According to the Healthy Building Network’s report on PVC in Buildings, “PVC is the worst plastic from an environmental health perspective, posing major hazards in its manufacture, product life, and disposal.”

That’s not some sales guy talking here. The HBN is making this statement because of a chemical used in PVC and vinyl decking called Dioxin. The HBN goes on to say that “Dioxin (the most potent carcinogen known), ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride are unavoidably created in the production of PVC and can cause severe health problems including:

• Cancer
• Endocrine disruption
• Endometriosis
• Neurological damage
• Birth defects & impaired child development
• Reproductive and immune system damage”

Wow…

Why PVC decking isn’t illegal is beyond me. Once you read the report, I’m sure you’ll agree with me. The fact that there are companies out there that are actually selling vinyl decking leaves me scratching my head. After reading that report and all the science backing it up, why would anyone use that stuff?

As an alternative to building a vinyl deck, one recommendation that the HBN report made was to use FSC certified materials and sustainable wood.

Advantage sells FSC Certified Wood

At Advantage, we carry and sell FSC wood lines that include:

• FSC Ipe
• FSC Tigerwood
• FSC Garapa
• FSC Cumaru

Many more species can be obtained by contacting us. We also offer wholesale pricing for those who order a truckload or shipping container’s worth of any of our sustainable wood lines.

Read the Helthy Building Network report on PVC in Buildings.

Stepping on this deck....not a good idea!

Take a look at the picture above. Gross, isn’t it? That picture is of the old pressure treated decking you can get at the big box stores. The worst part? This picture was taken on a boardwalk that many children and people walk on each and every day. Basically, it’s a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Can you see why I am a little biased toward hardwood decking? After looking at that picture, it’s easy to see why. Wood decking species like Tigerwood, Cumaru, Garapa and Ipe, just doesn’t have these problems and are naturally built to last.

Yes, pressure treated lumber is cheaper, but it’s really best suited for deck framing due to its resistance to termites. But, if you want to install it as a surface material, the long term cost to maintain it can be far more expensive. Imagine someone getting injured on your pressure treated deck? Can you say, “Hello higher hazard insurance premiums?”

The truth is, hard wood decking maintenance issues are few and far between. Most people just apply a deck finish like Ipe Oil™ once every couple of years to maintain its natural reddish brown color and that’s pretty much it.

You can search for my previous posts on the dangers of pressure treated wood, but for now…a picture really is worth a thousand words!

After years of wrangling and dissatisfaction with their metal deck, the residents of Ventnor, NJ finally got their wish. They replaced their aluminum deck with one made of ipe decking.

According to the Courier Post, “People constantly complain about the aluminum,” said Ventnor Mayor Theresa Kelly. “The slightest moisture makes it slippery for walking, jogging or bike riding. We were completing the boardwalk anyway so we thought we should complete it all.”

That’s not sales talk. That’s after years of use and experience from everyday people.

Check out the rest of the article to see pictures of the ipe deck installation and to read more about why the city of Ventnor is replacing their metal deck.

At Advantage Trim & Lumber, we are wholesale decking suppliers. To get wholesale ipe prices, contact us today and we’ll get your shipping container or truckload of ipe wood out to you fast.

Wood liquidators often like to tout their low prices and vast selection of hardwoods. However, the process through which they obtain and treat their lumber is something that they don’t like to talk about.

Hardwood flooring and other lumber that comes from liquidators often tends to have problems after it’s installed. These liquidation companies purchase their chemically treated lumber from China directly or they buy wood from outside the U.S., then ship it all the way to China for it to be processed with toxic glues and other chemicals. The concern here is that some of these Chinese flooring and lumber which have been infused with chemicals such as Formaldehyde will mirror the recent uproar over Chinese drywall.

Hopefully, you can see how this could be a problem for unsuspecting homeowners. VOC (Volatile organic compounds) emissions are the major culprit for many Chinese lumber issues. This cheap lumber tends to “outgas” which is basically the emission of chemical vapors. These vapors have been given national attention and many people are now paying attention to how their products are treated and where they come from. People who recently built a home that used this chemically infused wallboard had many issues from major appliance malfunction to health related issues such as respiratory infections.

So, if you’re shopping for the best wood, what can you do?

Buy wood from direct importers that don’t use VOCs to treat their flooring.  At Advantage, every species of hardwood flooring that we sell is not treated with any VOCs. From Brazilian Walnut to White Oak, every wood flooring species is treated in our North Carolina plant with VOC free chemicals. The VOC free flooring we produce won’t outgas or cause the air you breathe to be contaminated.

Deck Design of the Week

The Belmont Street Lofts in Portland, Oregon

The first thing you’ll notice when you see the pictures of the Belmont Street Lofts is that there is no visible use of decking. However, what you will see is how the architectural firm Froelich Consulting Engineers created this mixed-use commercial project with ipe. These mixed-use lofts really stand out with the use of rainscreens and ipe siding.

Benefits of ipe siding include:

• Durability even in the most brutal environmental conditions
• Ipe maintains its strength over time
• It is a natural product
• Totally maintenance free
• Contains absolutely no chemicals or preservatives
• All of our Ipe Rainscreens & Siding is free of any chemically produced additives

Contact Advantage Trim & Lumber today and ask about special wholesale ipe prices for wood rainscreens or siding.

As you can see from the pic below, we definitely have a huge inventory of brand new cocobolo ready for order. Our owner, Rob Pelc, went to Mexico to personally inspect this shipment so that each and every piece of cocobolo we sell is of the highest quality. The trip was well worth it because now we can provide wood turners and wood workers with the highest grade of cocobolo at direct importer prices.

Advantage Trim & Lumber Co. Owner Robert Pelc is excited about our expanded inventory of Cocobolo!

We make it easy to buy cocobolo.  We’ve already fulfilled hundreds of orders, so be sure to get your order of this rare and very unique hardwood while supplies last.

Great news out of Wisconsin! The city of Green Bay is well on its way to completed a major municipal project called the City Deck.

Of course, this news wouldn’t make this blog without the additional nugget that this commercial project is using ipe decking.

Yes, this is NOT Green Bay! Just another awesome pic of ipe decking;-)

Think about it…

What other hardwood decking will be able to, year after year, withstand the bitter cold and heavy snow of a Green Bay winter? Pressure treated decking? Heck no! Composite decking? Yeah, right. The plastic will delaminate, then soak up water like a sponge until it finally disintegrates. Ugh. The hardworking people of Green Bay deserve better than that and I’m glad to see that they did their research and chose the perfect decking material for their specific climate.

At Advantage Trim & Lumber, our ipe decking can be purchased at wholesale prices. You can order wholesale decking is available to anyone who needs a truckload or shipping container’s worth of this exotic hardwood.