(I got so long-winded with this that I figured Shop-Talk may find this
of interest...):
Chris Kantarjiev wrote:
> Ah. We have a big deck to do. We are looking at the plastic woods
> but don't like the end of life story - can't be recycled or burned.
> Have been thinking cedar; this looks like a nice alternative.
>
> We really need low-maintenance, though...
Well, that's the theory. I knew that PT would just end up looking the
same way after not too long (without a lot of maintenance), and cedar
seemed to be more expensive... and I really liked the look of the IPE.
I hadn't thought about the end-of-life story in this case, but that is a
good point as well. I like that the Trex is recycled plastics, but it
lacks structural strength, and unless you get the Brasilia series, it
looks... cheap (in my opinion). And even the Brasilia will fade to a
grayer version of itself over a year or two.
Building it myself was a learning experience, certainly.
Good things:
- I bought it through a local lumber yard (http://www.tartlumber.com/ -
and they include delivery for any order over $500). The quality of the
PT 2X8 joists was uniformly good - far better than the best Home Depot
could offer! Support your good local supplier!
- 12" centers for the supporting joists is overkill (in theory, I could
have up to a 42" span to meet Fairfax County load requirements!), but it
is damn sturdy (it feels like I'm walking on a garage floor).
- Wood this hard doesn't splinter, so cuts are generally very clean.
Working it with a wood chisel is very neat (keeping that chisel sharp is
paramount, though that's implicit). The green dust can be rather
interesting, though keep it outside your dust mask!
Not-so-Good things:
- 16' 5/4X6 boards are heavy. Many won't be able to carry more than two
at a time - and the weight of the IPE itself for larger structures
should not be dismissed when considering the weight for which the
understructure is designed.
- IPE is hard stuff. Very hard. Select quality, durable bits, blades,
wheels. Keeping the cutting edges cool (with a chilled damp rag or
dipping the blade in cold water) will allow them to maintain their
sharpness for much longer.
- You'll need enough batteries for your cordless tools that you keep
ahead of the discharge rate, which can be remarkable (even with new
batteries).
- Tools that are nearing the end of their lifespan (or ones that didn't
have a good prognosis at the start) may expire from the stress of
working this wood. Perhaps an opportunity to get some better/newer tools?
- When it gets thin, it can be brittle. When it does break, it generally
does so cleanly, and is eminently gluable...
-Peter
--
Peter Murray (N3IXY)
Oak Hill, VA
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