The Hard and Beautiful Truth About Exotic Hardwoods
exotic hardwood deck by Archadeck
Brazilian hardwoods- they are beautiful, strong, naturally resistant against insects and durable just to name a few qualities. Brazilian or exotic hardwoods are quite popular in uses such as flooring, decking, furniture making, docks, pool houses, and even to finish out ceiling in structures like covered porches, sunrooms and some homes. Their exotic and intoxicating beauty is unique in its variation and veining as well as their coloring.
Massaranduba deck
Brazilian hardwoods include Brazilian Walnut (Ipe), Brazilian teak ( Cumaru), Brazilian cherry (Jatoba), Brazilian redwood (Masaranduba) and the unmistakable Tigerwood. The natural colors of each of these woods is so desirable and unique it doesn’t require any staining or color additive.
Ipe is possibly one of the hardest woods available on the market today. Ipe is rated to last an astounding 100 years! Ipe has a class A fire rating which is same rating given to concrete as well as steel. Exposure to weather, including moisture has very little effect on the structural quality of the wood, this is why it is a popular choice among dock owners. Archadeck of Maryland recently focused on the use of beautiful Ipe in this blog story about an Ipe deck in Potomac MD.
Tigerwood up close-breathtaking
Tigerwood is another great option when considering exotic hardwoods. Tigerwood will not rot or decay over time. It is also quite disease- and fungus-resistant which make Tigerwood another viable option for use around a pool area, or area that is exposed to moisture. Another great article on Tigerwood was done by Archadeck of Austin, to read more just click the link below…
Ipe Brazilian hardwood roof deck from Rhode Island Builder - Archadeck
Even though some hardwoods are better known to consumers such as Ipe and Tigerwood, there are many more of these exotic woods on today’s market. Exotics require different installation than a typical wood application. Pre-drilled holes are required to ensure the decking will not split due to the hardness and resiliency of the wood. All Brazilian hardwoods carry at the very least a 25 year guarantee. We do recommend treating the deck on a regular basis to maintain those rich warm tones. Eventually all exotics will weather to a beautiful silver patina over time.
Ipe Brazilian hardwood deck with galvanized steel railing
If you are interested in re-decking or new decking with Brazilian hardwoods. Archadeck has the expertise and experience of working with these exotics. We can design, plan and build your next outdoor structure. Contact us today to see the Archadeck difference. 888-687-3325 or email us at info@archadeck.net
Spheres, curvilinear, bowed, arched – it all means one thing – gorgeous rounded edges
Crack open the pages of an upscale architectural magazine, or a hot new catalogue, or an outdoor living design book and you will see rounded edges everywhere. You’ll see landscaping with rounded edges. You’ll see patios with rounded edges and decks with rounded edges. In landscaping and in patios, this is not very difficult to accomplish but in deck building, it’s quite a feat of deft craftsmanship and carpentry.
Tim Stephens of Archadeck of West Central and Southwest Ohio loves to build rounded edges into his decks. I was talking to him about it the other day after seeing some of his work.
Deck with rounded edges
On the decks from the images and above and below, I wasn’t sure what I was more impressed with – the inlay or the rounded edges. After our conversation, I was certainly more impressed with the rounded edges and what goes into making that happen.
Deck with rounded edges and decorative inlays
In order to build a deck with rounded edges, the first critical component from a design perspective is the rounded fascia board. In order to bend a board to the degree it needs to be bent to build a structure with true rounded edges, composites must be used. Tim says that the deck area needs to be larger in order to be able to use rounded edges. His rule of thumb is not to go smaller than 14′ in diameter and a 7′ radius.
The board is bent without using any heating ovens. By working in the hottest days of summer, Tim’s crew of craftsmen are able to bend the fascia boards to the appropriate degree. I wondered if bending the boards would cause them to become more brittle once the weather became cold. He indicated that once the board was successfully bent, it did not crack or strain in the cold or any other times of year.
rounded fascia board shown with deck sub-structure
With the radius edges, there is quite a bit more structure that needs to go beneath. That’s why these decks need to be a little farther off the ground than traditional decks.
“To get roundness (depending on height off ground) we have to use angled beams and put more footers in to support structure” says Stephens.
You can see in the photo above that the deck and fascia boards have a different thickness. The structural support uses a thick hearty board while the fascia is thinner which allows it to bend.
So what can you expect in terms of pricing for rounded edges? As you can imagine, the amount of workmanship, additional materials, and time do add up. Tim says you can expect about a $1,000 – $2,000 upcharge with each curved edge. But what you receive is that much more valuable. That’s why both the decks you see above won design awards in prestigious national publications.
TimberTech inlay for rounded deck
According to Stephens, the deck inlay you see above came about to deliver a creative solution to an age-old problem. Decking boards are only 20 feet long. If your deck is longer than 20 feet long, your boards will need to be joined. Butt joining boards can cause trouble and can look terrible depending on how it’s done. So by creatively inserting the above inlay, it make the joinery area a focal area instead of an eyesore.
The inlay above is TimberTech Earthwood Teak with Walnut inlays.
Rounded bar on rounded TimberTech deck
close-up of rounded bar using TimberTech and decorative tile
The deck you see above is located in Centerville Ohio. One of the nice things the owners did is asked for a rounded bar on the deck to further the rounded theme. Their backyard was already meticulously professionally landscaped using all spheres or what landscapers call a curvilinear design.
Tim Stephens’ Archadeck area covers the Dayton and Cincinnati areas of West Central and Southwest Ohio including Blue Ash, Centerville, Cincinnati, Dayton, Germantown, Kettering, Liberty Township, Loveland, Springboro, Sycamore Township, Symmes Township, Washington Township and the surrounding area.
Give a call to discuss an outdoor project for your home.
(937) 848-7040
(513) 897-2040,
(513) 874-0101
Visit the website – Archadeck of West Central and Southwest Ohio
or email westcentralohio@archadeck.net
