Madison Lumber Performances for Decks
Once a wood deck starts to degrade, and if the substructure is still intact, it’s time to consider re-planking the floor with premium pressure-treated deck boards.
To much surprise, there are undoubtedly crucial differences in pressure-treated lumber. You can quickly head to your local home improvement store, but the quality is not always there. Large box stores often carry treated lumber with excessive knots and noticeable warping. Additionally, prices across locations are often inconsistent.
Installing cheap lumber on your deck will cause premature rot and increase maintenance needs. On the other hand, quality wood is carefully and responsibly cut, grown, and processed. When you match that with a manufacturer that processes, stores, and delivers with care, you have a premium product that looks better and lasts longer.
Allow us to introduce Madison Wood! That cheap “standard” treated lumber that homeowners in Raleigh often buy will be a thing of the past.
The History of Madison Wood
Since 1959, Madison has built its business on a reputation for quality products and services, producing the highest-quality treated wood products. Madison also takes great care to respect trees and forests. Their commitment to quality, safety, and environmentally sound production practices has been the cornerstone of their success.
Its stellar reputation as a state-of-the-art wood-treating company has been maintained by steadily improving product lines for several decades. As one of the world’s most extensive wood-treating companies, it regularly assesses its materials and treatment methods. Determined to remain the leader in its industry, it is constantly seeking ways to improve.
Additional reasons for their success include providing personal service to customers and only using wood sourced from top-quality mills. Madison also stores lumber protected from the elements in a massive 180,000-square-foot warehouse to ensure freshness and color consistency. So, you don’t have to deal with that super-saturated lumber stacked at home improvement stores across the Triangle.
Madison Wood is a licensed wood-treating company that creates nearly perfect boards for your deck replacement project. A local Madison distributor is American Cedar in Raleigh, NC, a premier source of quality building materials in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Wherever your closest Madison Wood Preserver dealer is, you will know the treated lumber is handled professionally and sourced responsibly.
What Makes Madison Lumber Different
Madison’s treated wood is pressure-treated and fortified better in nearly every way. All Madison lumber is treated to withstand ground contact. As a licensed producer of treated wood products, Madison Wood preserves some of the cleanest-cut yellow pine we have installed.
For over 60 years, using MicroPro® technology has been an innovative way to treat wood. MicroPro offers many advantages, including significantly improved corrosion performance with micronized copper preservatives. This performance enhancement is ideal for deck flooring and structural deck elements, pathways, and other projects that demand durability and versatility.
Using this class of lumber saves money over time by reducing the need to pressure-wash and stain as often as lower-quality, untreated wood.
All Madison treated lumber is processed to withstand ground contact. Pressure-treating all lumber to a high quality simplifies deck builders’ installation and placement process. Also, Madison Wood takes paint better once it’s thoroughly dried out.
Madison Wood leads the wood preservation industry and continues raising the bar. They also provide a comprehensive warranty for various treated wood grades, guaranteeing protection against termites and fungal decay.
Madison processes the best-treated wood products on the market, testing each board for quality and moisture content and evaluating additional visual elements. It also encourages and teaches contractors and customers how to install treated wood products correctly. Madison’s education initiative is centralized in its MADWOOD certificate program.
Madison Certifications
Although the treated wood industry has existed for over 70 years, the technologies and procedures constantly change. Madison Wood primarily created the MADWOOD Installer Certification to facilitate communication and centralize frequently asked questions about new installation guidelines. Certified Madwood installers have either passed the certification test with a score of 100% or attended the group training.
When selecting local deck builders, ensure they understand best installation practices, whether or not they claim certifications. A licensed general contractor will likely understand best practices and see your deck replacement project through, incorporating both conventional and innovative techniques.
Why Treated Lumber for Decks?
When considering which materials to purchase for your deck, porch, and other outdoor spaces, it’s imperative to use quality pressure-treated wood that can withstand extended exposure to the elements. High-grade pressure-treated lumber will last multiple decades without rotting. However, untreated timbers often rot sooner, even when adequately sealed and stained.
Inspectors and professional deck builders understand that wood rot can lead to several safety hazards. The supporting floor joists, ground posts, or other substructures must be replaced if they show signs of wood rot.
Most pressure-treated lumber is made from Southern Yellow Pine or Douglas Fir. Treated Southern Yellow Pine is sustainable and offers greater structural rigidity than cedar and other redwoods. Pine also costs significantly less than plastic composites or tropical hardwoods, and its popularity among customers remains consistent for these reasons.
Wood timbers are a renewable resource that lasts for years once treated, reducing the constant demand for trees. With fewer trees cut down and fewer plastics to dispose of, the planet is healthier overall.
Ground Contact Treated Deck Lumber
Because of the particular demands of Madison Wood, you know the products you purchase from them are of the highest quality and will last a long time. This is crucial for that 6×6 ground post or stair stringer bottom plate that is in constant contact with Raleigh’s red clay. Clay holds water, blocks airflow, and is typically covered with moss or stilt grass in our wooded areas.
Madison requires all certified dealers to provide an inventory of ground-contact lumber. Ground-contact labeled timbers contain more preservatives (0.15 vs. 0.12). This increase makes the wood last longer in areas of constant moisture or shade. Customers don’t have to worry about the wood being saturated for too long, inadequate ventilation, or debris buildup. Ground-contact lumber is prepared to handle it all.
American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) guidelines require Ground Contact General Use (UC4A) treated wood for installation in certain conditions. Ground Contact is needed when installing wood less than 6″ above the ground or used in an area without air circulation or water drainage.
The wood must be ground-contact grade when structural rigidity depends on the board’s durability. If vegetation or debris can accumulate on the wood, as in our humid microclimates, treatment for ground contact is imperative. These standards also affect joists and beams used in above-ground decks and freshwater docks.
Following these guides is essential to ensure a well-built structure meets building codes.
Picking Quality Wood Decking
When choosing a source for your lumber, it’s best to be particular. Deck boards are not all processed the same, and quality standards will vary.
Low-quality lumber found in big-box stores will often pale in comparison to the wood sold by dedicated lumber dealers specializing in high-grade materials. As industry leaders, specialists can guide you through the process to ensure the best possible outcome for your project.
Madison Wood delivers quality products for all of your wood and lumber needs. They process lumber for different loadings and retentions, incorporating quality preservatives for various applications. With a few different levels of ground contact, each end tag specifies whether it is ground contact or heavy-duty ground contact. The reference to AWPA on the label states that the product met the standard requirements and passed a quality inspection.
Premium-treated pine is economical and easy to cut and install, especially for non-professionals. However, some may argue that wood has several drawbacks. Everyone has an opinion, but the lack of knowledge and experience can sometimes alter judgment.
Wood is wood, right? Reading this article, you already know that the assumption is too broad. Yes, cheaply treated lumber rots and splits, but Madison Wood is much different. That statement is only valid when comparing timbers alike. Our rebuttal would be, ” The only like comparison is a similar piece of lumber that’s also ground contact grade, containing zero wood knots. But comparing an apple and an orange is not a proper comparison.”
Madison is a smaller company offering improved product quality control. Madison’s #2 lumber frequently has fewer knots and imperfections than Home Depot and Lowe’s premium-grade lumber. Madison’s lumber appears better, offering improved aesthetics for your outside spaces.
This premium, high-quality lumber will last longer, look better, and be more economical in the coming years.
2×6 Premium Wood Decking Materials
Madison offers a wide range of lengths, with no grade stamps on the top side, kerfs on the bottom side to reduce cupping, and MadGuard® Water Repellent to slow moisture intake.
Madison’s high-grade 2×6 decking is kerfed to relieve stress in the wood, and even grade C is nearly free of knots and imperfections.
Quality means everything to Madison. SelectDeck™ is the highest grade 2×6 decking available. This stunning product is less expensive than composite decking, ideal for increased decking rigidity, and meets the demands of residential and commercial decking projects.
The C-Grade SelectDeck™ will impress with its smooth texture, clean surface, and money-saving advantages. The Madison Wood team hand-selects each piece to choose the highest 2×6 wet decking product. They mill each board based on appearance, not grain, and deck builders appreciate this special additional attention to detail.
Upgrade & Save Your Deck
We replace 7-year-old ‘builder-grade’ decks in North Raleigh all the time. The original 5/4×6 boards are always cupped so severely that they are pulling the screws out. We retrofitted the floor with Madison SelectDeck™ 2x6s or ground-contact 5/4×6. By utilizing boards that were warehouse-stored and properly kerfed, we provided the homeowner with a surface that remains flat and uniform even under Raleigh’s intense July UV exposure.
Whether you choose wood or something else for your deck installation, it’s important to use top-quality materials. Your time, money, and efforts depend on it. Who wants accelerated farmed raised lumber with tons of knots and is pressure-treated by cutting corners? Take the plunge and consider premium wood; it offers many benefits. Plus, you get to sit back and confidently enjoy the beautiful results for much longer!
For more deck-related articles, check out our related posts and archives. Or, see our social media channels for real-time installations!
