Last month I received a frantic call from a customer whose first contractors messed up a lot of expensive Ipe decking! They screwed the boards in very haphazardly, countersinking some, leaving others at the surface, and completely ignoring any concept of straight lines.

The new contractors hired to fix the problems had to flip the boards and not countersink the screw heads so there would be enough wood for the screws to grab. The client’s least expensive repair option to give the best aesthetic possible without replacing the wood was to use stainless steel screws with the Ipe color heads. I’m happy to report that the second contractor did an amazing salvage job, the Ipe color head screws gave a lower profile to the errors of the first contractor, and the customer is happy with the finished product. 

The first shot is a closeup with the Ipe color head screws re-fastening the deck using the original holes. Without the shiny heads, they are not the first thing you notice anymore. The second and third pictures show how it all turned out in the end. The deck has been finished with Ipe Oil. The client wrote to me with the photos to say “our deck is finally finished and we are so pleased with it!” We’re glad we could help!