On Nov 1, 11:27 am, "Swingman" wrote:

I no longer use anything but composite material for decks and porch/balcony floors ... and that includes "wooden" rails and balusters.

For some reason, composites have never really caught on here and there
are only a couple of reliable suppliers. I don't know why... I guess
folks like the feel of cupped wood, popped fasteners and splinters
beneath their feet. I personally just got tired of going back to the
decks with my belt sander and some 80 grit along with some 3 1/2
screws to smooth out the deck surface.

And the fighting the shrinkage across the width.... yikes! You could
lose a small dog in some of the joints I have had open up, and I lever
the deck boards over and screw them closed. So the boards are
straight, but still open too far for my taste at the lateral edges.

For some strainge reason, ipe isn't that popular, either. I actually
think composite looks better than ipe, and for the price, I would go
composite. A few leaves, some kid wear, some muddy foot prints, a
little dust, a little mold... the composite cleans off with a hose
and still looks better than the ipe (to me!) and certainly better than
face checked PT YP.

Robert