"Wade Lippman" wrote in message
...
My wife bought a lobster trap at a garage sale and wants me to make an Ipe
top for it. (She also wants me to rebuild our deck, but wants to see what
ipe is like before she lets me use it; a table top seemed a good trial.)

I figure I could glue it up and attach it like a table top, or fasten the
board with a space between them like a deck. Any compelling reasons to do
it one way or the other?

I have yet to find a glue that will work with Ipe outdoors. I have not used
Epoxe but would highly recomend it if you are going to glue Ipe. Also wipe
down the joint with acetone before glueing.
I think that leaving a space between the boards may be the more successful
route to take.


Guy at the lumber yard says that ipe is extremely stable and won't require
as big a space as PT. He also thought that since it is summer, the wood
is probably as expanded as it will ever be, so I could probably build it
like a deck, but without any space. Anyone tried it that way?

Ipe is stable but does move some. I would not count on it expanding much at
all.
I would recommend buying the Ipe Decking and perhaps not leaving any space
between the joints.
Ipe is initially very dark brown but will fade to a silvery gray if exposed
to sunlight.
Ipe does not naturally splinter like PT does. You will get splintery edges
when you cut it but light sanding will take care of that. Use a sharp
carbide blade when cutting, Ipe is roughly 2.5 times harder than Oak and is
in the iron wood family. If you plane it be aware that it emits a normal
looking brown saw dust and a VERY FINE Yellowy Green powder. Citrus based
cleaners and body sweat mixed with this dust will produce BLOOD RED results.
The first few times that I worked with Ipe I thought I was bleeding to
death. ;~)

Take a look here for some recommendations when installing out doors.

http://www.diamonddecking.com/guide.htm