Ipe Substitutes

Hi Patrick, Yes, we have used cumaru on a couple of projects in Boston/Cambridge – I am not sure about Batu. Initially we found that Garapa was less expensive and had better slip resistance than IPE, but then we ended up using Cumaru. The Garapa option was installed on another part of the project and did not hold up as well as intended, partly due to poor construction follow through. Cumaru also has a class A flame spread rating, the Garapa required a special coating in the locations where the rating was required. This is the company we used: https://www.mataverdedecking.com/rain-screen-wood-siding-options We also just did a search for pedestal paver companies who carry IPE alternatives….don’t know the results yet, but here is what we found: Bison - https://bisonip.com/bison-products/wood-tiles/ GRO - https://greenroofoutfitters.com/downloads/#decking-pedestal-systems HDG - https://hdgbuildingmaterials.com/products/wood-pavers/ Kristen Kristen Fritsch AIA LEED AP BD+C WELL AP Sustainability Coordinator ELKUS MANFREDI ARCHITECTS [tel] 617.695.7954 [email] kfritsch@elkus-manfredi.com WFH# 206-356-5296 From:

When looking at hardwoods, it’s important to consider the likelihood of forced labor and species extinction. Here are a few websites: https://www.globalslaveryindex.org/2018/findings/highlights/ https://www.woodworkingtrade.com/most-sustainable-wood/ https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/restricted-and-endangered-wood-species/ -Kjell F

I also forgot to include black locust. We have had a few projects use it successfully as well. https://www.blacklocustlumber.com/ Kristen Fritsch AIA LEED AP BD+C WELL AP Sustainability Coordinator ELKUS MANFREDI ARCHITECTS [tel] 617.695.7954 [email] kfritsch@elkus-manfredi.com WFH# 206-356-5296

Hi Patrick, We have used Black Locust with success. It is grown in our country and is extremely durable. It's native to the east coast but you can get it out here on the west. Here's the supplier we used: https://robidecking.com/ I can email you pics of the installation if you are curious. Cheers, Sarah

We specified Black Locust for a project located in MD but encountered issues with procurement early this year. Ended up going back to Ipe with FSC certification,  which was also hard to procure.. This is a great resource that I’ll pass on to our landscape department.

We have been trying to move off ipe, and cumaru just seems to carry just as many concerns.  In special situations (e.g., historic restoration projects) here in the deep south we've used "sinker cypress--but that's not really a renewable resource.

For larger areas or new construction, we have used Kebony with good results.   Kebony is FSC-certified softwood (typically radiata pine) which has been subjected to a chemical and thermal process that makes it somewhat harder and also resistant to normal decaying organisms. It arrives to the site looking somewhat chocolate-brown but ages when left exposed to grey.  The only two plants currently that can do this processing are in Belgium and Norway (but transport by boat to the US adds surprisingly little to the carbon footprint); they keep saying they are working towards a plant in the US.  

Z – or anyone else who has thoughts on this….. On this topic of the footprint of the transportation of the wood – we are getting CLT’s from Austria on a project and are shipping to Portland, ME. We too are making the case that the shipping is less of a footprint vs. trucking from another CLT plant, in our case the option was Portland, OR. I am curious what calculator people have used to determine this? Do you keep the equation really simple and tell the story in more generic terms of shipping via boat vs truck is better, or are you doing a little more in depth analysis. Some calculators are very high level…others get really specific in have you identify truck type, fuel, ship type, etc. Answers we may not get from our supplier – we will see, but while we wait, I am curious what others have done. Thanks, Kristen Kristen Fritsch AIA LEED AP BD+C WELL AP Sustainability Coordinator ELKUS MANFREDI ARCHITECTS [tel] 617.695.7954 [email] kfritsch@elkus-manfredi.com WFH# 206-356-5296 From: Z Smi