Deck Maintenance - Exotic Hardwoods
As much as we love our decks, they do require a lot of regular maintenance. The time and costs associated with this have led to the use of new materials that promise to make maintenance less of a chore.
Deck Maintenance - Exotic Hardwoods
As much as we love our decks, they do require a lot of regular maintenance. The time and costs associated with this have led to the use of new materials that promise to make maintenance less of a chore. One of the new types of decking is exotic hardwoods, including ipe, mahogany, pao lope® ironwood and teak, that are characterized by their hardness, density and high natural oil content. In addition, they have excellent dimensional stability, durability and resistance to weather and decay. Of all the choices for decking materials, exotic hardwoods have the longest lifespan, usually forty years without regular maintenance, and up to one hundred years if properly cared for. Exotic woods also have the highest rating for resistance to fire and insect damage. The cost of these materials is now close to the cost of cedar or redwood which have a lifespan of twenty-five years, making the exotics even more attractive.
However, building a deck with exotic wood does present some challenges. Special saw blades and drill bits are needed to cut the wood because it's so hard, and it's necessary to pre-drill holes prior to using screws or nails. Decks made of these woods are also very difficult to stain because the natural oil the wood contains makes it difficult for it to accept customary oil-based penetrating stains.
What is the best way to care for a new deck made of exotic wood? There are two schools of thought. The first is to seal the deck immediately with a high quality oil-base penetrating stain and then re-stain within a year. The reason is that no oil base penetrating stain developed to date, even those whose manufacturers claim otherwise, appear to be able to last longer than six months because the stain simply cannot penetrate the wood. The other approach is to let the deck age for a period of time until enough of the natural oil has dissipated to allow an oil-based penetrating stain to be effective. My recommendation is to treat the deck right away for ultimate protection and be prepared to apply the stain again in six months to a year.
Manufacturers are aware of the problems with traditional products, and in response The Flood Company has developed a new product that appears to provide more long-lasting results, called FloodPro Supreme Performance Penetrating Water-Borne Natural Wood Finish. Time will tell how effective it truly is, but Flood guarantees it for five years on siding, for three years on pressure-treated wood, cedar and redwood decks and for two years on horizontal exotic hardwoods. FloodPro Supreme can only be applied over itself. Keep in mind that it cannot be used on decks that have been previously finished with either a water-borne or oil base product unless the deck is stripped or severely weathered. If you want to apply it to a deck that has been finished with another product, it will be necessary to first apply FloodPro Stripper/Cleaner to remove the old finish. The first time FloodPro Supreme is applied you'll have to use two coats, but in subsequent years, one coat usually will be sufficient. Depending how dirty your deck has gotten, it may be necessary to pressure-wash the deck first with a deck cleaner. After cleaning the wood should dry for at least two days, or until it has reached a moisture content of 20% or less.
There are some tips for applying FloodPro Supreme. The first is that the second coat should be applied "wet on wet", or fairly soon after application of the first coat to ensure adequate inter-coat adhesion for maximum strength. The second is that the surface temperature of the deck is critical when applying waterborne products. If it is too hot, the product may scab and not penetrate properly. A good rule of thumb is to avoid applying the coating in direct hot sunlight when temperatures exceed 90 degrees. Also, do not apply when the temperature is lower than 50 degrees.
So although exotic woods have much to offer, they have to be treated a little differently from decks made from traditional materials, and there's no escaping the need for regular maintenance. The good news is that these decks should last at least twice as long.
