Screened Porch Floor - NEED HELP

[blazeman45]

I am currently building a screened porch and patio addition on my house... I have been beating my head against the wall trying to find the best option for the floor... :BangHead: The sub floor will be sitting on a brick foundation. I have researched the following and the down side to each:

Composite Decking (Trex and similar)- Numerous lawsuits :no:

Tile or Stone -- Settling cracks, mold, and delamination of the substrate

IPE (T&G) - Some say use kiln dried, others say air dried... I like this option but each supplier gives a sale pitch and I don't know who to believe

AZEK Porch - PVC that is newer to the market plus extremely expensive

I was 90% settled on the IPE but get more confused each time I research,,, :dontknow:

Let me hear some input guys!!!

Thanks

 

[DaveO]

How much air space will you have between the decking and the brick foundation? That will make a lot of difference in the behavior of your flooring material. IPE is great, but we are finding a lot of movement in it due to it's popularity and market saturation.
I am not sold on the composites, they are non-structural and often have a lot more movement than they state.
Tile or stone is only as good as the substrate they are mortared to, and in an elevated locations I would be worried.
5/4 treated pine has been working well for many years, it's less expensive so if you need to replace it later you are not hurting. I have seen too many IPE decks turn to Pringles with bad air flow.

MTCW,
Dave

 

[JackLeg]

We have a 10 year old Trex deck. No problems to date. :nah: Maintenance free. Power wash it, vacuum it, whatever. Just lies there nice and flat. It's on 2 X 10 floor joists and brick columns. We like it.:wsmile:

 

[merrill77]

I am currently building a screened porch and patio addition on my house... I have been beating my head against the wall trying to find the best option for the floor... :BangHead: The sub floor will be sitting on a brick foundation.

We had a screened porch build a few years ago on top of a garage (which was built at the same time - 2001). Our architect recommended T&G pine that was treated, but not with the usual stuff. I'm not sure what is was called, but "pentahexane" comes to mind. It was pretty high grade (for pine) - suitable for indoor flooring. It has held up very well - it hasn't faded completely to grey yet and I've only treated it once since installation. It rarely gets wet (wind has to be blowing pretty good). The only downside is splinters.

Several times I've wished I put in Ipe (which I had not heard of at the time). The floor sits on floaters, which sit on top of a rubber sheathing on top of typical plywood sub-floor on 2x12s, all of which is above the dry garage (wet area on top of dry area makes for some interesting design choices. Based on Daves comments, perhaps I'm better off without Ipe? Still wish I had it, though.

 

[CrealBilly]

Have you thought about black locust which lasts like 50 years in the ground and is also used in mine shafts. it might be hard to find but worth researching. Also Scott Smith might be able to hook you up with some eastern red cedar, rumor has it... Scott has a boatload of ERC.

 

[blazeman45]

How much air space will you have between the decking and the brick foundation?
MTCW,
Dave

I will have 3+ feet in the crawl space and should have very good ventilation... I believe the IPE will be the best option but I still don't know whether to go with Kiln or Air dried.

IPE Depot says Kiln is for indoor use only and Air dried for exterior.... Banner Elk trading carries Kiln dried and swears that is the best option for exterior applications. :argue:

Still don't know what to do but thanks for the ideas!!

 

[FredP]

If you go with Ipe and the porch is exposed to the elements you don't need it kiln dried. If the deck is to be enclosed and climate controlled get the kiln dried.

 

[Ray Martin]

Lots of good advice here. I'd have to agree with use of air dried for exterior and kiln for interior only.

We have a 10 year old Trex deck. No problems to date. :nah: Maintenance free. Power wash it, vacuum it, whatever. Just lies there nice and flat. It's on 2 X 10 floor joists and brick columns. We like it.:wsmile:

Reggie,

I seen and have heard both good and bad about Trex, and the like. Can you tell us how much sun hits it and what the spacing is for the joists?

 

[jhreed]

I have the 5/4 air dried IPE on my open porch. It is a little expensive, but I have had mine for 6 years and done nothing to it. I strongly recommend it. If you decided to use IPE pm me and let me tell you a couple of things about how I installed mine.
GET THE AIR DRYED IPE!!!!

James

 

[Bill Clemmons]

You might try this web site and talk to George Guy (1-800-338-5636). I was planning a screened porch last year and had my mind made up. Then I talked to him and changed everything. He talked me out of my original plan, which would have been a nice sale for him. He suggested another option based on my situation that did not come from him. He even went so far as to call a friend of his in KS to see if he had a different suggestion for me. He'll ask you a lot of questions about ventilation, location, sunlight, etc., all the things I wasn't thinking about.

They specialize in decks, docks, and flooring and have all kinds of exotic woods. After we finished the screened porch, I bought some Garapa (Brazilian Oak) from him and made cabinets for the porch with it. They're located in upstate SC, about 3.5 hr. drive from here (Liberty)

http://eastteak.com/

Bill Clemmons

 

[Phil S]

I have installed a bunch of IPE on many exposed and covered porches. I think all was air dried and it all still ooks great - some of it down for over 15 years. I do remember that ss screws were required and we found that predrilling helped. Also get the material delivered as close to the job site as possible as ipe is very heavy

 

[blazeman45]

You might try this web site and talk to George Guy (1-800-338-5636). I was planning a screened porch last year and had my mind made up. Then I talked to him and changed everything. He talked me out of my original plan, which would have been a nice sale for him. He suggested another option based on my situation that did not come from him. He even went so far as to call a friend of his in KS to see if he had a different suggestion for me. He'll ask you a lot of questions about ventilation, location, sunlight, etc., all the things I wasn't thinking about.

They specialize in decks, docks, and flooring and have all kinds of exotic woods. After we finished the screened porch, I bought some Garapa (Brazilian Oak) from him and made cabinets for the porch with it. They're located in upstate SC, about 3.5 hr. drive from here (Liberty)

http://eastteak.com/

Bill Clemmons

Thanks for all the advice guys... It sures helps to get some unbiased opinions...

Bill, I had looked at their website previously but will be calling them on Monday for sure...

I'll post some pics when we get more than footings in the ground.