# Opinions on Massaranduba?



## cnutt (Mar 16, 2005)

Hello,

This spring/summer I will be building a wrap around porch for our house. We want to use massaranduba (Brazilian redwood) as the decking because it goes perfectly with the design and color of the house. I am a little worried though because I have never actually seen massaranduba in use. Our proch deck will be approximately 14 inches from grade. Has anyone here ever used or had any problems with this material?

Craig


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## Nathan (Dec 5, 2003)

Sorry, I have no experience in this but I wanted to welcome you to the board. Thanks for joining!


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## LJD (Mar 14, 2005)

Really, you should stay away from the massaranduba stuff for your decking needs. It contributes to the raping of rainforests all over central and south America. Half the time, "Brazilian" is a lie, and it comes from Paraguay or something, and harbors toxic parasites. They were gonna use massaranduba for the cabin trim in the first space shuttle, but the fumes were unbearable, and they had to switch to some new alloy type of thing.

Anyway, activist groups now target homes with obvious massaranduba components, and you just might find your house burned down by a buncha longhairs wearing Guatemalan friendship bracelets. That's AFTER they've stole your John Deere mower, sold it, and sent the money to little Pedro's village.

Massaranduba's OK for guitars and pool cues, (these aren't usually noted by the traveling bands of hippie harriers if you keep them inside), but a bad idea for an outdoor porch, if ya get my meaning. If I were you, I'd just pour some concrete.


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 7, 2004)

I'm going to let this stay for humors sake. He does have a point about the rainforests of South America.


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## pipeguy (Nov 22, 2004)

LOL. Hands down better than the toilet material.


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## pipeguy (Nov 22, 2004)

LongJohnnyDepp said:


> longhairs wearing Guatemalan friendship bracelets


 LMAO  Is there an echo in here?


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## LJD (Mar 14, 2005)

pipeguy said:


> LOL. Hands down better than the toilet material.


Yeah, I'll admit that was pretty crappy.

But I was serious, dammit! If you wanna keep using the plunger, maybe kiss your German Shepherd after she's been licking it or something, that's fine by me, pipedude. But for me, it's gonna be grind and flush. All goes down smoothly, no effort, no worries.

Besides, you think your wife gets pissed when you leave the lid up? Wait 'til you've left the plunger in the toilet a coupla times, buddy!


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 7, 2004)

Long John, do have anything to CONTRIBUTE to this bulliten board? All that I hear is noise.


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## ryaniniowa (Feb 11, 2005)

long......you make my heart rejoice.


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## LJD (Mar 14, 2005)

Teetorbilt said:


> Long John, do have anything to CONTRIBUTE to this bulliten board? All that I hear is noise.


Well, that's a matter of opinion, there, TeetorTot. One's man's "noise" is another man's orgasmic symphony, is what my grandpa used to say!

Besides, just a few posts ago, you expressed appreciation for my humour, AND conceded that I had a good point regarding the preservation of our rainforests. I would call that a contribution.

Look, sometimes I get a little goofy, but I'll tell ya right now--underneath this goofball exterior is finely honed eye for home repair, and a deft hand to back it up. You'll be surprised at what you might learn if you just sit back a bit!

Anyway, this is my most useless post so far, and it's a response to an even more useless one from YOU.

Peace, TeetorTot. Jesus loves you, and I think I might get to feelin' that way myself, after a time...


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 7, 2004)

Ryan, wherever you come from there must be a site big enough for the two of you. I am suggesting that you both go to someplace where your sense of humor is appreciated.


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## ryaniniowa (Feb 11, 2005)

We're not speaking remember. please respect the arrangement. Live and let live.


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## toolbag (Mar 16, 2005)

Geez, I need a scorecard to keep up with you guys. Who's on first?


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 7, 2004)

Long john, I'm sorry that this is what your Granndfather taught you.
One contibution out of 6 post does not really establish you as a contributing factor, do we count the one that I had to scrub as misleading?
If you are such a fan of Jesus, why are you doing your best to create havoc?
I have some heart for the rain forest, my brother and I own 1,600 acres of it now. And WHAT are you doing?


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## LJD (Mar 14, 2005)

Teetorbilt said:


> Long john, I'm sorry that this is what your Granndfather taught you.
> One contibution out of 6 post does not really establish you as a contributing factor, do we count the one that I had to scrub as misleading?
> If you are such a fan of Jesus, why are you doing your best to create havoc?
> I have some heart for the rain forest, my brother and I own 1,600 acres of it now. And WHAT are you doing?


That post took you like 15 minutes!?!?!?


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 7, 2004)

LJ, You are wasting others space and taxing my time. Would you like to say Bye,Bye now?


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## pipeguy (Nov 22, 2004)

ryaniniowa said:


> Can't stand stuff that rhymes with "cedarsilt"


LMAO - You bust me up.
No offense Teetor but that is pretty funny. That being said, I say do what you have to to keep this from getting out of hand.


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 7, 2004)

Rich, there is no doubt that ryan can pull one off from time to time but he's no match for our Bob.

I'm doing the best that I know how to keep this site on track. Nate says that the Cavalry is on the way, gonna be a few more of us in Tombstone.


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## pipeguy (Nov 22, 2004)

Teetorbilt said:


> Rich, there is no doubt that ryan can pull one off from time to time but he's no match for our Bob.


Glass is da' bomb...that's for sure.


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## Neil (Jul 25, 2005)

*FSC-certified Massaranduba*

Hi,
Is there no one here that can answer and give advice regarding the original question? That's also what I was looking for and not an irrelevant argument.

I had already read a lot about Massaranduba before coming across this forum and had found several companies that sell "FSC-certified" Massaranduba. In fact, a Google search for "FSC-certified" Massaranduba found 75 links. I'm very interested in ecology and it seems to me that there are several companies harvesting this wood responsibly. Or are they all lying?


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## CarpenterDon (Jun 28, 2005)

> *Cnutt wrote:*
> _".....This spring/summer I will be building a wrap around porch for our house. We want to use massaranduba (Brazilian redwood) as the decking because it goes perfectly with the design and color of the house. I am a little worried though because I have never actually seen massaranduba in use. Our proch deck will be approximately 14 inches from grade. Has anyone here ever used or had any problems with this material?.....Craig"_




Craig,

There are only a couple of companies that sell legitimately _"Plantation Grown"_ massaranduba (_Manilkara Bidentata_.) Most do not, but advertise that they do, to keep the greenpeacer's at bay!!!

The plantation grown massaranduba generally comes from Paraguay or Argentina. While the specimen trees came from Brazil (they have been transplanted,) the plantations reside in these neighboring countries.
  
As stated previously, this wood does harbor toxic parasites, which there is no way to get rid of, and can cause problems to the local ecosystem and certain domestic animals.

I would suggest that you use something like Ipe (_Tabebuia Serratifolia_) or even Teak (_Tectona Grandis_) for your decking instead.


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## FrM (May 1, 2006)

*The past is not the future*



cnutt said:


> Hello,
> 
> This spring/summer I will be building a wrap around porch for our house. We want to use massaranduba (Brazilian redwood) as the decking because it goes perfectly with the design and color of the house. I am a little worried though because I have never actually seen massaranduba in use. Our proch deck will be approximately 14 inches from grade. Has anyone here ever used or had any problems with this material?
> 
> Craig


Just ask if the wood is FSC labelled if you worry about the forests in general and not alone in S-America. Read more about it here: http://www.scscertified.com/forestry/fsclabels.html


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## RAD Systems (Nov 15, 2006)

Very entertaining thread !


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## Marksmanwood (Aug 20, 2009)

*massaranduba*

"Really, you should stay away from the massaranduba stuff for your decking needs. It contributes to the raping of rainforests all over central and south America. Half the time, "Brazilian" is a lie, and it comes from Paraguay or something, and harbors toxic parasites"
This is totally false information and is spreading hysteria Most massaranduba comes from sustainable forests and government controlled contracts. You can check to see if any wood you buy was brought in under CITIES sustainable forest rules. If so you can also be assured it has been inspected for any infestation
This is based on my experience in Central America


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## thelumberliquid (Oct 6, 2009)

*Massaranduba porch flooring & decking*

This is a great product, and is widely used in the Carolinas south to Florida. Plenty more input if anyone still interested.


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