"Ipe" -- a very dense wood-- on a boat

[WayneS]

With some thousands of woods in the world, boaters' focus on teak seems kind of regrettable in some ways, and the price of teak makes it seem regrettabler still. When it came time to build a good-looking anchor roller platform for my 25' Cheoy Lee Frisco Flyer, I looked around for alternatives.

Ipe is a wood from South and Central America. It's available in very long lengths (the trees grow to 200 feet) and varying widths and thicknesses. (Dixie Lumber in California tells me they'll order it to my specs, and I imagine other yards would too.) Primary uses in California are flooring, docks (seems to be the preferred material), and patio decking. It's dark and a bit like walnut when finished.

It is generallly considered an ironwood, and is much heavier, stronger, and denser than teak. (Or oak, or almost anything else.) I think you'd wait a long, long time for it to rot; a few centuries. It's stable. It is very hard on hand tools, and on lightweight routers. As comparable woods go, it seems it can be had fairly inexpensively; mine cost about a third of what teak would have been, on EBay.

For that anchor roller and storage platform I used 7/8" Ipe (a solid wide board cut on a band saw to the shape I wanted) and had a 1/8" sheet of stainless steel plasma-cut to the same shape for reinforcement. Total thickness is one inch (not counting an underlay on the deck), and the fabrication is very strong. I finished it with eight coats epoxy, eight coats varnish, three coats clear polyurethane.

Now the bad news. It reputedly does not hold a finish well, though I have had no problems so far with the finish I put on. I do not think varnish alone (i.e. without epoxy under) would work out well. Oil might be good for interior uses. For sanding, a hand held belt sander will be needed. Driving screws requires a power driver. Sheet metal screws work well, but God He knows they are not self-tapping in Ipe; you will need to drill for them. I have no idea what steam bending would be like, but don't think I would bother to try. (The exception to that might be rub rails; if the wood could be steam bent, Ipe could be great for that.) The sawdust is an irritant. (It gave me no problems, but I was careful not to let any accumulate.)

One of the interesting uses Ipe might have (only on a boat where weight is not a concern) is as replacement for old teak decks on boats with straight decking. Haven't heard of it being used for that, but I think it would deserve a thoughtful look. Caulking used should be applied with a primer to increase adhesion.

I'm very happy with it so far for my project. Has anyone else used it?

[hebert01]

Hi Wayne-

I've used Ipe as a replacement for the mahogany in my 13' Whaler. I installed it last year, and am very satisfied so far. My boat is left in a skiff slip and is completely exposed to the elements all summer. I had finished the wood with Epifanes varnish, and had a little peeling by the end of the year. This wood might be a good application for epifanes Wood Finish Gloss, which I believe is formualted for oily woods. Maybe a couple of base coats of that might allow for a stronger bond with varnish afterwards.

Ipe certainly is dense. I went through a few drill bits and blades, that's for sure. Also, the wood sinks in water.