I talked to Ken and he does not know anybody in my area. I thought perhaps someone could recommend a good company for staining and I would ask them to use Ken's product. If not, then it looks like it will be a cleaning wash (Ken's) and Wolman's F&P, unless someone comes up with some other idea.

We are having our 16x20 ft deck and pergola replaced with Ipe in a couple of weeks. We live in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada so we get 4 very distinct seasons. The company doing the deck have recommended we use a product called Ipe Oil ( I have seen this being sold by Advantage Lumber in the US ). Has anyone used this product on their Ipe decks and if so has it given satisfactory results for them. I have read every posting on finishing Ipe decks and have not seen this product in any posts. We do not want to use any product that will build up and have to be stripped off in the near future.

1) Yes, you can, and most people do countersink the 1x6 boards without problem. 2) All I can tell you is that I am one who did not bother sealing cut ends and I can't tell the difference. In hindsight I probably would have cut off the wax on the ends of the boards before installing because you can see those marks once you stain, but they fade after a few years. Not a bid deal either way. 3) TWP 116 has both UV protection and mold inhibitor. That being said from what I have seen there is no perfect stain for Ipe. If you want a nicely stained deck you will be doing at least every other year on the horizontals. I used the TWP 116 and have no regrets, but it faded after a year and needed to be resealed after 2. I also occasionally get mold spots on some of the railing. 4) No advice really, but I would also be tempted if I could save that much. riles

Digm, I color match my plugs (which I make), so they aren't too visible. The plugs never come out...however, they will need to be sanded down again in the future because the decking and plugs expand/contract at different rates. This causes the plugs to be about 1/64" proud of the deck surface...enough to barely catch your fingernail. I also use the "headcote" trimheads, and have been singing their praises here since they were developed. They are a good alternative to plugging. steve