Porches & Decks
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5,620 Garden Web Discussions | Porches & Decks
Houses14 - I got an email tonight from houzz (which took over GardenWeb) with your interest about aluminum decking. I haven't been on GardenWeb in a few years, and this is the first time since houzz took over that I have signed in.
We did install the Lock-Dry aluminum decking back in the summer of 2009 and we really enjoy it. Both our enclosed porch and the large outdoor porch still look new. The best parts are the durability and the easy care. We never have to power-wash or apply deck stain. In the beginning of summer season I use a mop bucket of water with a mild bleach and liquid dish soap solution and mop the deck with a string mop. I use the same solution to wash the rails and railing tops using a soft scrub brush (the type of brush with a handle that comes with a cheap dustpan from the Dollar Store). I rinse with a hose as I go along. The small amount of bleach doesn't hurt my flowers and roses that surround the deck at all since it is so diluted from the hose water. The rest of the summer I just hose down the porch and sometimes sweep it with a broom while wet if there are any dirty areas that need it. It is very easy care and washes up very quickly. Being able to just hose down or occassionaly mop the deck is a blessing.
People are amazed with our porch when they are visiting, they have never seen aluminum decking before. We didn't either until we decided to go for it.
As I said back in 2009, the deck is not any hotter than wood, even in the blazing sun. If I can be of any further help let me know.
Aluminum decking questions, I had them too. My husband had a hard time selling me on the idea but I went with it, 3 years ago. I'm thrilled that I did and I'll share with you why. We shopped around quite a bit and then we found this little company called Last Deck up in Minnesota. They sent us samples, helped my husband with the design and even spoke with our contractor. The customer service was quite amazing actually for a smaller company. I was truly impressed when the owner not only spoke with my husband, our contractor spoke with him twice. We went with what they referred to as a wood finish and it is beautiful. It's still beautiful after 3 years with no problems. This year we are going to install the railing product they offer. I'm truly excited to finally put on the final touches it has taken some time but I feel it has been well worth it. So if you are looking for aluminum decking I for one can say I really did have an enjoyable experience with Last Deck and the deck still looks like new 3 years later.
I'm not that familiar with massaranduba but am with IPE & I thought they both had similar characteristics including very little expansion both lengthwise & width-wise.
So what is the normal gap? Typically I would say 1/8" to 3/16" would be normal. If you wood is shifting more that that it may be due to some other issue that just normal contraction/expansion because that is not normal for IPE. What size decking do you have, i.e. both avg length, width, & thickness? Which gaps are closed i.e. lengthwise or width-wise? Is the wood stained & if so with what?
Mike
The best solution but time consuming would be to drill/screw/plug the complete deck, 2 screws on each joist. You could then sand pretty much all you want with no issues (as long as you countersink the screws deep enough). What I did on my deck was drill/screw/plug the ends of the decking & used IPE clips in-between. If there was extreme pressure in the in-between areas I would drill/screw/plug that as well. Utility of the Bo-Wrench decking tool was well worth the investment.
Regarding stainless screws popping that sounds like an installation problem. If the IPE/massaranduba decking is pre-drilled properly there should be very little torque on the screws as they are going thru the decking. There should only be medium torque as the screws go thru the pressure treated joists. Sounds like at installation the screws may have been subjected to close-to-failure over torque forces & then later popped due to expansion/contraction of the wood.
I used coated deck screws (like Deckmate) for the drill/screw/plug process & then the IPE-clip stainless steel screws for the in-between areas.
By buckling, do you mean the decking is cupping the length of the decking? Or is the problem only at the ends of the individual decking where they butt joint (or maybe cut @ 45 diagonal like I did) with the next piece of decking? If that is the case I would just drill/screw/plug the ends of each decking board, 2 screws per joist.
PROThis isn't a clear roof, but it is a great example of an opaque roof that looks like a great idea.
http://www.houzz.com/photos/4454599/Foster-Loop-modern-porch-seattle
Looking forward to seeing progress and comparing notes. We are having a LockDry deck installed right now and I will have to post pictures of the progress. They used surveyors equipment to guarantee the right pitch and it is already oriented with the joists parallel to the house.
We had them tear down the old deck as it was an unsafe installation. But it is good to see existing deck structure modified to accommodate.
PROIt appears to be enclosed on the underneath side of the deck. Does that mean you have Tongue&Grooved decking? Or what type drainage system do you have? Do you need that? Granted, it is above an area that would best be kept dry/drained properly but it would be cheaper with regular decking.
Here's another one...
http://www.oldhouseweb.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=23790
Last one fm me...
http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=6153.0
You're going to go to all that length to describe your deck and then not post any photos??? That's a requirement here. :-)
Okay. Done now :-)