Fire Resistant Wood Decking

The only wood that really can handle fire to any significant degree is ipe.

Fire resistant wood decking.

A fire resistant decking system that has been designed for installation on balconies fire resistant our fire resistant balcony decking boards are class a1 or a2 fire rated depending on the finish chosen and therefore conform to the new uk fire regulations. Untreated wood and wood treated with fire retardant as well as plastic and wood plastic composite products are all combustible and therefore vulnerable to ember and other wildfire exposures. Batu wood earns the distinction of class a fire resistant decking due to the naturally occurring silica that is present within the wood itself. If you are not already familiar with this material it is an exotic hardwood from south america and it is one of the hardest toughest most insect and rot resistant wood on earth.

To simulate burning embers landing on a deck a wood lattice of a specific size and weight called a brand is set on fire and placed on top of the decking see photo left. Flame stop ii protects exterior and interior woods such as porous woods cedar shake shingles decking and structural lumber. Untreated boards achieve the fire rating a1. On this episode of timbertips we have four different types of decking that we re going to put through a trial by fire and see how they did.

Most wood species are rated class c for fire resistance but you can build safer with a class a rated composite decking like ameradeck made from pvc and wood fiber. The four different types are cedar a softwood ipe a brazilian hardwood timbertech a capped composite and azek which is 100 pvc decking. Whether you re using plywood or lumber dricon fire retardant treated frt wood has an unmatched record of protection against flame spread smoke development rot and decay. As opposed to the standard trex decking which contains wood and plastic fire defense boards contain 50 percent wood and 50 percent polyurethane.

As a result fire defense boards burn more slowly than traditional lumber but are still flammable. Dricon introduced in 1981 is a class a fire retardant and preservative intended for wood used in interior weather protected construction. Because of this silica batu wood meets and even exceeds in some cases most of the fire rating criteria set forth by various building codes. Fire resistant balcony decking.

A trex fire defense board is a special type of board used for additional fire resistance. Even though noncombustible decking products are available e g metal decking and lightweight concrete many decking products are combustible. Decks are where fires often start whether from windblown embers or from charcoal falling out of your grill.