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Topic starter
25/08/2016 6:51 pm
Greetings, Brilliant ones - happy to find this site. Great work.
CONTEXT
Large deck, East Coast NJ environment.
Type of Wood: I don't know
After some research, used Rustoleum Cleaner and failed.
More research, bought power washer and used Olympic Deck Cleaner, some brightener. Some success.
PROBLEM #1: GREY COLOR
While the mold and algae were removed, and wet wood looks lovely, after drying, wood remains grey. Not the same grey, but grey. Perhaps wood is older than 10-years with no protection. Ok. But is there a solution (Restore-a-Deck) that will actually perform the miracle of bringing back the original wood color I see under the protective door mat and in videos?
PROBLEM #2: DISCOLORED AREAS
Let's say the color is there to stay. Fine. Stain will help because the grain is beautiful. But there are areas (under doormat, table base, and other areas) where the color was protected. Possibly some water seal. I'm confused what avenue to take for these areas. More brightener? Sanding? Live with it? I'm planning on doing some basic sanding, but wondering if there is a magic bullet.
PROBLEM #3: PRESSURE WASH
Pressure washing did nothing but wash away the chemicals to the extent a garden hose would've done the same. It did not transform or wash away the grey in the manner I've seen in many videos. Some grey wood just won't wash away?
PROBLEM #4: STAIN
In the end, I'm planning to use the Cobalt Australian with a light tone — unless I'm swayed otherwise. I prefer a natural, warm, amber tone.
See pics. Thank You!
JW
26/08/2016 1:13 pm
The issue I believe is the gray is not oxidation, but a gray deck stain. You can see this from the flower pot area. Not sure if all can be removed, but you will need a stain stripper instead of a cleaner. Try a good stain stripper and pressure washing. Sand some if needed to remove the rest, brighten all after.
If you get it all off, then try Armstrong Clark in Amber.
Topic starter
26/08/2016 2:15 pm
Great, thanks — before I close this out and get a Stripper, please take one more look at photo #1, with the wet wood. This is the same area as photo #2. If by chance it's NOT a gray deck stain, is the stripper still the avenue to take?
Thank you,
JW
Topic starter
26/08/2016 4:19 pm
Thanks, Stain-Gods.
JW
Topic starter
27/08/2016 7:57 pm
Seems to be working with rock-miracle with heavy proportions. Then hand scrubbing, getting to know each board. Will report back after dry time and more effort. I've a big deck!
Topic starter
10/09/2016 10:39 pm
Have made a lot of progress with stripping, scrubbing, hand-sander. I've given every board TLC.
NEW PROBLEM: I stripped and brightened in sections to divide & conquer a large deck. Can't upload photo, but where I stopped applying the brightener there is a distinct difference from I didn't brighten. Brightener is a solution, not ready-made. I'm afraid when I brighten center area they won't match.
What to do...?
By the way, I will be ordering the Armstrong Clark in Amber. Maybe I'm overly concerned?
JW
Topic starter
12/09/2016 9:09 pm
Hi Folks,
I received your last message AFTER working on the deck, I did not brighten all and now have inconsistencies, since I also did more stripping.
You can see from these photos, there is still a good amount of grey that I couldn't see before. These photos are more sensitive than the eye in reality.
Where you see clear wood - that is where I did another pass with stripper and scrubber. Obviously, I need to do more stripping, but I don't want to over do it / damage.
What looks like black mold is just the wood.
My plan is to order the Armstrong (I will get samples first) and Restore-a-Deck Brightener, to have a better product do a better job.
I also think I should get some RAD Stripper, but I don't want to over strip, damage.
Your feedback is appreciated.
Joe W
Topic starter
14/09/2016 1:21 pm
Orders the RAD kit and tools. Plus, stain samples.
JW
Topic starter
14/09/2016 10:04 pm
Thanks — /and stand by...
Topic starter
24/10/2016 1:56 pm
Hi Folks - See above.
After final stripping and power wash with RAD Stripper and brightener, there was still about 15% grey in the cracks and crevasses. Over the last month - with rain and my schedule - I've made a lot of progress with a hand orbital sander and excellent sanding pads. Also, the bleach dilution reduced the black mold by 80%.
With good weather coming up, I'm getting ready to stain. I've 5-gallons of Armstrong Amber Semi-Trans and I'm not afraid to use it:
QUESTION: Should I spray the stain, OR use the pads?
JW
Topic starter
24/10/2016 2:09 pm
Current photos
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