Where are you getting TWP 100 in Felton?

Here is the simple fact about deck finishes: Oil/solvent finishes are the only thing to use on exotics. Ipe and its cousins are basically oil-based species. No acrylic finish will protect a wood this dense and full of oils.

You have a common misconception that multiple applications of a product results in layers of film. Oil/solvent based finishes penetrate into the wood while water based acrylics form a film. Multiple applications of any finish are required to get lasting coverage on Ipe, whether you are using water based or solvent based product. You really do want to do what John Hyatt does, it just may take a few decks to get the technique. Seven coats of TWP applied over a year will not create a paint-like film. Applying oil finish is really easy, just work on 2-3 boards at a time, wet edge, even coverage. All you need is clean dry wood and 24hrs of warm dry weather.

If you get a local source on the TWP 100, let me know, I live in Pacifica.

Thanks Aidan,I could not have said it better my own self.

Another plus using twp is never having to strip off the finish something I dont completley understand but I know is true in fact I would hate to try to get it off. Part of it is twp's ability to bond to itself no matter how long its been down.

Also a person would think multi coats would change the color but it dosent all I can fugure is the sun breakes down the pigment but not the finish itself. So when its time to recoat the color just goes back the way it was.

My Masenramduba deck out back of Butler Manor is my hands on test using twp rustic 116. Built over 10 years ago,evey three years or so I give it an oxalic wash and two more coats. It looks the same as the day I built it in fact I could go longer between refinish to the normal Wallet it would look fine but I like to keep it up just to see if it still works the same.

The finish has never peeled,blistered or lifted. Little side note>> I used 2'' copper pipe in the rail system twp works on that as well, O green and it has a bronze look to it thats kinda cool There are a few tricks to doing this but nothing most Folks can not learn/do using the sprit of a sound mind.The more coats the longer it takes to set up and on new wood not leaving any cross marks, dribles,or cut in lines. After the first coat is down its total easy like washing/waxing your car. J.

I also am interested in a local supplier of the TWP 100 series. Aidan.. spent the last few days up your way at Half Moon Bay. Lots on dungies jumping into the boat. Great eating...

Hello all, I have been reading multipe posts concerning ipe decking. We just recently purchased our decking from East Teak. They were very helpful and our shipment arrived the same week and the wood is beautiful. Thanks John, George was great. Now we have the decking in the garage, and it's almost time to put in down. We purchased screws, anchorseal, and the bow wrench form East Teak as well.
A couple of questions.

How long do we let the wood acclimate to our weather (cincinnati, Ohio)?
Our deck is 12-18" off the ground, Is that enough ventilation?
Do we need to seal the underside of the ipe deck boards before fastening, and if so with what?
Is sealing and staining different?
Do we need to dip the screws in anchorseal before fastening the deck boards with them?
It is November, should we stain the deck now or wait until spring?
This is our dream deck, and we want to do this right the first time. From reading the posts, since our decking is new all we need to use is twp100, if we wait until spring we will need to use a brightener and then twp100, is this correct?
What is the brand name of the brightener to buy?
Do we use something like liquid nail between the joist and the bottom of the ipe decking?
We will have some facial boards with angled cuts, do we anchorseal the ends, and the glue them?

Ok, it was more than a couple questions,but I would appreciate any feedback.

Thank you, watkins28

thanks, folks.

aidan and steve, twp100.com allows for online ordering via mfg sealants. and they've not kicked me out after i've given my address in felton. so, i am hoping i can get all the way through once i've made my decision. $55/2 gal., free shipping, no tax.

and described that simply, you're right, that's what i want. i have been laboring under many misconceptions, and that was one of them. thank you.

john, i assume you use a foam brush to get between boards? or does it flood that much and drip through?

i've got the deck up but for the final three boards, and am returning all the remaining ipe to my supplier (big creek lumber, a local lumber yard who matched my quoted price from advantage lumber) for replacement boards (about 10% of the total of 1200ish LF). lots of mill marks, broken or poorly milled edges, bad staining, wormholes, and some big honkin' tearout. the rest is very pretty.

once i get those final three on i was thinking of these steps: (1) clean with someone's ipe cleaner (any recommendations on good brands?) to get rid of the dirt, dust, etc., that's lurking in the ipe, (2) sand it down using 80 grit sandpaper to get rid of some mill marks and drill fuzz (around the countersinks), (3) rinse it really, really well and let it dry, then (4) put on the finish.

does that sound about right?

btw, i am a homeowner, not a professional, and have built this largely on my own (had help from a contractor friend to attach the ledger board, and various help from friends during the substructural construction process). it'll end up being about 500sf including stairs, and we'll be into it for less than $7K total including rails, and a shade arbor...

thanks for your advice, and comments, folks! reading steve, john, and others' deck builds/advice has helped all along the way...i am hoping to put up a page to help others once i get this done; there are many little things you do in a deck build that you can only learn from doing it, or from one who has...

best,
bill

Don't worry about power washing or stripping the boards. The winter storms will wash off the mill glaze.

If you are really worried about the Ipe lightening in color and want to get a finish on it before winter, I think the weather next week will be warm enough. But if your deck gets morning dew, forget it. It won't dry enough this time of year. You may need to wait until late Feb/March when we start getting a bit more sun angle. If your deck gets full sun now and is dry of dew in the morning, I'd say go for it. Just sand it with 50-80 grit disc random orbit sander. Vacuum and blow off the dust rather than rinsing.

Remember the deck needs to be warm enough for the product to dry. If the deck stays shaded it doesn't even warm up to the air temp. during the day.

i think i will have to wait, then. we didn't lose the dew until after noon today, then had a nice dry afternoon. started kicking in around 5 tonight; that doesn't sound like enough time.

sanding it should bring it back to color, in february/march, yes?

thanks, aidan.
bill

I, too, ordered my TWP directly from Atlanta (free shipping w/2 gals or more, no tax) - and to help me make my decision on color before I settled on one, they sent me 8 little cans of color samples so I could test on my older reclaimed wood. For my situation I ended up with TWP200 CedarStone. It went on easy on the arbor. It's been a couple of months and water (and now ice) beads up well. And when I had to replace a bit of trim and do a bit of planing, it was easy to see that the TWP really penetrated into both the old wood and the new piece. I did notice that when I had tried to re-apply for a darker color, it was not absorbed and I ended pulling it off with a dry brush.
Kris

We are importers of Ipe and Garapa decking and have tesed products for the last 8 years. The absolute best way to treat Ipe decking is to clean the decking with Woodrich cleaner following the directions to a T and then allowing it to dry for several days and then applying the TWP 101 cedertone natural stain /sealer or the Woodrich wiping stain depending on your budget. The cleaner neutralizes the PH of the wood and we have been getting 1 1/2 - 2 times the life out of the stain/sealers that we carry.
Steve