African Wood

[Blown Away]

Need help! Have to give an estimate on a 10' x 800' boardwalk style deck at a yacht club. Man that contacted me stated that this "african wood" is extremely hard, only has to or should be cleaned every 12 to 15 years, a nail cannot be driven into it a hole has to ve\\be drilled an a steel peg driven into it. Just the flat surface to be done, no railings. African wood is grey and has mildew on it. Has anyone dealt with this kind of wood before and is there a special technique needed. Man that contacted me stated that a pressure washer could do no damage to this type of wood. What kind of estimate would you give?


Thanks
Steve

 

[charlie]

This is called ironwood. What kind of sealer are you putting on it oil or water base?

Charlie

 

[Greg Rentschler]

Actually ironwood is a generalized term for many exotic hardwoods..... it sounds like Ipe (ee-pay). Although it is from South America. The wood is so dense that it sinks in water...weighs 63% more than pine if I remember right. We just prep'd a deck constructed of this and the builder had to use carbide tipped blades and bits for assembly. We use a percarbonate based cleaning agent followed by a good wash. It is a fact that pressure washing typically will not cause damage to the surface due to it's dense composition....we didn't even scar it. When it cleans up it will turn to a light brown (dry) or a rich reddish brown (wet). Penetrating oils are the ONLY recommended sealer for this type of wood. We will be sealing it with Ready Seal.

It also takes longer to clean than a typical deck because the oxidized layer is much more durable. Mix the cleaner strong and saturate the surface. You'll probably only get a year out of a sealer due to its dense nature as well. Good Luck

Greg Rentschler

 

[Blown Away]

Thanks for the info. But here is my next problem, The guy I talked stated that he just wanted it power washed, no cleaner no brightener. Just power washed. This does not bother me too much considering that the boardwalk/deck is located at a yacht club on the bay. Will the ironwood become somewhat clean after just a power washing? I told the guy about the cleaning and brightening process and he said the people just want it power washed.Should my price reflect how labor intensive the cleaning is?

 

[charlie]

Go to search and put in ironwood. Tim Cross will tell you on how to do the treatment with oil base sealers. i just did one.


Charlie

 

[Greg Rentschler]

We didn't try and clean it without chemicals so I don't know how easy it would be. Considering the fact that the oxidized layer was still more difficult to remove than it has been on any other species I would say it would be even harder to clean without some kind of prespray (cleaner...). These ironwoods are pretty heavy on the tannin as well so to follow it up with the brightener will make it shine.

First I would just tell the guy that this is your process and you use it because it is best for the wood.... pine, Ipe, or whatever. Otherwise I would try a test spot without chemicals so you know what to expect...8000 sq ft of decking is a big job when it doesn't want to cooperate.

Good Luck!

 

[charlie]

I would be carefull about using any chemicals by water. If the chemicals run in the water you will get youself in alot of trouble. Water alone will not clean the the ironwood properly. You might have to walk away from it. When we walk away from a job we always seem to get a better one in the future.

Charlie