restore a deck.. hmm where have i heard that before... haha

And you thought you were done with me, o patient one!
Last question before I go out and make a mess. We finished the Restore a Deck process...great stuff, great result, easy even for me, the poster child for short attention spans...
Now we're ready to finish with Cabot ATO...does your "wet on wet" advice apply to that? And if so, how wet is wet? Do I do each section twice as I go along, or go back and walk on the wet surface to do it again? Do I need anti-gravity shoes?
All right, it's more than one question, but it's all about the one last bit of information, before I throw up my hands, sell my house, take the money, and run away to a tiny rented apartment in Paris .....

Wow..Thanks for the detailed advice. Just what I was looking for. I feel more confident on how I'm going to attack this project.

Thank You

Wet on wet, I realize, is an undefined term. It means when the sealer has not yet cured into the wood surface. Depending upon a ton of variables that dictate the temperature of the deck that can range from one hour to a full day.

I recommend doing this because many sealers do not get adequate one coat coverage. The wood absorbs too much and you are reselaing the deck in half the time it should have lasted. With most penetrating sealers, if there is no standing sealer and it has been down for 45 minutes you can walk on it. We use carpet covers for our boots so as not to leave dirt or bootprints. Any marring of the finish is covered by the second coat.

Don't overdue the second coat, it should still absorb into the wood. (unless you are using John's multi layering technique with TWP, in which case it doesn't have to absorb right away but should still be thin)

A-hah! Now I get it. I am going to finish this project before we are all mouldering in the grave, and then I'll send you a photo, Ken.
As always, thank you very much.

Bmom

Although I have received my Restore-A-Deck supplies, I have not yet tackled the deck.....have been procrastinating. But it still looks real good so I am not in a big hurry. In regards to your instructions above: Numbers 1-7 don't apply because my spindles are painted white although sealer was used on the hand rail, but I'll use a brush for that. However, I do have questions about Numbers 8 and 9.

First: does that apply to Ipe and ATO? It is my understanding that Ipe is dense and will not absorb a ton of sealer so sealer should not be applied heavily. Also, does a second "wet on wet" coat apply to Ipe?

Second: are you now saying a lambswool applicator is better for application of sealer instead of applying with a cloth and wiping up excess and/or back-brushing on Ipe as discussed before?

Thanks for the help......

It's tough for me to put into print what has taken me years to develop. When I describe a second coat, it is not in the same context as what you may be thinking. My objective is not to layer on coats but to be sure the wood has absorbed as much stain as is possible.

As ipe is already oily and very dense, the second application may or may not be neccessary. A good marker would be to look at the wood which you have already applied product. If after five minutes 75% of the oil has been absorbed, odds are good it will take more sealer. The second coat should be light and you want the shininess of the second coat to disappear after 30 minutes or so.

Many factors including age, porosity of the wood, product used, UV exposure, wood temperature and wood species are going to determine your results. As with any craft, it is impossible for me to give a perfect one-size-fits-all technique and instill the reader with instant experience in wood sealing. Keep the above guidelines as a generalization and you will be fine.

As far as your last question, most are not willing to get on their hands and knees and rag on a sealer application so I left that recommendation off. If you are willing to pursue that route, it will take much of the guesswork out. Personally, I think using this technique on a floor may not be worth the effort for you. Rails are a different story. I would recommend you let gravity assist you on horizontal surfaces and use the technique above.

Thanks Ken. I would rather not get on my hands and
knees. Too much trouble getting back up!

I got my RAD in the mail on Friday, but my darn pager didn't allow me too much free time from work over the weekend. I had hoped to have the deck stripped, but never touched it. I'm hoping to have time to at least do a small section tonight.

If I'm not doing the whole deck at once, am I better to clean as I can, then brighten after all cleaning is done? Or should I clean the small section, then brighten that same section? I might have to do it in chunks after work at night.

Also, should I only mix as much as I'm going to use? I'm guessing that letting mixed RAD sit in the sprayer overnight is not desired?

RAD once mixed will go neutral in about 8 hours, so definitely just mix what you need. For stripping mix it at 1 cup per gallon of warm water.

You can neutralize when you are all done just be aware that certain woods like cedar will turn dark.

Ken,

If you were to make a specific recommendation for using RAD over multiple days, would it be:

1. Clean the entire deck, then brighten the entire deck.
2. Clean then brighten each section that will be completed on different days.

You say that you CAN neutralize when done, but is that what you would recommend given the two choices? I'm hoping to get the whole thing done over a few days time after work, but will be at the mercy of the weather, so it's certainly possible the project could extend further than anticipated.

Thanks!

Scott

You could do either. Ultimately it would be best to do each section and neutralize but those sections would have to be disjointed from the remainder of the deck. You will get the acidic portion on parts that are not yet cleaned and then when you go back and apply the cleaner it will just neutralize the acid and not do its job of cleaning.

I hope that makes sense. It won't hurt to have the deck not neutralized. Just do as good a job as you can when you rinse away the cleaner. It's not highly caustic so no damage will occur. In the worst case scenario, the deck may just end up needing more sealer.

I cracked upen my RAD for the first time yesterday!

Now, I'm no expert on measurements, but I wish I would have made sure I knew how many ounces were in a gallon before I had finished the first canister of cleaner. It sure seemed like I was going through the stuff awfully fast, and I suppose mixing double strength explains that... (no comments from the peanut gallery, please :) )

So, I started by applying to the top rail and inner/side spindles of one side, and let soak. After all the trust I had placed in Ken, I started to worry when I wasn't seeing any foaming. I sighed, and fired up the power washer. Low and behold, the old crappy looking stain washed away like it was dirt. Some areas took extra time with the washer, but for the most part, what I have completed went smoothly. It's time consuming, but not difficult by any means. I still have the back side of one railing, the steps and floor to finish. The floor is already worn enought that I expect it should clean up easily. Hopefully I didn't waste so much of the cleaner that I have to order more to finish the job. :(

A couple observations:
1. The spindles are a pain in the @#$%! There's undoubtedly a lot of wasted spray when applying. The floor and stairs will be a breeze after doing all the spindles.
2. While Ken says you can use a hose, I wouldn't even attempt it. I borrowed a power washer to save on expense, and it wasn't up to Ken's suggestion at a mere 1700 PSI and 1.4 GPM. But considering how long it took even with that much pressure, I'd hate to think how long it would take with a simple garden hose nozzle.

I've got some before/after pictures of just the cleaner that I'll try to get posted. I hope to get the rest of the deck cleaned this weekend, and maybe even get the brightener applied. Assuming I don't run out of cleaner due to my stupid mistake so I have to wait for another shipment...

No matter how much simpler a product like Restore-A-Deck can make the process, doing rails is stil very labor intensive. If nothing else, if you ever decide to let a company do the work for you, you can appreciate the amount of effort that goes into the job.

Was there anything I could have done to make the directions clearer? If they were unclear I need to know so I can continue to refine the product and packaging. You guys are the pioneers of the homeowner market. So far response has been excellent. I try to offer as much support as I can to make to process smooth for everyone. I apologize if I left anything vague.

Using a hose would only be for cleaning, not removing stain like you are. If the deckk were just gray you could brush the boards and just rinse. Shell, if you had a machine that flowed say 4 gpm, you would be amazed how much faster it would go for you. You'd be able to use about 800 psi or so.

Anyone else that has used then product or is thinking of doing so, please post your comments on my message board. Your input is very much appreciated. Shelland, email me if you run short.. I'll give you a break on any product you have to reorder.

Ken - nothing you could have done for a stupid user like me. (I work in tech support, so I'm used to calling users "stupid" :) ) Without even batting an eye, I mixed thinking that there were 64 ounces in a gallon. Since I was measuring 16 ounces at a time with my measuring cup, it didn't dawn on me that it didn't seem like enough.

I peered down into the sprayer (which I wish I would have done earlier!) after I cracked the second container of cleaner and said to myself, "self, that doesn't seem very full!" Then I pulled out my handy measurement took, and found that low and behold 64 ounces is a mere 1/2 gallon. DOH!

Not being the type that sues the lawn mower manufacturer for not telling me not to put my hand under a running mower, I won't blame this one on anyone but myself.

I realize that the pressure washer would work that much faster with a "bigger" one. I actually had one picked out to rent, but when my boss offered to let me borrow his (for free, and as long as I needed it), I decided the $67/day was worth more to me than the extra time it would take with a smaller model. Although I did see last night that Home Depot has one on clearance - looked like maybe an old model. I'm seriously considering it for $210 (2.5 GPM). I didn't think I'd use a power washer at all, but as I used it to soak down the house siding and saw all the dirt come off, I decided maybe I need one. :)

I'm going to try to stretch the rest of this canister for the rest of the deck, but if it doesn't make it, I'll let you know. It should be VERY close. The floor is pretty worn, so I'm hoping that won't take much.

Very happy with the results so far! That from someone that has never stipped OR stained a deck in his life (first time home owner). I'm hoping the weather will cooperate so I can finish this weekend. We're out of town the next weekend, and that would give it plenty of time to dry for me to stain the weekend prior to the 4th. Can't beat a newly stained deck for the 4th of July!

And even though I was a math major in college, we didn't have to learn measurement conversions! :p

Thanks again for all the help and insight Ken! Oh, and a great product...

Scott

My pleasure, Scott. This won't apply in your case, but the Restore-A-Deck Step 1 Cleaner is an awesome housewash mix. If anyone does use it, just don't let it dry on glass (like any soap)

If you have brightener left over (Step-2) use it to fade/remove rust on siding, concrete around pools.

Great Stuff Man!!! and you are really working for your money. J

Its either that or play the lottery. Since I am a glutton for punishment... Nah I love it! I am going to post a customer testimonial here that made my day and makes it all worthwhile. I hope she doesn't mind.
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From my Restore-A-Deck message board:

Hi!
I have to report fantastic results using your product on our Ipe deck. We followed the directions exactly and the deck looks SO GOOD. I am so shocked ... your product went above and beyond our expectations. When we built the deck 2 years ago it was so nice and 2 years later we figured that we would never be able to get back that "like new" look. For those of you ready to use this product, follow the directions and we even learned a few things.

Two people is better. We mixed up step 1 in a 5 gallon bucket so we always had plenty of cleaner when our bug sprayers were running low. We each had a 3 gal. sprayer and I even had a spare sprayer in the event a sprayer went down (they always seem to clog when you don't want them to). When my husband was rinsing after the Cleaner I went ahead and got a 5 gallon bucket ready with Brightener solution. I cleaned my 3 gallon sprayer out really good and loaded up with Step 2 Brightener and used my spare 3 gallon sprayer for Brightener. When hubby was done rinsing we both could go right into Step 2.

We did 90% of the deck in step 1 and then went over it with the Brightener. Wow, the stuff is great. What we did wrong was NOT doing the ENTIRE deck with Cleaner. This didn't screw anything up other than the fact when I was applying Cleaner to the stairs and outside spindles, I was getting cleaner on the freshly rinsed deck that already had steps 1 and 2. We just ended up making more work for ourselves because we had to go over parts of the decking a couple of times. So clean your entire deck, rinse, rinse and rinse again. We used a pressure washer. I probably would be out of water if I were using a hose. The pressure washer is more economical to use. We did use the pressure washer after apply the Brightener and it worked out great.

We also did this on a cloudy day. Today was PERFECT. You don't want to do this in the sun because you need to keep Step 1 wet with solution. Let's see what else, well, once we have a nice dry deck then we will apply a sealer.

What a lot of work; however the results were WORTH IT!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tammy

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Tammy, you are very welcome! If you happen to read this, verify that this is your post so I don't get hate mail for making fake posts LOL

PressurePros, thank you, thank you for the suggestion of purchasing the "HVLP Wagner Control Spray sprayer". Tonight I started staining my deck after work about 5:00p.m. I Finished before 7:00p.m. Last time I did this it
took all day to do. The deck is around 3/4 of my pool and has way too many spindles. I spent more time moving the dropcloth than staining. I used TWP 101 with the sprayer and it was as smooth as glass, no dripping.
I almost look forward to doing it again. :)
Thanks Again...

Good job! Thats pro speed. Glad I could help.

ddolce - do you have any pictures you can share? I've been trying to decide between 101 and 116, and have had troubles finding finished product pictures.

Scott

Our elderly deck has an opaque stain, put on maybe 6 years ago and pretty worn. Much, but not all, comes off with a brush and step one of RAD. It is a pretty huge deck, so I've decided not to spend my life on it, and to stain the spindles with a new coat of light opaque stain so I don't have to strip them. Seems like the vertical surfaces have held the most stain.

For the decking or floor, is there another product I should use first to get the opaque off? It was a mistake and looks awful, like paint. In my test area after scrubbing with the brush, I rinsed with a hose. I have borrowed a power washer and could try that. I would love to remove the old chalky worn opaque stain on the decking and use a semi transparent, darker, more natural tone.

Or am I stuck now, and will have to go over the opaque with opaque?

Which model (or gph) of the Wagner sprayer did you use?