10 Barrel Brewing Rooftop Deck:

Rooftop Decks from Wasted Spaces:

A rooftop deck system can transform a drab unused space into a sought after place where people want to gather, relax outdoors, and enjoy the skyline views. Green roofs, a special kind of rooftop deck, can boast beautiful gardens, edible vegetation, conserve energy, and provide places to walk, picnic, or be entertained.

In expensive real estate hotspots such as Honolulu, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, and Seattle, adding an urban rooftop deck system is a practical way for owners to add space needed to accommodate business growth. 10 Barrel Brewing knows this firsthand. They added a rooftop patio to their location in Portland’s Pearl District. Now patrons can take in the views of the trendy city while indulging in food and choosing among 20 taps of beer.

Services Hidden in Plain Site:

One thing you won’t see on a well designed rooftop deck are drains, electrical wiring and conduit, irrigation lines, and other services that could be trip hazards or view destroyers for the guests visiting those spaces.

"If I had known about screw-jack pedestals earlier in my career I absolutely would have put them everywhere. I like that you can create comfortable level surfaces for people right over the top of sloped surfaces designed to drain. I also like being able to hide irrigation, plumbing, and electrical services below the surface. This is much more elegant than running conduit everywhere." - Bing Sheldon FAIA, retired chairman and founder of SERA Architects

What is the rooftop deck system? What holds up the decking?

Below the decking surface is an array of adjustable-height pedestals. Each pedestal individually corrects for slope so that water can drain while at the same time the walking or sitting surface remains perfectly level. Pedestals are height-adjustable and accommodate a variety of decking materials including: hardwood decking tiles (as shown in the 10 Barrels Brewing images), wood decking, natural stone, Thermory pavers, Resysta decking, structural porcelain pavers, concrete pavers, even walkable glass pavers.

Not all Pedestals are Creating Equally:

Buzon Pedestals International is the pioneer who invented the adjustable-height screwjack pedestal. Since their origin in 1987 they’ve never stopped innovating. The reputation of BUZON® pedestals is the result of extensive experience with installations in over 40 countries and a willingness to listen to and cooperate with architects, specifiers, urban planners, landscape architects and construction professionals. This is why HDG Building Materials chooses to be an expert dealer for Buzon Pedestal products in the U.S.

What Does Weathered Ipe Decking Look Like?

We get this question often so we’re sharing an example of weathered ipe decking. This commercial rooftop deck at 10 Barrel Brewing is made of ipe decking tiles over Buzon pedestals. The weathered ipe decking has been left to the elements turning a silvery hue commonly referred to as silver patina.

Has a Grey Weathered Ipe Deck Gone Bad?

Ipe wood exposed to air and the sun’s ultraviolet rays will grey over time but the integrity of the wood remains unchanged. Aged and silvered out ipe decks retain their long life, typically 50 years, as well as all of the other benefits of ipe including:

• Exceptional hardness, durability, stability
• Highest rating for insect (termite) & decay resistance
• Excellent resistance to scratching
• Natural slip resistance
• Resistant to fire (rated Class A by NFPA)

Is Your Ipe Deck Located Elsewhere?

This commercial rooftop deck in the Portland area gets its share of sun and rain and occasionally snow. Maybe you’re located in Arizona or Maine or Colorado or along the coast. Nature doesn’t discriminate. The same grey aging characteristics will apply to your ipe decking project no matter where it is located. The only way to prevent the weathered look is to apply UV inhibiting oil occasionally. Once your ipe deck is oiled, it will age but it won’t show signs of weathering.

Ipe Decks Are Perfect for High Traffic! No matter if you let your ipe deck grey or preserve its warm natural color it will provide you with years of useful life. Ipe’s scratch resistance and durability make it an especially good choice for high-traffic commercial decks that will encounter moving tables and chairs, boots and shoes of all types and fido’s claws. With splinter free properties and natural slip-resistance even while wet, ipe is the perfect wood for sidewalks, boardwalks, backyard decks, pool surrounds, and rooftop decks.

This weathered ipe decking example could be restored to the original look. To restore an ipe deck that has been left to grey you need only pressure wash the ipe deck and then apply a UV inhibiting ipe oil. That natural deep walnut brown to mahogany red color will return. Truth is, it’s already there, lurking just beneath the surface. You can see the original color on the underside of the ipe deck tiles. They retain their original color because they haven’t been exposed to the sun’s ultraviolet rays.

Project Partners:

• Buzon USA West and HDG Building Materials
• Installer: Installed by Bremik Construction.
• Architect in PDX: Scott Edwards Architecture