Good questions. You are in the same boat I was last year. I captured quite a bit of the information and posted it. The link has the information. A quick cut at the answers is provided below. See the link for where to get design/code info etc. I built my decks using the information in it and it is extremely solid - no bounce at all. One thing I did that I forgot to mention that may be overkill but.... Everywhere the IPE has a butt joint I doubled the joists and installed a waterproof membrane over the joists so no water would go between and potentially rot the wood. Here goes: 1) staining the framing lumber: not sure but the wood is awfully wet. Why do this, it will be covered? 2) What length of screw needs to go through the joists? I used 8 x 2 1/2 and was very happy 3) Is the 2" x 10" enough? use of 2x10 will depend on the span. 16" for 4/4 Ipe is fine, 12" if on the diagonal. go to the link to determine size of joints, beams, piers, etc 4) Is 1/8" route on the butt ends the correct radius to use? Yes, but you may find that a rotary sander works fine. I did 5) How often will stain need to be applied to maintain that deep, dark finish? I live in Michigan and the deck faces south into dense woods. Annually? 2 years? Is TWP 116 still the preferred product? No idea, I cannot get the 116 in California. I used Messners and was not happy. Will try 516 next - ordering it Monday 6) I am not sure whether to use 4/4 or 5/4 Ipe. I have read the posts just not sure. Is there a different opinion if I use 3/8" plugs? Any reasoning is appreciated. 4/4 is fine and less expensive. I plugged some of the wood (both 4/4 and 5/4 and did not have any issues. Warning, sanding takes a while.... 7) I plan on 48" x 12" wide one piece Ipe stair treads. I do not plan on having a riser on the steps creating a view blocker as the deck is 12' high and the underneath has seating areas and a patio. What thickness Ipe would you use on the stair treads? hmmm, mine are 48" and I used 4 risers. that's a pretty big span. recommend you reconsider. I went out and tested a scrap 4' 5/4 piece of Ipe and it bounces. 5/4 you can get away with 3 risers (one in the middle) as its good for 24" spans. 8) If using Ipe plugs what kind of glue do you recommend if any? Tightbond 3 (doesn't foam like gorilla glue does) 9) Is any adhesive required on the joists where the Ipe contacts them? Nope 10) When face screwing with no plugging I understand the nice straight line for the screws. When you butt two ends you will have four screws. Is there a recommend "pattern" for butt end joints on a 24" wide deck? ie 3-8', 2-12', 1- 10'& 1-14" or purchase all the same size. Do you " lay out the pattern so the screws look symetrical? I did mine so there was 3 boards before repeating the butt joint and it looks okay. Remember, I doubled the joists in those areas. You can see my framing in the link for the the deck by Salmon Slayer 11) Could the Ipe be powerwashed at the beginning of each season as it would look nice for the summer then hit it again every spring and forget staining altogether? Someone else has to answer than one- I am interested though Steve Here is a link that might be useful: IPE Deck Information

Retaining walls retain things like dirt/rain.Normaly they have nothing to do with the House structure. It very well could have been the walls were put in because the basement would flood out during a heavy rain bringing all the dirt with it. Your right that is part of landscaping. If you decide to take em out anyway the piers for your deck support should go below the leval of the missing walls. Geting cross ventalation depends on the final deck plan. Its a deal with skirting I have taken to runing the skirting right into the ground because if I dont the Wallet yells at me because it dosent look finished. This happened so many times now I just do it as drill. Its not a good idea>> the skirting soaks up water,the weed eater hits it,dirt builds up around it things like that

The deck is essentially 16x29. There are two decks, that are each 16x16. However, the one deck surface is one step down and offset from the house 5 feet. Then slid under the upper deck 3 feet. So along the house it is 29 feet. In some sections it sticks out 16 feet from the house, in others 21 feet. Make sense? Thanks...Mike

thanks, folks. aidan and steve, twp100.com allows for online ordering via mfg sealants. and they've not kicked me out after i've given my address in felton. so, i am hoping i can get all the way through once i've made my decision. $55/2 gal., free shipping, no tax. and described that simply, you're right, that's what i want. i have been laboring under many misconceptions, and that was one of them. thank you. john, i assume you use a foam brush to get between boards? or does it flood that much and drip through? i've got the deck up but for the final three boards, and am returning all the remaining ipe to my supplier (big creek lumber, a local lumber yard who matched my quoted price from advantage lumber) for replacement boards (about 10% of the total of 1200ish LF). lots of mill marks, broken or poorly milled edges, bad staining, wormholes, and some big honkin' tearout. the rest is very pretty. once i get those final three on i was thinking of these steps: (1) clean with someone's ipe cleaner (any recommendations on good brands?) to get rid of the dirt, dust, etc., that's lurking in the ipe, (2) sand it down using 80 grit sandpaper to get rid of some mill marks and drill fuzz (around the countersinks), (3) rinse it really, really well and let it dry, then (4) put on the finish. does that sound about right? btw, i am a homeowner, not a professional, and have built this largely on my own (had help from a contractor friend to attach the ledger board, and various help from friends during the substructural construction process). it'll end up being about 500sf including stairs, and we'll be into it for less than $7K total including rails, and a shade arbor... thanks for your advice, and comments, folks! reading steve, john, and others' deck builds/advice has helped all along the way...i am hoping to put up a page to help others once i get this done; there are many little things you do in a deck build that you can only learn from doing it, or from one who has... best, bill