Replies

1. 
   Sphere | Jul 27, 2005 11:17pm | #1

   Did you hear of Pen-O-fin?  When I was down to NC a few weeks ago, I saw a deck I did 2 yrs ago, HO had just applied 3rd coat a few weeks prior to that..Looked like new.

     Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks

1. 
   davidmeiland | Jul 28, 2005 12:26am | #2

   Ipe deck??

1. 
   Sphere | Jul 28, 2005 12:31am | #3

   Oh..yes. and the rails.  Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks

2. 
   [email protected] | Jul 28, 2005 05:35am | #4

   David - I looked into this when I put up an ipe railing on my deck last year. The decking itself is trex. The recommendations I found were penofin or Messmer's. http://www.messmers.com/prod_uh.html Penofin has a formulation specifically intended for ipe; whether it's actually anything different or just marketing I couldn't say. http://www.penofin.com/

   However, my first try was Olympic Watergard, based on Consumer reports saying it was the best clear finish, and reporting it as lasting a couple years. I found it lasted only a month or so, meaning in a month the wood looked unfinished and was turning weathered gray/white.

   So I went for the penofin, which is a semi-transparent stain, and pricey at, IIRC, something around $50/gal. I sanded a bit to get that beautiful dark color back before applying. It lasted the rest of the season, but needed recoating this year. So far this year, it still looks decent, but some of the top rail (which gets quite a beating from direct sun most of the day) is looking like it could use another coat. I'm content with the penofin for my limited need, but wouldn't think I'd be happy with it if I had a whole deck of ipe. Since the penofin isn't a film finish, I can redo the entire rail in a couple hours by just slapping a coat on.

   It sure is beautiful when first finished though. Wish I had a better answer for you. Ipe is just beautiful wood; breaks my heart to watch that beauty disappear. Part of my top rail even has some curly figure.

   Ken

1. 
   DougB | Jul 28, 2005 06:00am | #5

   Penofin and Messmers were the first to truly market to the hardwood decking folks, and they were used heavily in the beginning.  Cabots Australian Timber Oil has kind of taken over for ease of use and ease of removal.  Apparently, neither Messmers or Penofin hold up well...at least that's the opinion of the deck pressure washer pros who have to deal with the fallout of these two brands.  And to be truthful, you cannot truly expect ANY stain made yet to really hold up well on Ipe'.

   I'm gonna guess you've seen John H. rave about TWP Rustic #116.  He seems to have extremely good success using this finish.  It is film forming, but is resin based rather than oil based, so it acts more like laquer in that it will bond to itself with each coat put on.  He will swear that if you do it right, you can apply a "wet on wet" the first day, wait a few months and apply another coat, and you should be good to go for 2 years.  All other brands that I'm familiar with seem to need to be applied every year.

   To clarify, I'm not a pro...simply someone who is currently building an Ipe' deck who has spent the last 4 months doing as much research as I could to make sure I'm doing this thing the right way.  It is an expensive venture, and I do not wish to make mistakes.  You might want to check this site http://www.homeressources.com/forum/list.php?f=7 or this site http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/porch/ .  Do a search on either and you could spend days reading up on the thoughts of pros over the last couple of years.

1. 
   davidmeiland | Jul 29, 2005 07:20am | #6

   Thanks all for the comments.

   Talked to the Sikkens people today and they recommend sanding the deck to 80 grit and then wiping it with acetone... then applying the Cetol SRD product.

   Still not sure what to do.