Flooring for screened room

[Eazyduzzit]

I'm planning a screen room addition to the house, and would like a flood with no gaps between the boards. I've thought about ipe or that plastic stuff, but the plastic stuff makers say it will void the warranty if you close the gap, and ipe' just too darn high! I've seen cypress advertised, but I don't know how good it is for a deck, or even how it looks.
Any ideas?

[crokett™]

Tile? If the addition is ground-level, then stained/stamped concrete.

[Eazyduzzit]

It's going to be floor joist construction. I still thought about tile, but I'm thinking I'd rather have some kind of wood.

[jlanciani]

The problem with no gaps for a true screen room is when you get heavy wind driven rain. The water that blows in has no place to go. With a solid floor you're going to have moisture problems sooner or later, whether it is buckling or rot.

[R Clark]

Cypress? Wouldn't be my first choice for a deck or floor. I have used it for projects and have some now for use outdoors. I like the way it works and it stands weather well. But it's soft and I don't think it would wear well under foot traffic.

[Cooler]

I stayed for 3 days at a Bed & Breakfast place in Connecticut a number of years back. Instead of installing screens on their porch the mounted ceiling fans. The owner explained that when the fans were on the mosquitoes could not light on your skin and bite. It appeared to work (and the breeze was nice too). I've used a powerful floor fan on my deck on hot summer nights and that worked to prevent mosquito bites too.

Before I would invest in screening in a porch I would try the ceiling fans. Many of the cheaper ones are rated for outdoor use.

It is cheaper.
It looks better.
It makes you more comfortable on hot nights.

For me it is a clear winner.

As for the flooring, in our area the winters are too cold for tile (I've been told). Maybe over concrete tile will work. If you decide to screen in the porch remember to apply screening below the decking if there are gaps.

[CLETUS]

At our club we have a screened porch with tongue and groove flooring. There are scuppers on the outside wall.

[mikefm101]

We have a large screen porch. Including a ceiling fan to boot.

Floor is Trex with maybe a 1/4" space between the boards, if that. Standing up it looks almost solid.

Having had this for a dozen years I echo others saying you don't want solid:
- Rain will blow through the screens and it gets on the floor. We have had heavy rains that drench the furniture.
- We need to mop the porch, especially in the spring (like now) when the pollen comes out. Its just easier to mop the water through the floor boards.
- No worries about expansion/contraction. Ours is not heated or air conditioned. We are in MA, so maybe in TN it is less of an issue, but the temperature swing is 110 degrees over the year and humidity is all over the place.

The builder stapled a fine screen to the floor joists, I think the bottom edge but cannot remember for sure. That keeps the bugs from crawling through. In the winter the screens come out and they are replaced with panels with a clear plastic sheet in them. The builder called it "roller glass", but I've never seen it anywhere else. It is heavy duty plastic sheets - nothing seems to tear it.

Anyway, whatever you do, the porch is our favorite room of the house. Even better once the pollen clears up in another two weeks. Which reminds, me, I need to mop it tomorrow

Mike

[rwe2156]

Why?

Depends on whether weather gets into the room.

You could always subfloor with plywood.

If you're worried about bugs (I wouldn't) I suppose you can run a piece of screening between the gaps?

I live in FL we are planning to screen in a small covered deck I will not be worried about the gaps. I don't want water standing if rain gets in.

[Cooler]

Is a poured concrete floor an option?