Category Archives: Ipe Wood

How to Seal Ipe Wood

Ipe wood does not need to be sealed like traditional softwoods such as redwood, pine and cedar.

These softwoods have an open grain structure that allows water to penetrate deep into the wood cells like a sponge.

As a result softwoods need a waterproofing sealer that forms a top coat to keep water from penetrating the wood.

If softwoods are left unsealed for prolonged time periods they can deteriorate and rot much faster.

Homeowner sanding deck stain and sealer off an old cedar deck

These top coats will flake and peel off after only a year or two. Then ideally you would sand the entire deck and apply another sealer on top of the deck.

This is a lot of maintenance and what most people think of when it comes to sealing a wood deck.

What Maintenance Does Ipe Wood Require?

Unlike softwood decking Ipe wood does not require a waterproofing sealer to keep the wood from rotting.

Ipe is over 3 times harder than Teak and if you leave Ipe untreated it will turn a beautiful silver grey.

When Ipe turns grey it still shows the beautiful wood grain and maintains all of its durability and will still last up to 75 years or more.

Ipe is so dense and contains a natural oil that if you tried to seal it like you do a traditional wood deck it would peel right off.

Maintaining The Color of Ipe Wood

The sun will bleach the color out of most materials and wood is no exception. UV rays are what causes wood to turn grey outdoors.

To stop Ipe wood from turning grey we recommend applying a special oil that’s specifically formulated for hardwoods like Ipe wood.

This is what most people mistake when they think I have to seal my Ipe wood.

The oil keeps the sun from bleaching the rich brown color from the Ipe wood. It’s basically like sunscreen for your Ipe.

Ipe Oil will not flake or peel off like a sealer on a traditional wood deck so it’s much lower maintenance.

Ipe Wood Maintenance Instructions

Maintaining your Ipe wood is typically very simple and these steps will help you keep your Ipe wood looking good for many years.

Step 1 – Wash your Ipe wood deck

You want to make sure our deck surface is free from dirt, debris, pollen and etc… before applying the oil on your Ipe wood.

Follow all the instructions on the can of Ipe Oil. You want to make sure you have adequate weather with the right temperatures and no rain in the forecast.

If needed you can pressure wash your deck with a wide angle fan tip nozzle. Do not use a concentrated fine tip as those can even damage concrete.

Step 2 – Apply the Ipe Oil

After allowing your deck to thoroughly dry you can apply the Ipe oil using a brush or roller. Make sure to follow all the instructions on the can of Ipe Oil.

This process goes pretty fast since the oil spreads very easy and saturates the Ipe wood evenly.

This is not like water sealing cedar or pressure treated where you need to brush it back and forth to work the sealer into the grain to make sure everything has a top coat.

Ipe Oil has a viscosity very similar to water and Ipe wood is so dense the roller will easily coat the boards.

Step 3 – Wipe up any excess Ipe Oil

Ipe wood is so dense it will only soak up so much of the Ipe Oil. You need to go back with a clean rag after 10 minutes and wipe up any excess or wet looking spots.

This will keep your Ipe deck from getting tacky. After that you can dispose of the rags properly (follow the instructions on the can) oil based rags balled up often can start on fire.

Best Wood For Outdoor Benches

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If you are looking to build a new outdoor wooden bench or resurface and old outdoor bench read on as we’ll cover the best woods you can use for your bench.

Outdoor benches are most commonly made with pressure treated pine or cedar. The problem with these species is they are soft woods that generally require annual maintenance and application of a water sealer.

Softwoods like pressure treated pine and cedar have a open and somewhat porous grain structure which can tend to absorb water almost like a sponge.

While these woods do have some resistance to rot and decay and can last many years if properly maintained.

Many people find the maintenance to be too much work, so their outdoor bench gets neglected as shown in the picture below.

Old Pressure Treated Pine Bench with Peeling Stain

Stripping the old stain off an old bench like this one can be a lot of work getting in between all the bench slats. These benches often get neglected and have paint or stain peeling off the majority of the bench.

Once this occurs the wood is left unprotected and when it rains the wood usually stays saturated for an extended time period making them often undesirable to sit on.

In addition these softwoods can give off splinters and eventually get attacked by wood boring insects which can also make them not pleasant to sit on.

Is Composite Plastic Lumber Good for Outdoor Benches?

In our years of experience selling exterior lumber for decks and other exterior projects we’ve seen too many complaints from homeowners to make us comfortable selling any plastic lumber for now.

Every week we get complaints from homeowners who installed a composite plastic deck a few years ago that need to replace their entire deck because it’s failing and the manufacturer won’t honor their warranty.

If you want to read more about all the issues homeowners have faced with these products just Google search “composite decking problems”, “composite decking complaints” or “brand name decking reviews”.

You’ll be able to read about plenty of issues homeowners have struggled with so as a result of all this feedback we generally stay away and don’t recommend these products.

The 5 Best Woods for Outdoor Benches

Ipe (pronounced EE-pay) is an all natural hardwood that is more than three times harder than teak. It has shown to last up to 75 years or more on many commercial applications such as the Coney Island boardwalk and the Brooklyn bridge.

This hardwood is one of the strongest woods in the world and naturally resists wood boring insects. Ipe wood does not splinter and will not get incredibly hot like plastic lumber.

In addition it’s also naturally slip resistant, has a Class A rating for flame spread, is scratch resistant and naturally mold and fungi resistant. It’s also so dense that it does not absorb water.

All of these excellent natural properties make Ipe wood our number one recommendation for not only decks but many outdoor projects such as outdoor wood benches.

You can view our current Ipe prices here: Ipe Wood Prices

Cumaru Wood

Similar to Ipe Cumaru wood is nearly identical in terms of properties and durability. The main difference is the color color ranges from a golden tan to a reddish brown.

You can still expect all the same excellent properties as Ipe.

This excellent wood is also low maintenance, resistant to wood boring insects and naturally resistant to rot and decay without chemicals.

One other benefit to using Cumaru is the price can be upwards of 40 percent cheaper compared to the price of Ipe wood. You can view the current Cumaru wood prices here: Cumaru Wood Prices

Tigerwood Exterior Lumber

This beautiful wood also comes from South America and is incredibly durable and beautiful. You can expect a 30+ year lifespan with Tigerwood.

Similar to the other woods we listed above Tigerwood is also resistant to wood boring insects, mold and mildew and does not splinter. This is another excellent low maintenance exterior wood material that works great for benches, decks, fences, siding and more.

Garapa Wood

Also known as Brazilian Ash this incredible exterior hardwood is one of the finest quality hardwoods that features a fine-grain that is light yellow to a warm golden hue.

Garapa is naturally resistant to rot, decay and insect attack and offers a 30+ year lifespan. Garapa’s proven exterior durability make it an excellent choice for outdoor benches, decks and more.

You can find more info and pricing here: Garapa wood prices

Massaranduba Wood

Also known as Brazilian Redwood Massaranduba is much more durable than California Redwood, has a longer lifespan and requires much less maintenance.

In fact Massaranduba is over 7x harder than California Redwood. With a janka hardness of 3,190 compared to California Redwood which has a janka hardness of 420.

California Redwood is a softwood and requires annual maintenance of applying a water sealer to keep water out of the grain of the wood to prolong its life and prevent rot and decay.

Just like the first four species of exterior hardwoods that we recommended, Massaranduba naturally resists rot, decay and wood boring insects.

In addition Massaranduba is also a very low maintenance exterior hardwood and offers a 30+ year lifespan. This makes it great for many projects such as exterior wood benches, decks, siding and more.

Checkout these beautiful outdoor wood benches that were built with our beautiful South American hardwoods.

What Does Ipe Stand For?

Ipe vs. Teak

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**Burmese Teak board shown above is genuine teak (not plantation grown)**

Most people are familiar with Teak wood, it’s been well known to last outdoors without many of the common issues of softwoods.

Since Teak is so well known for it’s exterior durability it has been widely used for outdoor furniture and boat building.

This has driven up the demand for Teak which then increases the price as well. Genuine Teak (Burmese Teak) is very expensive. Old growth “Burmese Teak” is also becoming near impossible and in some areas its illegal to harvest.

It’s becoming known as “Conflict Teak” due to old growth teak lumber being over harvested, corruption, human rights violations and many other issues.

Teak harvesting from Myanmar “Burma” is now banned completely due to all these issues.

Fortunately there is Plantation Teak that is sustainably grown in managed forests that is completely ethical and legal.

Advantage Plantation Teak is grown in sustainable managed plantations. We’ve hand selected the best plantations that grow teak in its optimal growing conditions.

Our plantations strive to recreate optimal growing conditions that mimic Southeast Asia. This allows forestry experts to produce plantation teak that does not use fertilizers or irrigation to try and make the trees grow faster.

In addition we only harvest from older growth 25 – 50 year trees so we produce lumber with tighter grain and less sapwood.

There’s a lot of misinformation spread throughout the lumber industry that plantation teak is not as dense as old growth Burmese Teak.

However the United States Forest Service USDA did a study on 10 tropical hardwood species.

One of those species was Teak and they found no significant relationship between the growth rate of plantation teak and its density or durability to withstand extreme weather conditions.

You can read the full report here for yourself: https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/pdf2001/willi01d.pdf

In fact, in some tests the plantation Teak actually performed better than the old growth Burmese Teak.

Teak contains a high natural oil content as well as silica and even rubber. All of these natural occurring compounds give Teak wood it’s incredible durability to withstand years of weathering.

Additionally teak is also highly resistant to rot, fungi and mildew thanks to it’s high natural oil and silica content.

Teak also has a very low shrinkage ratio, Teak’s volumetric shrinkage is 7.2% whereas Ipe is 12.4%.

This means overall Teak will expand and contract less than Ipe would with seasonal changes and in extreme weather conditions.

Teak weighs 41 lbs/ft3 opposed to Ipe that weighs 69 lbs/ft3. This makes Teak a great choice for rooftop decks, boats and other projects where weight is a concern.

Like Ipe overtime Teak will weather to a beautiful silver grey and can last many years outdoors with no treatment if you don’t mind the grey look.

Teak Wood Lifespan

The lifespan of teak is known to be up to 50 years if properly maintained. If teak is left to turn a natural grey and not oiled each year you can expect teak in this condition to last 30 years or more depending on how harsh the climate is.

Teak Price Vs. Ipe Price

Our plantation grown Teak is some of the most affordable Teak you will find! You can buy teak wood online and have it shipped directly to your home.

Ipe wood and Teak have been used for many years for both exterior and interior projects.

Ipe is primarily sold for exterior decking, fencing, siding and many other exterior projects. Our Teak and Ipe currently have the same price point

Is Ipe Better Than Teak?

Ipe wood is a South American hardwood that is over three times harder on the Janka scale compared to genuine teak.

The Janka test is a measure of the hardness of wood. The Janka test was developed as a variation of the Brinell hardness test. The test measures the force required to push a steel ball with a diameter of 11.28 millimeters (0.444 inches) into the wood to a depth of half the ball’s diameter. The diameter was chosen to produce a circle with an area of 100 square millimeters.

The Janka hardness of Teak is: 1,050
The Janka hardness of Ipe is: 3,680

Teak is still an exceptionally hard wood and has some advantages over Ipe which might be important for your project.

Choose Teak if you want a lighter colored golden brown wood, if material weight is an issue teak weighs less than Ipe. Teak moves less so if you project is going to see extreme weather than Teak is a good choice.

You can view current Ipe prices as well our Teak prices and get more information and free samples from AdvantageLumber.com

Can I Paint Ipe Wood?

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Can you paint ipe wood? It’s a common question, and the experts will always tell you the same two things:

No
Why would you want to?

Those can be frustrating answers. Maybe you want to use ipe for its strength, but you aren’t fond of its color. Or maybe you inherited a finished project from a previous homeowner whose tastes didn’t match yours. So what can you do?

Can these ipe wood posts be painted? — These ipe posts could look striking if painted white. But is ipe wood paintable?

Why Ipe Is Not Paintable

First, let’s look at the source of the problem. We paint wood all the time; why is ipe different?

Exotic hardwoods (including ipe and its friends: cumaru, tigerwood, etc.) are not like most woods. Paint won’t stick to them! For one, they’re just too dense. The tight grain squeezes other substances out, and creates a relatively non-porous surface (compared to softer woods) that leaves the paint with nothing to cling to.

Another reason paint won’t stick to ipe and its ilk is that these woods are saturated with natural oils. These oils repel the paint, much like how the oil on a duck’s feathers repels water.

It just so happens that these two characteristics, density and oils, are what make ipe such a good choice for exterior projects in the first place. The dense grain gives it an impervious structure, and the oils fight off mold and decay. It’s too bad that they also have the unfortunate side effect of making the wood difficult to paint.

And it’s not just paint. Most wood stains and film-forming top coats will struggle to maintain any lasting hold on ipe. That’s why companies developed specialized products like Ipe Oil® and Messmers for dealing with exotic hardwoods. These oil-based finishes were specifically formulated to penetrate deeply into ipe’s dense grain structure and enrich the wood’s natural characteristics.

Can Anything Be Done?

Some woodworkers have claimed mild success in painting ipe by taking a few preliminary steps. First, sand the ipe with coarse-grit sandpaper to rough up the surface a bit. This will give the paint something to cling to. Then, apply several layers of oil-based primer. Finally, you can paint the ipe, but use an oil-based paint instead of the usual latex stuff.

Having said that, these steps will not guarantee a perfect, long-lasting finish; and as a rule, AdvantageLumber.com does not recommend painting ipe.

Alternatives to Painting Ipe

Painting ipe may not be a good idea, but you do have some other options.

Use a Different Wood

If you’re starting a brand-new project, this is the best way to go. A wood like cedar may not have the strength and longevity of ipe, but you can paint it to your heart’s content. The paint will also help protect the wood, giving back some of the durability you sacrificed by using a softer wood specie.

Cover the Ipe in a Paintable Material

Sometimes you just don’t have a choice. Either ipe is required for its structural properties, or someone else installed the wood without asking you first!

In cases like this, when you absolutely must use ipe, you should first consider if you really want to cover up that beautiful, natural hardwood. If your answer is still “yes”, then your best option is to clad the ipe in a paintable material. Build a sheath or covering out of another wood, such as cedar or even pressure treated pine, and paint that instead. You’ll get the strong foundation provided by ipe as well as full control over the final appearance.

Best Wood for Outdoor Kitchens

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Building an outdoor kitchen is a major investment. You want to make sure you are using materials that are going to hold up to the outdoor environment as well as the abuse of kitchen wear and tear.

You are probably looking at spending thousands of dollars on top of the line stainless steel appliances for your outdoor kitchen.

The last thing you would want is to spend a lot of time and money on an outdoor kitchen and have your grill in your outdoor kitchen rust out after 5 years and force you to redo your outdoor kitchen.

Many homeowners want their appliances to sit in cabinets or an outdoor bar built out of a beautiful long lasting wood.

Woods You Should Not Use for an Outdoor Kitchen

We suggest staying away from softwoods such as pressure treated pine, cedar and redwood.

These softwoods are all susceptible to rot, wood boring insects and are can catch fire quickly. In addition they require yearly maintenance with waterproofing sealers that will peel off.

This will leave you scraping and sanding all the wood and then reapplying the sealer each year. Waterproofing sealers help keep water from penetrating the grain of softwoods which would lead to faster rot and decay.

Additionally your outdoor kitchen will more than likely be placed on a concrete slab foundation. Depending on the design of your outdoor kitchen your cabinets or bar will be sitting on top of the concrete.

Concrete wicks moisture so softwoods sitting on top of concrete will rot faster at the base.

These are just a few reasons why we don’t recommend these softwoods for an outdoor kitchen.

Best Woods for Outdoor Kitchens

There are a few species of wood that we’ve found to be proven to perform incredibly well in outdoor environments such as outdoor kitchens.

These species are Ipe, Cumaru, Tigerwood, Garapa and Massaranduba. They all come from South America and have proven to last up to 75 years or more with very low maintenance.

**Ipe wood decking and Ipe outdoor kitchen cabinets**

Above you’ll see a picture of an outdoor kitchen built with Ipe wood deck boards. The deck is also built with Ipe wood decking.

Ipe wood decking is one of the most durable, long lasting decking woods available. It is more durable than teak and is more cost effective as well.

It is also naturally resistant to mold, mildew, rot and decay, wood boring insects can not chew through the wood, It has a Class A rating against flame spread, does not splinter like softwoods and it has proven to last 75+ year on commercial boardwalks like Coney Island boardwalk in New York.

Here’s another outdoor kitchen built with Ipe Wood:

The second most durable wood we recommend for outdoor kitchens is Cumaru which is also known as Brazilian Teak.

Cumaru is almost identical to Ipe it’s just got a little more color variation which ranges from golden brown to a reddish brown. Ipe is more consistent in color which is a chocolate brown.

Many people are drawn to Cumaru because it’s typically 30% cheaper and also a very beautiful and durable wood. It has all the similar properties like Class A rating against flame spread which makes it an excellent wood for outdoor kitchens.

While we don’t have pictures of an outdoor kitchen built with Cumaru wood most of the jobs we supply are used to build decks.

Just like Ipe wood is most commonly used to build decks both of these woods are great for a wide array of outdoor projects.

Here’s a picture of a deck built with Cumaru:

Tigerwood Outdoor Kitchen

This is our 3rd most popular option for an exterior hardwood that is great for outdoor kitchens.

Tigerwood is not quite as dense as Ipe or Cumaru but it’s still a very dense and durable hardwood that’s great for outdoor use. In fact Tigerwood is more than double the Janka hardness compared to Teak.

These 3 wood species are the best woods that we recommend for outdoor kitchens.

When building an outdoor kitchen with wood you can often use short length boards depending on your design of course.

We sell short length boards at a significant cost savings that can save you up to 50 percent. Click here to view these discounted hardwoods

Best Wood for an Outdoor Table

The Best Wood for Outdoor Use and Tables

Deck with Fire Pit and Pavers — Deck built with Ipe wood

Ipe wood (pronounced EE-pay) is a South American hardwood that has proven to last on many commercial applications such as the Coney Island boardwalk for 75+ years with no treatment.

Here are some of the outstanding benefits of Ipe:

Lasts up to 75+ years
Low maintenance
Termite Resistant
No knots!!
Tight grain = No worry of slivers
Can outlast composite material
High density resist scratches
Nearly twice as strong as Oak
Better than teak
Environmentally friendly
One of the strongest woods in the world
Up to a Class A fire rating for flame spread
Mold & Fungi resistant
High slip resistance

We also recommend a few other species that have very similar properties to Ipe and offer different grain and colors.

The following woods are also extremely durable outdoors and are more affordable than Ipe.

Cumaru, Tigerwood, Garapa and Massaranduba

This outdoor table was handcrafted using Ipe and Tigerwood and it’s absolutely stunning.

Outdoor Table made with Ipe Wood and Tigerwood

If you are looking to build an outdoor table that will last a lifetime these woods will not disappoint you.

You can purchase them directly online from our website. We also have many deeply discounted shorter length boards that work great for outdoor furniture.

Since we primarily sell a lot of long length boards for decks we sell the shorter boards for a deep discount. Click here to see our discounted hardwood decking

AdvantageLumber Blog

Deck building tips and tricks. Discussion about wood and much more!