Beth n Rod

With some products out there, I am hesitant to apply any more than "will apply according to manufacturers labeled directions. We are not responsible for product formulation that does not perform up to manufacturers claims for durability, color, or protection". I will fully warrant WT for 3 years. Others...well, it depends on the product and if it is a solid, semi solid or trans-oxide pigmented. In short, we do not warrant any products we do not recommend. We recommend WT, Cabot and Sikkens brand products. If a client chooses another product for instance from one of the local diy'er stores, we will only warrant the labor for 30 days and nothing about the product. More than likely, our experience with them has been nothing short of a disappointment. Rod!~

Redwood...cedar....to be sure, go up and scratch the wood and sniff it. No denying the smell of cedar. Works like a charm. Beth

Yes! Great tool! Beth

I still have the Wolmans Certificate and when I show it to people along side of the PWNA Certificate, I still get plenty of "hmm!" in approval. It may be outdated with contractors, but customers still see the products in the stores and in consumer reports. It still has value to them and carries weight. We now return you to your regularly scheduled topic :) Rod!~

Strippers will cause furring, exposure to UV for long periods and then being cleaned with a caustic will cause them too. It is a remediable condition. Sanding will create more heat than the defurring pads. Defurring pads actually pull the loose fuzz off the wood, while sanding abrases the entire surface with friction. In the case of sanding an area of Ipe or other hardwood with a grit higher than 60, you would then need to use acetone on the area to allow for better performance of the product you are applying. The result will be more even and less shiney than otherwise. Rod!~

Boy that is a nest egg in itself! There are some variables to consider when working on any wood and Ipe' is no exception to the rule. Ipe', Teak, Mahogany are common in outdoor structures and furniture and are generally cleaned with a Sodium Hydroxide based cleaner or stripper strength if necessary then followed by a Neutralizer (Oxalic or Citric acid based) to bring back the natural color. Care should be exercised when working with extractive rich woods like Ipe and Mahogany because the process if not monitored can cause excessive extractive bleeding leaving the wood looking dull and lightly colored. The finish should be a very thin product that can penetrate into the wood substructure and moisturize as well as provide some UV protection to prevent graying of the wood fibers. There are a few products on the market that other pro's use on hardwoods: Messmers, Cabot Australian Timber Oil, TWP, Ready Seal, Danish Oil, Penofin and Sikkens. There are varied results over the past year or so due to VOC formula changes which in some products have produced some undesirable results while others have not performed well at all. It is in best hopes that others will share what their experiences have been and how the obtain them for the benefit of their trade. One thing is for certain though, 1 year seems to be the threshold of duration for any product used on any of these hardwoods, so in that case maintenance should be recommended on an annual basis as a result. Factors affecting duration are UV exposure and weather. Protected structures such as screened porches and other enclosures help to extend the finishes durability. I hope this helps in getting you started in the right direction for working with these exotic wood species. Rod!~

We have not found many situations for the need to sand Ipe in general. The most we will do like after stripping is to defur the wood by using a defurring pad ( check with Tom Vogel @ ACR Products http://www.acrproducts.com) on a 7" buffer w/variable rpms. This helps to remove the crushed velvet look and restores the smoothness without over heating the wood and causing it to 'polymerize' the resin making penetration of a sealer even more difficult.Sanding we have attempted in cases like trying to remove mineral stain rings from planters placed on a deck have been futile. I have other options I am looking into for this but have some fastener corrosion issues to resolve first. Rod!~

Great link!!!! Thank you!!!! Beth

Pssst! Title fixed... ;) well...at least in the post. Beth

Professionally, I would say yes to any product whose viscocity is high and is generally designed to be surface resident instead of substrate resident. btw Ken... Have your downloaded the USDA Forest Products Laboratories Wood Handbook? Its a great resource for understanding the dynamics and characteristics of woods. ;) Rod!~

Yes. This is due to one of two things: either the extractive content of the wood or in other cases the direction of the vesscular movement when the tree was cut down (either up or down) and will either aid or hinder absorption.The first: extractive content is contigent upon the cut of the wood in relation to the heartwood as to its age and the sapwood it may be close to. The older the wood in Ipe's case the darker the heartwood. The opposite can be true for newer wood where it is lighter in contrast. The second: Imagine a billows but in the sense of being inside a tree. as it expands, it is taking in water and as it contracts (depending upon which direction up or down) it pushes the water out of the area. Sort of like cholesterol in humans, trees can develop Tyloses which block the pores making it difficult to get anything into it. What is your understanding of it? Rod!~

It's over kill for other woods like cedar, redwood or ptp. The extractive content of these woods is not as high as Ipe. Also, since these are concidered soft woods by definition and are non-porous, they rely on the fibers to conduct water and sap up and down the tree so introduction of a sealer is easily absorbed and migrates into the substructure (like a wick). Does this help? Rod!~

If you don't have oxalic or citric acid available, go to your local HD or Lowes and pick up a product with either of these ingredients (Flood products or Behr Deck brightener) and apply. The amount of time your stripper was on the wood will determine the dwell time you need for the neutralizer. I am pretty sure you will need it at half strength and for about 15-20 minutes before rinsing. Prewet the surface with water first (allows reactivation of any remnant stripper in the wood for easeir neutralization) then apply the neutralizer. Rinse thoroughly till you see no more bubbles in the rinse water. My # is in the signature if you need to call. Rod!~

Acetone acts like an emulsifier with the woods components (namely the extractives which play an important role in the Ipe's color, and permeability to preservatives) and allows a product to combine with the extractives until the acetone evaporates and the extractives return to their original state holding on to the product as well. Sort of like super glue: how it makes things like plastic become soft and somewhat like a liquid then it rehardens with the other elements attached to it. Same process. This is the most disturbing to me...100 grit!?!?!? This is comparable to furniture finish smoothness and removes enough wood to close up the pores. I personally never use more than 80 grit on wood, 60 as a rule for better penetration.I had one guy who insisted on going over the wood he just hired us to sand with 100-110 grit and told my crew I didn't know what I was doing. Outdoor wood needs to be more open in order to absorb product as deeply as possible otherwise the finish will not last as long as it should. He is finding that out now. Rod!~

DEK can be applied to Ipe' but you would need to use acetone to prep the wood first. Working in small sections, the acetone will be effective for up to 15 minutes before needing to be re-applied if you haven't put DEK on the wood in that time frame. This is according to a Sikkens Rep. Rod!~

Awe! Those are cute! Both train to litter boxes by the way... Beth

Very nice! I bet they were thrilled! Beth

You could go full strength and apply by brush (HD-80). Apply a neutralizer to the adjacent boards before you wash to help neutralize anything that might get on there. It can be a challenge to strip WTW when new. You may still end up sanding some onto he return trip. Beth

New wood is always lighter and brighter than aged wood. We are always very plain about that. You could sand them, then use the tint kit to go darker and try again. If you try to strip them, you risk compromising the other boards in my opinion. Beth :cup: :groovy3:

Well, boiling water on vinyl would be a huge problem anyway...warping. Beth

Spider droppings looks a great deal like artillery fungus and is easily removed. They are often confused. If it leaves a silght ring, it is the fungus. If it is spider debris it will not. Beth

Makes it look like crushed velvet. Beth

Florin, All Washed Up is a great name choice! We have a really short simple name too, and it has worked well for us too. Good luck! Beth p.s. contact me about how to trademark your name. We had ours done, and I'm familiar with the process.

Cool link! Thanks!!! :) Beth :cup:

I might just have to agree with Scott. They are pretty bad.... Beth