is some info we put together about ipe problems you might have and how to solve. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions.
Thanks
Paul

Here is a link that might be useful: solving ipe deck problems

The result is that even straight from the mill this ipe wood, these quartersawn ipe boards may need some touching up with a sander to get them smooth. It is not a defect of the lumber, but rather a naturally occurring structure. This is not unique to tropical hardwoods, but because they are so hard, it can be more noticeable than in pressure treated lumber or softwoods like cedar. http://buyipedirect.com/

I thought the whole reason for installing an ipe deck was that you don't do anything but clean it as needed. And yes, it weathers to a lovely silver.

I dont know if it is the problem, but usually Ironwood is sold as a lower grade.... Select or better, same as Advantage Lumber. If you get a higher grade like FAS or FAS-1 you generally will have less problems. I know you can get some FAS from Ipe Woods USA or Disdero Lumber

Iron Woods is a trade name or common name for hardwoods such as Ipe. It's better to refer to the specie name such as Ipe or Cumaru. In regards to grading we are the only American company that owns our own mills in Brazil this allows us to select better grades before importing our materials into our US factories. All other companies have to order from mills and rely on whatever they get sent. We go even further and have created some of our own proprietary grading standards like SMR (Select Mill Run) which is a grade below FAS but better than B-grade. We are also the only company with 4 warehouses in the US as a result we are moving a much larger inventory and allows us to sort our Ipe for much better quality. Some other sellers are simply drop shipping from a lumber brokers leftovers and have no way of knowing what they are going to send you. We've seen these drop shippers send boards with knots the size of a fist as FAS and say that is normal. This is not normal and would not meet our B-grade standards. Anyone can launch a website with a rented office or a UPS PO box with a suite number so it looks like they have an office and promise you the best quality wood. We suggest you verify someones business address and make sure a company is transparent enough to come inspect the wood you are purchasing before you buy. Anyone is welcome to tour our 4 US factories to inspect our wood before you purchase. As with anything in life you get what you pay for!

Iron Woods is definitely used interchangeably across several South American tropical hardwood species including Ipe and Cumaru, but believe is also a proper noun in the instance of "Iron Woods" whose parent company is Timber Holdings USA which we believe is owned by Coastal now. Regardless, good guys with good wood.

This does open the door to an interesting topic for wood geeks and homeowners alike. Grading standards.... There is currently no uniform grading standard for South American tropical hardwoods. Generally speaking the best Ipe coming into the US right now is clear three sides with allowances for small tight pin knots no bigger than your pinkie. So how can a layman homeowner differentiate between "grades" and know they're getting the quality they expect? Nominal vs. actual dimensions can be confusing enough..... As stated, there is no uniform grading standard, but here is a list of common "grade descriptors" that are indicative of top quality:

1) Clear

2) Premium

3) Prime

4) FAS (acronym for "First And Seconds")

5) FEQ (acronym for "First European Quality")

While a company may use these and send you something of lower grade or water it down with a small percentage of B-Grade... (like all industries there are unscrupulous characters and companies), if you purchase wood in any of these five "grades" what you should receive is "clear three sides with allowances for small tight pin knots no bigger than your pinkie."

In addition to "grade" names, always check references of the supplier and they should be happy to give you a list of satisfied customers. Another qualifier is whether the company is FSC Certified. While you may not be purchasing FSC Certified material, the certification process is arduous and an indicator of a reputable company. We don't know of any companies out there who would risk losing this certification just to make a few extra bucks.

Advantage is right though, you get what you pay for and if the price seems too good to be true then you're probably receiving some percentage of inferior grade before we even enter the realm of discussing botanical names and specie substitution....., but we can save that for another thread.....

Back to the topic of how do you know if what you're getting is real "Ipe"...…. Contrary to Advantage's post above, "Ipe" and "Cumaru" are actually NOT specie names. They are common names just like "ironwood". Additional ipe common names include, but are not limited to Brazilian walnut, Yellow poui, groenhart, arewood, bastard lignum-vitae, bethabara, greenheart, May-flower, noib wood, trumpet flower tree, ipe, ipe tobaco, pau d’arco, and bethabara. If you really want to be sure ask the company you're considering working with what the botanical name is of the specie you're interested in purchasing. "Ipe's" botanical name is Tabebuia Serratifolia and "Cumaru's" botanical name is Dipteryx Odorata. If they can't come up with the answer on the spot consider purchasing somewhere else......