Untreated lumber for uncovered deck?

[Sawyer Rob]

Yankee redneck solution (likely not EPA approved). Dig a shallow trench or build a wooden frame, line same with 6-mill poly, place board(s) in trench or frame and cover with used crankcase oil. Will also have to cobble together a rack or pan with grating to let the treated boards drain/dry. Painting or further treatment not practicable.

My neighbor soaked rough sawn poles in a 55 gallon drum with used motor oil in it, for quite a long time. He used the poles in the ground for his sawmill shed and build the shed.

After a few years the poles were rotting where they contacted the ground...

Nothing us normal mortals can buy or do, will keep poles from rotting without a huge amount of maintenance.

SR

 

[bcp]

Having built and rebuilt and rebuilt and rebuilt decks, I've come to prefer concrete.

Bruce

 

[PILOON]

Whatever U do, don't use pain or opaque stains as they will crack, peel and then water gets under and starts rot.
I'd suggest a thorough application of preservative (once dry) followed by another coat every 2 years.
I've done this and my exposed deck is 25 years old now and but 2 boards that should now be replaced, (water entered splits)

 

[Birdhunter1]

I built my back porch deck out of red oak 10 years ago, I put stain on it one time 2 years in and I have replaced one board in all that time. Granted I do have my deck covered BUT the sun hits the south side of it and puts sunlight on it all day till about 4pm and the rain will blow in on that same side often, deck stain still looks good, the wood itself is still strong.

 

[ning]

Having built and rebuilt and rebuilt and rebuilt decks, I've come to prefer concrete.

Bruce

I'm hating decks more and more.
I like the general concept, but my next house will have a ground-level patio. Probably brick with grasses deliberately grown up between the bricks so I don't have great expectations of absolutely nothing growing there, or maybe in a slab. Regardless, not wood, and not rotting.

 

[ponytug]

I went with PVC "wood" in the latest go around for fire resistance reasons. Looks nice, but it hasn't been that long. The prior redwood deck as rotting out. Mostly the rot was in the support beams, but some of the redwood as well. I think that the reputation of redwood for rot resistance comes from old growth redwood, not the mass market wood.

@ning I am with you about patio vs deck, but when it is 14' in the air, sometimes wood is easier and cheaper than concrete...

All the best,

Peter

 

[N80]

Thanks guys.

Several thoughts:

You guys are all over the place with recommendations, many of which are contradictory! ;-) I'm not complaining. I asked.

As for patio vs deck. Not an option. This will be 4 feet off the ground.

As for old growth wood. Tell me about it. The wood on my nearly 100 year old home sat unpainted for years after my grandmother passed (it was her house). Not a sign of rot or cracking. In places where we replaced exterior trim molding the growth rings are so tight you can barely count them. In a 2 inch cross section 1 counted 40 years of rings.

As for opaque stain. My son used to work for PP&G. When we built a "white picket" fence in our back yard he recommended a white opaque stain on treated lumber that had dried a while. That was 6 years ago. It is still solid and looks great. Even the horizontal flat pieces. Its lasting a lot longer than the front porch steps at the cabin!

PVC wood is a great option. I used it on my screen porch addition on my home in town. Durable stuff. But it is ungodly expensive and in this case even the 'wood grain' versions of it would look out of place at the cabin which is very rustic.

I've been thinking about what you guys have said about pine. It occurs to me that the whole log cabin is made of pine. The only treatment it had was borax at the mill. It has been stained twice in 20 years and there have been zero issues and the logs were exposed to rain and sun uncovered for 6 months when we were building it. I understand that those are vertical walls and thick logs but the dovetail ends get rain and sun constantly and no issues. The porch and rear deck are also pine. Granted, they are treated and with older treated lumber but they are fine too. The porch is covered and the 2x6 treated floor has never been stained. They are dry, gray and in great shape.

Anyway, I've got a lot to think about and sort out. Fortunately I'll have plenty of time to work it out. Saw mill doesn't even ship until late November and anything I cut will have to dry for a while too.

I do appreciate all the help. Keep it coming.

And there will be tons more stupid questions because the next project on the list is a 3 bay shop that I hope to build myself out of the lumber I cut. That's a few years down the road. It will be on a concrete slab.

 

[Egon]

Sounds like you are well ahead of most of us on what works.

 

[Jstpssng]

Saw mill doesn't even ship until late November and anything I cut will have to dry for a while too.

If you ordered from the same company I did, don't count on that date. When I ordered in March they said 18 weeks, when that passed they said it would be built on August 12. When I asked on Aug 15 about delivery date they said that the build was pushed back again and it will be built on Oct 21. Supposedly they can't get water bottles...

 

[N80]

Sounds like you are well ahead of most of us on what works.

My son says every paint business expert has a different opinion about what works and what doesn't. And that they'll fight you over it.