Thinking about Sil timbers or decks

[Brad_bb]

The other day I was at my mom's picking up the scraps of wood from the deck she just had done at her place.  She had it built of Ipe wood, a south american tropical hardwood.  It is extremely dense and very very hard.  It's also extremely rot resistant.  They say it will last 100+ years without any rot.  It is not cheap at $9 a board foot.  But it got me thinking that instead of using a pressure treated wood sil plate in my timer frame, Using this Ipe might be a much better option and more environmentally friendly. Basically laying a 1 inch Ipe board on top of SilSeal on the foundation wall, then installing the Sil timbers on top of that.  I mean it wouldn't be cheap compared to pressure treat, but relative to the cost of the house and preventing any future issue... If a timberframe can last 400 years or more, but pressure treated sils or white oak sils directly on foundation only last 100 years less, I want Ipe that will last as long as the frame.  Thoughts?

[moonhill]

Embedded energy, why not use black locust, it should be available locally and give a local sawyer some work, keep it at home. 

Tim

[Brad_bb]

Yeah, I've been trying to find someone  within reasonable distance of me to come mill some stuff for me to no luck yet.  There just isn't much of any timber in my area and thus not many(or any to my knowledge yet) mills to speak of.

[ARKANSAWYER]

  IF you want to pay the $9.00 bdft I can sell you walnut or osage orange and deliver it to you.  It is grown local and is very rot proof.  You can have walnut in long lengths and different thicknesses.
  It is funny how people will spend that kind of money for an Ipe deck and not put in the same coin for walnut.  But if you want it I am here for you.
  ( I use walnut, white oak, osage, and black locust for sills all the time.  Last home we used cedar because the people were worried about bugs. ???)

[Stumpkin]

Yeah, I've been trying to find someone  within reasonable distance of me to come mill some stuff for me to no luck yet.  There just isn't much of any timber in my area and thus not many(or any to my knowledge yet) mills to speak of.

Hey Brad,

I'm in Grafton, IL. 50 miles north of St. Louis. I'd have to wire my lights back up and fix the tow hitch, but I've hauled my Woodmizer farther than Joilet before. We can talk more at the Rendezvous next week in KY. 

[Brad_bb]

How would I recognize you?

[shinnlinger]

He will be the guy with the lights out on his trailer.... with blue jeans and a cap of course....

[Stumpkin]

How would I recognize you?

Illinois Plates ..... on a black Toyota.  I'll be an instructor for the timber frame workshop before the rendezvous and I'll be doing some sharpening demos too. I'll also be carving Stumpkins if they have found any hollow logs, but they wont let me bring any firewood from out of state.

Tom