From a homeowner perspective: We have lived in 2 Cedar houses from the same builder. One we built, and upgraded the cedar. The second house we were the second owners. The cedar was not upgraded, and had knots and splits, and holes where the knots had been. You could read the words on the underneath wrap. We had also kept up with maintenance & staining the first house. We had to replace the cedar on the second house. The houses were built about a year apart - same environment. My recommendation is to look closely at a sampling of the boards -- more than 1 -- and compare the grades before you make a decision. Learn about how the boards are graded and the acceptable splits, knots, etc.

quote" Guys I am thinking the bill wants decking material to go on top of the rafters thick enough so the roofing nails don't show from underneath thus the open porch ceiling thing with the rafters showing. "quote I think this is exactly what he's asking for. When I build cathedral ceiling cabana's and pavilions for my pools I use T111 turned upside down for the price conscious buyers or 116 pattern V-groove cedar or #1 pine then stain/seal it when price isn't really the issue. Here are some pic's, during construction, of the pavilion by my pool. When they get really large I stop the standard hip/ridge/jacks/common rafters with decking going left to right and use hip/ridge/mini beams from hip to hip across a common and run the decking up and down. This 116 pattern is a 1x6 tongue and groove. Using a 7/8" roofing nail it doesn't come through. It doesn't come through on 5/8" T111 when using an architectural shingle, with a 3 tab shingle on T111 it slightly pokes the nail tip out. John you and the other deck guys here do some AWESOME work!!! The members of this forum are very fortunate to have industry pro's like yourselves contributing their insight. I'm thankful for the tips and design ideas I've learned from you guys surfing while this forum. See ya, Kelly

I enjoyed reading all the commentary. I learned alot especially about the use of varnish. It is an old school finish that uses resins to protect the wood with the added benefit of a leaving the wood with a lovely patina as well as adding a drama to the hue. A comment up the chain aptly likened it to the look of wood on his boat. In addition to varnishes I love using gel stains when i want to add a stain. The viscosity or gel quality allows longer curing period and therefore enough application time to greater control than regular stain products. I have also had excellent effects with gel stain on painted wood. If you work with it the look mimics wood quite convincingly.

The guy who told you it was T-111? Cross him off your list of potential contractors. It is tongue-and-groove, solid material; it is not clear, based on the knots I see, but it's pretty good quality; and it could be cedar. You might be able to tell if it's cedar by drilling a small hole through it in an inconspicuous place and sniffing for the characteristic odor of cedar. Also, cedar is a rather soft wood, so you would be able to dent it pretty easily by pressing a bladed screwdriver into the surface.