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Porches & Decks

Sanding or powerwashing deck and type of stain

16 years ago

So the house we moved into back in October, needs the deck updated. Originally I was going to refloor it, but now I will just restain and do a white composite railing system.

What works bettre, resanding it or is powerwashing the way to go? and when I stain it I plan on using Cabots.

What stain remover or cleaners to use (w/o harming border plants.

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Comments (5)

commanche
16 years ago
at lowes they have cleaner made by olyumpic..itbsays it does not kill plants,in fact i used it to brightning my deck,worked good..its called OXY-DECK..

I AM GOING TO USE IT ON MY VINYL SIDING BECAUSE I OVER SPRAYED IT WHILE CLEANING MY DECK, OH BOY DID IT TAKE THE FILM OFF HOUSE..
sorry for caps..its worked great..
ekoreilly
Original Author
16 years ago
Yeah but do people sand their deck instead of power washing?
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PT deck and fence 2-3 years old. Just curious to see everyones opinions of what I am considering for prep, going to use a semi-solid stain: Option 1 Sand it down at 60/80 grit Option 2 apply a cleaner and powerwash -not sure which cleaner is good, i am looking at restore-a-deck or a cabot product. What's the verdict on restore-a-deck Option 3 cleaner and brightener -again looking at the restore-a-deck brightener...is it necessary? also how does the application work? Option 4 cleaner/powerwash and then sand -i feel like this would be overkill and i know its a lot of work let me know what you guys think!
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Dave, There is not a lot of expertise about stains on this site with the exception of John Hyatt who uses TWP. There is a site of pressure washing professionals who work on cleaning and staining decks: http://www.thegrimescene.com/forums/diyers-ask-pros/ They have a DIY forum. You might get some answers to your questions there. Good luck, Marty
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You might consider pulling the nails at this time, where it's easy and replacing with screws. Do not sand off the finish of the nails or screws. A Random orbit sander is fine, just much slower. A drum sander, you need to avoid cross grain sanding. A vibrating plate sander is best, with touch up areas with a pad sander or orbiting sander in those places you cannot get to.
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Painting a deck is a bad idea to begin with. You can either flake off the chips and paint over them.Of course it will just chip out again. Or you can sand the whole thing down to bare wood and put a quality out door finish on. J.
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catkin
16 years ago
We rented a floor sander--it worked beautifully! Just make sure all your nail heads are not sticking up. Use a smaller hand held sander for the tight areas. Sweep and vacuum the dust.

We used a product called Ready seal--it's totally amazing! Been a year and it looks brand new!
ekoreilly
Original Author
16 years ago
Well too late now, 'm going to pressure wash it becaus eI already bought Restore-A Deck. I will use the orbital sander for the tight spots.
commanche
16 years ago
be careful with ATO or others..if not used on IPE wood it turns wood funny looking colors..

test a piece of your wood first..

also, i would SAND that deck, then use brightner on it..

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