Spring is here and most of us are spending lots of time at home…so it may be a good time to work on your outdoor space.  We want to share with you Excelsior’s preferred in house method to prepare tropical hardwoods like Ipe and Red Balau, also known as Batu and commonly referred to as Mahogany decking. 

1. We groove for hidden fasteners. If the decking is 4/4 material we center-match the groove. If it’s 5/4 we offset the groove to the bottom. This creates an extra heavy wear layer, hides the clip a bit and allows the boards to sit flatter (since when we mill it, we are referencing both edge grooves off the bottom of the board, not flipping them halfway through). In this case, be sure to buy clips for 4/4 material since the groove is offset to the bottom.

2. We wire brush the face of the boards. This cleans and refreshes the material and has the added benefit of opening the grain. Tropical hardwoods like Ipe and Red Balau are very dense, so dense that even penetrating oils have a hard time penetrating… wire brushing helps.

3. Next, we apply coatings.  We apply it and let it penetrate for a minimum of 24 hours before we wipe off the excess. We coat all the sides as recommended. This helps reduce moisture intake and cupping.

We stock a variety of coatings specially formulated for tropical hardwoods. However, we can apply just about any oil you specify. You can learn more about how to choose the right stain for your deck HERE.

Ipe Oil
Wisecoat
Arborcoat

Now it's in your hands!

Excelsior stocks the decking accessory products you will need to do the job right. Check out our Grab & Go Store for more information.

Click on the images below to find out more.

Wisewrap
Ipe Clip

We also supply these items for your install.