My alfresco decking II...

So did you have to put in a termite barrier with the boards sitting on the concrete so close to the ground?

Didn't put a termite barrier in as the house has a termite barrier already installed around the perimeter of the slab. Was a requirement by the builder.

Cheers,
Mike.

Treated pine framing with naturally termite resistant merbau decking - I don't imagine a termite barrier was needed

Cool..I was looking at doing something similar but using steel frame and modwood decking but they steel guys said it had to have 300mm clearance to bottom of bearer or have a termite bearer...might look into that again.

That as well!

Why would anyone be worried about termites with steel and Modwood??

I'm looking at doing something similar but I don't have a slab down.

should I fill some post holes with rapid set, and dyna bolt some galvanised stirrips into the concrete at the right height for the bearers? without a termite barrier do I also need to leave a gap between the deck and the house?

Cause I'm paranoid of termites after I had them in my current house..they are so evil. New house is steel frame!

Concrete the stirrups in the hole after they are attached to the bearer. Prop the bearer up with some offcuts and F-clamps. Its much easier to level the bearer with the stirrups dangling in the holes rather than trying to level each stirrup individually.

The deck can stilll be attached to the house. Termites will not expose themselves to the light to get into your house and they will not tunnel up the inside of the treated pine.

thanks Dukekamaya

what about the alfresco area (under cover)? would termites venture out in a darkened corner? I'd rather leave a 25-40mm gap for inspection purposes if I need to.

They would sooner burrow into your neighbours house than expose themselves by climbing up a post anchor

[hijack] I'll make sure I ship in some pine bark chips for the neighbours garden.

I'm thinking of using ironbark for the decking. finished off with sekkens. any recommendation for a cheaper option if funds runs low?

[/hijack]

ironbark finished in Sikkens Cetol HLS (not Cetol Deck) is a pretty unbeatable combo IMO.
Not sure how you could cheapen it really unless you go with Merbau which has hit the sub $4 per metre mark in some places for 90x19mm.

Not entirely true.
It all depends on the the termite species you are dealing with or are common in your area. Most termite species which attack your home will commonly build up over metel stirups, antcapping etc to get to the food source, your home! The metal stirups, antcapping ect is only there to deter concealed termite entry into your house, deck etc and so they are visible and so should be treated accordingly.
Termites will even travel through the centre of treated pine logs if they have split without exposing themselves to the outside environment. Termites will also actively forage for new food sources unprotected by their shelter tubes (mud leads) if the humidity is high enough and they are in a fairly protected area.
It would be advisable to leave the last decking board against your house screwed down, rather than nailed, so you can lift it up every few months to inspect that area. Also it depends which termite barrier was installed to your house during construction. If it is termimesh, granitgard, homeguard etc then that visual line in which the barrier is installed must also be kept visible. If it is a chemical barrier installed by the means of a reticulation (or replenishment) system ie termguard, altis, etc which is retreatable then there is no such line in which the deck should be kept below, but you should still allow for visual inspection.

Hope this has helped in someway, if not then at least i have given the general forumiets some handy info.

Cheers

You can setup your own reticulation system using irrigation products (available from bunnings)


4mm pipe around each post/stirrup


prepare the soil around perimeter with plastic lining (in trench) and course sand.


lay pipe (with holes along length) around perimeter fixed with pegs

Use pidgins termite insecticide and pump through ststem using pump spray.

Love your decking - congrats on a great job.

Question for you - on our place we dont get a concrete slab under alfresco area, just dirt - do you recommend putting concrete down and then decking on that or would it be ok just on timber feet (posts) I dont know what to call them?

I've had differences of opinions provided as to the best time to oil the deck. do it straight away or wait for 6-8 weeks before giving it a coat or three after washing down with oxalic acide.

want to add to the confusion for me?

Apart from merbau, I would wash with oxalic acid then coat staight away.
Merbau needs time to bleed the tannin out, washing repeatedly with oxalic acid over several weeks helps.
I find many hardware/ paint shops often recommend leaving decking anywhere up to 6 months.
This goes back to the days gone when decking was always unseasoned and was used more to serve a purpose
than as a feature it is today. Timber finish products nearly all say not to apply to unseasoned (or green) timber.
Almost all decking is now seasoned (kiln or air-dried)

The only problem with Sikkens is the long drying time. I have just coated my new back deck in Intergrain Ultradeck which is water-based. With a new puppy and three kids I simply couldn't have the back door and deck out of action for the 3 or 4 days needed with the Sikkens. I did use the CetolHLS on the front verandah, its been down a year and still looks like new.

thanks Duke and now I can see why the uncle-in-law is going on about leaving the deck unfinished for a month or three - he only ever uses Merbau.

the builder is a fan of feast watson.

The Feast Watson product is a traditional decking oil - it will evaporate and will not repel dirt. Intergrain is made by the same company - Orica (as is Cabots), the Intergrain Ultradeck or even the cheaper version Cabots Aquadeck (both water-based decking oils) would give you a much better performance.