Impromptu review.
This is http://www.swiftdeck.com/ Ipe tiles
I kind of like running into those jobs with something new and entertaining. This one was putting these Ipe tiles on an existing concrete patio. I hadnt heard of them before. Random thoughts:
Aesthetically, awesome. They really look great. I saw a couple of sample tiles ahead of time and thought, oh, ok. En masse, quite different. The richness of the wood is beautiful. I believe they come with penofin or equivalent applied.
Installation is pretty easy, although if you look at the plastic bases, one might assume, as I did, that they’re flexible and prone to getting squishy underfoot or moving side to side. Not. You actually need to be darn square to make them interlock. Its almost brainless. If you’re twisted a little, you can tap all you like but you’ll only ding up the tabs that interlock. That tells you to check square. If you’re square to the world, they just slip right in.
Cutting is a little dangerous. I’d use the hold downs on the chop saw. Hard wood with plastic base, there is enough flex to make the saw grab things if you arent wary.
But together, you can nudge a section with your foot to move the section more one way or another from a layout line, but you’re not going to be able to make the section out of square perceptably. It just wont. I think about 40 tiles is the “slide around” limit of assembly. I had an oops that I had to adjust a little and was relieved to find that I could take out just a row and move large sections at a time to where I wanted.
Biggest gripe. The tiles are attached from the back side with screws. Those screws NEED to be flush or countersunk into the base for the tiles to sit flat and not rock. Quality control failed big time there. I bet at least a third of the screws out of just over 2 full pallets of tiles needed attention, and theres some laid tiles still that Monday I’ll be pulling and tightening the screws on.
Overall, if I thought they could learn to use a screw gun, I’d use them again. Like I said, the appearance at the end is pretty slick.
Real trucks dont have sparkplugs
Replies
I did sumpin similar for a rubber roof.
Not thats a good idea!Real trucks dont have sparkplugs
$10 per sq. foot is a little steep. Here is a similar product made of Shorea wood for just under $4 per sq. foot:
http://decking.builddirect.com/Decking/Composite-Vinyl-Cedar/deck-tile-6-Strip-Deck-Tiles/ProductDisplay_9024_P1_10025452.aspx
I guess if you're happy with only a 12 month warranty you could look at those Shorea ones. Check their product return policy as well. I know of at least 3 people who installed the tiles who complained about that the tiles twisted and warped after only a few months but it took months more for the maker to reluctantly replace the tiles.