[Sticky] Properly Cleaning a Deck Before Staining

Paint does not pressure wash off. If you want to use a stain like the TWP, you will need to sand it all off. 

We had a new deck put up 1 year ago and never stained it. It has lots of splinters and needs a good sanding. Trying to figure out the order and timing to complete prep and staining of the deck. Thinking sand, then clean and brighten then stain. Is this correct and how much timing between steps is the minimum and maximum? A friend was going to do it for us and said he could do it all in one weekend! That doesn't sound possible. Thanks!

Clean with a deck cleaner first, let dry for 24 hours and lightly sand. Brighten the wood after and rinse the deck well with water. Let dry for 48 hours before applying the stain.

I live in Canada and I had a new western red cedar deck installed 1 year ago. I attempted to clean it with an oxide based cleaner called Activox, purchased at a Canadian chain called Home Hardware. I followed the directions to the letter and here were the results. While most of the grey weathered wood fibers were removed, some of the grey still remains, especially around the knots. I'm not sure how to proceed from here. Don't really want to apply more product as it is very expensive. I though about sanding the remaining rough/grey areas to remove the remaining grey fibers. Would appreciate any advice. Please see attached photos. Thanks!

see this article:

https://www.deckstainhelp.com/wood-fuzzies-furring-on-deck/

I was informed to sand the old Behr Deck Stain off the deck, then use Armstrong Clark Stain. Do I still have to use a cleaner before I apply the oil based stain color Driftwood Grey semi-transparent. Where can I purchase the Armstrong stain. I reside in Staten Island NY 10312.   Thank You Pat

Yes, you should clean and brighten before staining. Check with Armstrong Clark Company themselves for info on where to buy.

Not sure if this is the right thread,  but I am going through the process of stripping or cleaning, then brightner - all with Restore a Deck, then planning to stain with TWP. Our deck is old and wood and since the previous owners had used an opaque stain, I have flipped, recut and screwed the boards back in and inserted new boards where needed. I am now uncertain if I need to sand or not? None of the opaque stain is on the boards at this time. Any insight on this would be helpful. I have not yet started the clean/brighten/stain process.

No need to sand.

Bought a house a year ago and now we're trying to resurrect the oldish 600 sq ft deck with a failed solid coating. Sanding it all off - aarrggh.

Getting a ton of helpful info from this site. But as we live in Canada ( Victoria BC) most of the products mentioned here are not readily available. Have bought the FLood Pro Series Solid acrylic stain for the deck surface and Flood CWF UV clear stain for some new posts we had installed. A couple of questions:

After sanding all the old coating off, how long can we leave the bare wood before washing and then applying the solid stain?

Is it OK to wash with the Flood All Purpose Deck Wash or are we better to use a generic sodium percarbonate cleaner? 

Do we need to use a brightener on the new wood that we are going to clear stain (not planning to brighten where we are using the solid stain)? For a brightener, could we just use vinegar to lower the pH? 

Thanks

Derek

You can leave it bare after the sanding for a month or two as long as your final prep consists of a good deck cleaner and light pressure washing.

The Flood prep is probably good.

Vinegar will not work very well. You should use a normal deck brightener.

A year ago, I had a new 675 sq. ft. deck installed with cedar decking.

1^st, Most all of the new unfinished/unstained boards were treated with Cedarshield wood preservative by Cedarcide LLC...

 “Perfect for fences, decks, docks and outdoor furniture, Cedarshield is a wood treatment that protects wood from moisture and decay. Cedarshield can be used on all hard and soft wood, plywood and bamboo.” I was told in many ways at different times that staining and painting will not be adversely affected, and that the wood will remain dimensionally stable, non-warping, thus helping preserve the finish.

2^nd, All the new boards’ sides were stained before installation with Perma-Chink Vista Deck stain... 

Now, a year later, the stain has partially worn off in any traffic areas, mostly totally gone in the higher traffic areas.

I recently sanded the boards down with 80 grit with a heavy floor orbital buffer and removed as most of the old stain. There is still some residue of the old stain which has absorbed a bit deeper especially within 1-3 inched of knots, and in other small spots where the sander didn’t get deep enough.

I cleaned the deck with Olympic Premium Deck Cleaner to “deep clean” as it says per exact instructions.

I tested the new absorbing Deck Defense stain, mentioned above, on some steps and it did not look good especially over those spots with the darker residue—it just looked black or dirty smudges. It doesn’t seem to have absorbed very well or evenly...

“Deck Defense is a combination of natural oils suspended in a water base to make it environmentally friendly and easier to apply and clean up. Deck Defense is easy to apply and maintain. Deck Defense should never flake or peel. Deck Defense is ideal for coating decks, fences, railings, and other horizontal surfaces. You save time during preparation and application because you are not required to wait until the surfaces are completely dry to start applying Deck Defense.”

My inclination is to get a different deck floor sander (not buffer) that will get down and remove the old stain’s residue so I will have what is basically new cedar wood surface, where whatever stain I use will look as good as it can. It can be removed-- I did use a small hand sander and proved that it could be removed. Note, the edges and underside still have the old stain.

Question: after I re-sand the year-old cedar down to the newly exposed bare wood what is the next best step?

- Let it weather over winter in Wisconsin, or some period of time, to be cleaned up “brightened” next spring before staining?

- Apply a brightener now to supposedly “open up the pores” before staining now?

- or what?

After sanding it off, let it weather for a few months and then clean and brighten for the prep in the Spring.

So, the UV and winter weather will degrade the wood won't it? Will the UV damage and weather degradation need to be removed next spring.  What product would be best in the spring to prep it?