Eastern Hemlock for decking
Contributors to this thread:General Topic
From: fuzzy
17-Mar-23
I'm rebuilding a wood deck. I've got a band sawmill and several good hemlock logs that I can saw for 5/4 decking. I'll be using pressure treated posts on concrete pads and pressure treated plates and joists. Considered using hemlock for the decking I can saw 6/4 and plane one side to reduce splinters. I was wondering if anyone has used it for this? I'll be using a good quality sealer
From: Bozz
17-Mar-23
this is only my opinion, as a carpenter. I've never seen it used as a decking material, but it is a strong lumber, and if you maintain it and refinish it as needed I don't see why you can't use it. I think it would be a good choice. Hemlock, is as strong as larch, and doug fir.
From: WV Mountaineer
17-Mar-23
^^^This^^^
From: fuzzy
17-Mar-23
Thanks guys.
From: blue spot
17-Mar-23
Hemlock is a fantastic wood for building. But you might be a little disappointed in the lifespan of it exposed to the weather. I re-decked an equipment trailer in 8/4 green rough sawn hemlock. By late summer it was pretty dry and I gave it a good coat of stain and did the same thing the following year. In 5 years it had mushrooms coming out of it. So for an outside deck it may be worth while to spend the long dollar on pressure treat. But for inside construction it is hard to beat hemlock for dimension stock. All the barns around here are built with it.
Erik
From: WV Mountaineer
17-Mar-23
The wood obviously had moisture in it when you stained it. Or, it wasn’t stained enough. Hemlock is literally praised for its properties in exposed settings. From fence posts to siding.
From: Bigdog 21
17-Mar-23
No not really and only if treated. Like other 5 years in the weather. If it's green it will have a lot of shrinkage witch could mean large and small gaps everywhere. Dried is kinda hard to work with for anything fancy. It's straight grain could lead to more splitting. It doesn't hold nails good, it would all need screwed. I would frame with pressure treated if price is right just use it for decking worst could be in 5 or 7 years re -deck it.
From: fuzzy
18-Mar-23
Thanks again for the insight. I'll let yall know what I do.
From: fuzzy
18-Mar-23
Blue spot I bought a "treated" picnic table at Lowes in 2012. By 2016 it had mushrooms growing out of it and by '19 it had collapsed under its own weight. Granted I didn't maintain it and it was in a shaded area.
From: blue spot
18-Mar-23
WV, Yes, my decking was green and put on the trailer in early june. By early september we had gone through a stretch or 3-4 weeks without a shower and the wood was checked up and as dry as it was going to get that year. And I will grant you it may not have been the best quality stain. But for wood up off the ground with excellent air circulation and at least some modest atempt at preservative I was not impressed by the longevity. Maybe your hemlock is rot resistant, but in maine and new hampshire hemlock will rot pretty fast, maybe a year or two slower than trembling or big tooth aspen. I dont know how fast or slow Tulip rots. I would not refuse an offer to look at some of your hemlock in use
Fuzzy, was your picnic table treated pine or something else ? I remember 20-30 years ago I was seeing treated fence posts I thought were made out of tulip poplar or some other soft hardwood. They rotted at record pace as well.
From: fuzzy
19-Mar-23
It was pressure treated pine
From: Beendare
19-Mar-23
Grain tends to raise on Hemlock.
I would blind nail it, or use decking clips along with construction adhesive. That way you can sand it regularly without having to set the screws or nails.
From: fuzzy
19-Mar-23
Been dare, great points and great advice thanjs!
From: Highlife
19-Mar-23
What if you ran the boards through a drum sander or a planer? And than using a good sealer would that stop the grain from raising ?
From: fuzzy
19-Mar-23
Dave I'm gonna plane one side and run the edges on the jointer. Should help.
From: Rut-N-Strut
19-Mar-23
Typically western hemlock would be the much superior product compared to Eastern. Even then I would be hesitant. If you’re only looking for a couple of years of use then go for it. Otherwise I would strongly suggest another product.
From: Highlife
19-Mar-23
Cecil my bad just reread your post. Should have done that first been a long weekend;)
From: Grey Ghost
19-Mar-23
I'd save the hemlock for a more suitable use than decking. As an architect and custom home builder, I used Trex, or other composite decking, exclusively. It's pricy up front, but it pays for itself in the long run because you never have to refinish or replace it.
Matt
From: Rut-N-Strut
19-Mar-23
GG x2. Many of the composites today even look like wood
From: fuzzy
19-Mar-23
Composite just ain't happening.
From: blue spot
19-Mar-23
I love you Fuzzy!!!! wood is good !!!!!!!!!, just not hemlock in the elements.
From: fuzzy
19-Mar-23
My fallback is chestnut oak. I have plenty of that too.
From: nchunter
19-Mar-23
Fuzzy, have you noticed all the dead fir trees up our way. Trees I have hunted out of for years are dying. I have not heard anyone else really talking about it.
From: fuzzy
19-Mar-23
NCHunter you're talking about the hemlock? We don't really have a native fir species. We've got some red spruce at and above 4,000 feet in a couple of spots. The hemlock are dying from a tiny bug called wooly adelgid
From: blue spot
19-Mar-23
I love you Fuzzy!!!! wood is good !!!!!!!!!, just not hemlock in the elements.
From: LKH
19-Mar-23
Several decades ago I fell a Hemlock that was about 12" diameter. It was in the way of a tree stand and it fell on damp, often with standing water, ground. About 10 years later when I sold the place that log was still pretty sound.
From: Beendare
20-Mar-23
I like wood too Fuzzy…but the best choices like heart redwood and Ipe are just crazy expensive.
The product we like best now is the Timber Tech Legacy…. when you factor in the long-term maintenance vs wood, it’s a winner.
Just keep in mind, those manufactured decking products need to be framed on closer centers than wood.
From: Fran
20-Mar-23
I would look at Garapa wood from Brazil it’s cheaper than Ipe and composite. It weathers to a light gray is insect resistant and very dense. We had a large deck done with it two years ago and it looks great still and we did not stain it.
From: Huntiam
21-Mar-23
Nc hunter I do every day!! I hunt a lot on the Nc/tn/Va line area .. I walk thru these mtns every yr watching them die more and more!! Cleared out well over 20 miles of trail in the last week, a lot of dead hemlock !! Eastern hemlock in this part of the state are about a thing of the past fuzz…they get 20-30ft tall and turn brown and die ..90% of the older trees have all ready died out around here, they blame a bug !
From: fuzzy
21-Mar-23
Huntiam yep the hemlock are nearly gone. One reason I want to use the lumber where I can. I salvage as many logs as I possibly can. A lot of it is in rough places to get to.
From: Huntiam
21-Mar-23
I don’t blame you that’s a good idea! I should probably do the same have something made out of some! Many of my old built tree stands sit rotting in dying hemlocks in these Mtn !
From: Huntiam
21-Mar-23
Notice the small dead hemlock that used to be my cover ..
Notice the small dead hemlock that used to be my cover ..
From: fuzzy
21-Mar-23
It's amazing what destruction a tiny bug can cause.
From: Beendare
21-Mar-23
Fuzzy bring your crane and half a dozen chain saws and you can make up enough Oak decking for 10 houses. Its yours free for the taking. …but I have to warn you, its heavy as hell- soaking wet. One of my 5’ diameter, 120’ tall oaks fell on my house
From: fuzzy
21-Mar-23
Been dare thanks! I've got plenty of white, red and chestnut oak
