Installing Aeratis (PVC porch flooring) and sleeper system
Comments (8)
theporchguy
12 years agolast modified: 7 years agoJMcal68
10 years agolast modified: 7 years agoRelated Discussions
advice needed for porch floor over basement/crawlspace
Comments (7)Maybe think of your porch floor a little more like a roof ... I, too, have an old house with incorporated porches (front and back) that sit over top of a full basement foundation (brick with original stucco.) We restored the back porch as a "sunroom" (it was closed in some time in the 30's) and I noted that roofing tar paper was used between the sub floor (plank) and the original T&G porch floor. There are shreds of roofing tar paper hanging on the edges of the bottom of the front porch floor where I can find it, but the old wooden floor was replaced with plywood and then the porch floor was tiled by POs (a bad DIY with 1 inch grout lines that leak like crazy, making my repair job that much more difficult.) The pitch on both porches is good (away from the house) There are low shingled walls all around the porches so water would be trapped without some sort of system to remove it. The front porch uses a pitched trough with 2 exit tubes at the foot of the short wall but I found no evidence of this on the back porch. These 2 devices (the roof paper and the trough) surely would have worked well if they were maintained, alas, the metal trough is rotted thru and leaves/critters were getting into the basement till I discovered the holes and band-aid-patched them till I can address repair of the trough properly. (interestingly, the front porch foundation was hidden behind a finished wall in the basement and was only found when we had a termite inspection done.)...See More1920 porch floor replacement - Douglas fir vs. Aeratis composite?
Comments (13)I re-read your question; you have heated/insulated rooms below a porch. Therefore, the wooden decking has no air movement underneath it, so it can never fully dry after rains. Any rain is able to penetrate through the many seams in the flooring and get the insulation and framing wet, and they can't dry out either. You need to understand the construction details that are necessary for this situation. It consists of building a seamless flat roof, that is impermeable and drains water away from the house, then building a walking deck on top of it. I have done three projects like this. The first one. we used a torch-down adhesive roll roofing, then 2x4 floating sleepers and a 3/4" traditional wood flooring. Second one, a subcontractor put down a EPDM rubber roof (we had to tear off everything because the old rubber roof failed and ruined the decking and a lot of the framing) then we built modular, removable hardwood duck boards that fit into the space and were removable for cleaning underneath. Third one, the metal roofer came in and built a flat copper roof, and we did a normal porch floor on sleepers as in #1, but this time in mahogany (more stable and rot proof) , painted. I just wanted to point out that there are more issues in play than you may realize, and your path forward is not simply choosing the most maintenance-free finishes. Casey...See MoreAny possible way to install an ipe porch over concrete cap?
Comments (12)Wonderful! But don't bless us until after the job has been declared a success! We're going to stick with our 5/4x4 recommendation. Historically porches are usually x4 as well. It is a little "busier", but two weeks after install you won't notice or think about it. (Along with the bathroom faucets, door knobs and everything else it's so easy to hyper focus on when building a new home... this comes from personal experience) All the following jobs Miami/Bahamas/Sarasota/Palm Springs were slapped down on grade and the customers (against recommendation) went with 5/4x6 and it worked out ok.... but those are your dice to roll. Spacers definitely aren't going to hurt anything. The more height you can squeeze out of it the better off you will be. The fascia board.... its both a drainage and ventilation issue. I would defer to a builder and code on this one, but intellectually here's the logic. If you bring up the stone right to the bottom edge of the deckboards then drill weep holes you're basically closing in the edge of the porch tight with little room for airflow with the exception of the weep holes. Instead, if you bring the stone up to the edge of the concrete then extend your porch and sleepers just a little beyond the edge of the concrete/stone then have a fascia board (like in the photo you posted from Dalrymple Sallis Architecture) the air will flow up behind the board then under the deck for the entire length of the face of the porch instead of just at the weep holes. Additionally, though probably not necessary, it would also afford you the opportunity to add vents into the fascia. Not very aesthetically pleasing, but if you're planning on adding landscaping in front like bushes/shrubs then they may end up hidden anyway.........See MoreBest decking system (composite/PVC)?
Comments (11)Hello! Thanks for considering AZEK decks! We offer free samples on the site here: https://azek.com/store/catalog-and-samples and you can learn more about our decks here: https://azek.com/products/decking We stand by our decks with 30-year & lifetime warranties, an feel that our moisture resistant capping will keep your deck looking beautiful for as long as you own your home!...See Moresullidc
9 years agolast modified: 7 years agoIn October, 2012, I decided to replace my tongue and groove porch flooring, I chose the composite Aeratis Traditions over natural wood to avoid replacing the natural wood every 5-10 years. Even though reviews were mixed, I shelled out the $3000 to buy the material for and hired a local craftsman to replace the porch. The boards were delivered to the site and contained a significant bow to them which my guy worked hard to straighten as he installed the boards.
About halfway through the job, he noticed that some of the boards were very slightly more narrow in the middle that on the ends. As a result, a slight curvature to the boards was occurring over time and a noticeable bend was apparent in the middle. I have taken my old protractor (remember those?) and have found a couple of installed boards with very slight variations in the center .See attached pictures.
I initially contacted Aeratis by phone and email but received no immediate call or email in response this issue. After a couple of additional calls, they sent out the manufacturer rep for the mid Atlantic area who examined the porch, spoke with my guy and took the pictures. It was apparent to him as the pictures show that there was an issue. Frankly, given the significant premium I paid for the product , I wanted to discuss what my options were at this point. I have made numerous inquiries to both the manufacturer and the manufacturer's rep and it is apparent they are now taking the position that it was an installation issue, a position they did not mention at the first inspection nor one they have ever put in writing.
porchguy
9 years agolast modified: 7 years ago
Kevin Watson
6 years ago
Alicia Gordon
last yearMona L
last year
Hannah G