Taking care of your Ipe
deck
New York decks live in a harsh environment. Raining one
minute, and sunny the next...heat and humidity,
and UV rays. Then snow, ice, and freezing cold for months. What makes it worse
is that most of this punishment
occurs on one side only...the top of the deck. This causes movement and
degradation of the wood. It will shrink,
expand, want to warp and cup. Fortunately, you have chosen Ipe for your
decking. It will move, but have very
little degradation. There will be some, but you should be able to enjoy your
deck for many years, with little or
no maintenance. The Ipe color will fade to a silvery gray, but remain sound.
When I finish building your deck, I hand
sand it with a random orbital sander, loaded with 50 grit sandpaper.
I sweep off the dust, and blow it away with a compressor. Then I apply Penofin
(Transparent Natural Tone for hardwoods). It's
available locally at Dykes lumber on
depending on the size of your deck. It's best to apply the Penofin on a cloudy
day, or when your deck is in shade.
Penofin doesn't like sunny days. I don't always have the luxury to wait for an
optimal time to apply, so I have to
move a little quicker, before the Penofin gets tacky.
I chose Penofin because it's easy to
apply, and easy to find, and it looks great. The truth is, Ipe is extremely
dense, and a
penetrating oil, like Penofin, isn't able to penetrate very deeply, except into
the end grain at the ends of the boards. I make sure to
flood it on the ends, where more absorption occurs, and where the Ipe is most
likely to check (fine splits or cracks).
When I have completed your deck project,
the deck will look as good as it ever will, but then the UV rays will cause
it to start fading. By the following spring, it will have faded to a silvery
color, or be well on the way. The rate of fading
depends on whether your deck is in bare sun, partial, or full shade.
Some of you will like the faded color, or
come to accept it, as it requires seasonal maintenance to keep it looking like
it did when I left.
If you want it to look like beautiful, tropical wood again, you can do it
anytime...even years later.
Sanding your deck is the best prep that
you can do, before re-applying Penofin (or the sealer of your choice).
If you don't want to sand, get a deck wash product at Lowes or HD, or your
local paint store...one that contains oxalic acid. Follow the instructions.
You can also use a pressure washer, as Ipe is hard enough to handle the
pressure. Maybe dial down the pressure a bit.
Afterward, when the deck is dry, apply the
Penofin. It's not necessary to coat the bottom of the boards, as they never
suffer from UV rays, rain, or snow. In the paint section of Lowes, you can get
a paint pad with a handle. They sell a combo
pack, which is made for applying sealers to decks and fences. You may also need
a paintbrush. You will need a threaded
broomstick to screw onto the handle, so that you spend less time on your knees.
After you finish applying, you wipe it dry with some old t-shirts. Wipe until
you don't see any shiny, oily spots.
Dispose of the oily
rags immediately. Soak them with water first. Don't leave them in the sun.
They can spontaneously
combust, and cause a fire.
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What you'll need...
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Done for another year. Enjoy your deck, and take care of it.
Any questions...call or email.
Steve
347-526-8670
steve@urbanexteriors.biz