Lumber Ends without Ipe Seal

I received a call just last week from a homeowner asking if end sealing his deck boards was necessary.

He stated that the company in which he purchased his decking materials said that it was an “un-necessary step” but his builder told him that it indeed was necessary. He was looking to Ipe Clip® for guidance.

Although there seems to be a debate whether end sealing is necessary, it’s a no-brainer for us. End sealing is vital to the stability and longevity of your deck. Why, you ask? Dry wood will most definitely absorb moisture. It’s designed naturally to do this. When you cut your deck boards and leave the end cuts untreated, it leaves them vulnerable. Remember, it’s the moisture content in your deck boards that affect the amount of expansion and contraction that you are likely to see. The untreated exposed end grain is where water enters a piece of wood most readily. The unrestricted water will give an uneven moisture distribution, which ultimately causes cupping and severe end checking. Let’s face it; we all know what a nightmare that can be, so why not prevent it?

Lumber Ends treated with Ipe Seal

•    Use Ipe Seal™, a wax based end seal product immediately after cutting your deck boards to length

•    Apply Ipe Seal™ with a brush, or better yet, a small rag dipped in Ipe Seal

•    Use caution not to get Ipe Seal™ on the surface of your deck boards as it will stain

•    Note that Ipe Seal™ is not needed on straight grain cuts; only on the end cuts

Save on costly maintenance and repairs and prevent checking, splitting, and cupping issues from the get-go by treating each end cut with Ipe Clip®’s Ipe Seal™. Build it right the first time.

Common problems that you can avoid are:

• Nail Pops – Because wood decking grows and shrinks, overtime, the deck board can actually lift up the nail. Using hidden deck fasteners just might keep you from getting sued since the likelihood of someone tripping over an exposed nail is virtually impossible.
• Rot and decay – Every single time it rains, water enters the area where the surface screw entered. As time goes on mildew can build up and the deck board can end up rotting.
• Deck splits and cracks – Just as painful as a nail pop and even more annoying is getting a splinter in your, or a child’s foot. Nothing makes a party end more abruptly than a child with a bloody foot hysterically crying because the homeowner opted to save some money and decided not to use a deck fastening system.
• Mushrooming – If you want to build a composite deck, listen up. If you screw into the top of composite decking, you could end up having your deck look like there are a row of mushrooms due to the composite materials rising above the deck board and around the screw hole.

Building a deck is an investment into not just your home, but also the future memories you can have. Doesn’t it make sense to make sure that you give your deck the best possible chance of having a healthy life while it also gets a chance to look good for decades to come? Also, given that some of these common deck installation problems can lead to bodily harm, doesn’t it also make sense to ensure that you, your loved ones, and your guests are safe?

If you want to ensure that you build a deck that is safe, we have two kinds of deck fasteners that are perfect for your specific decking choice:

• Extreme™ Deck Fastener – Perfect for Air-dried wood decking
• ExtremeKD™ Deck Fastener – Perfect for both composite decking and kiln-dried wood decking

No matter what decking fastener you choose, be sure to use the best deck tools to give your deck a lengthy lifespan without tons of maintenance.