Unhappy with new deck stain

It is not easy to remove the Behr as it applies like a paint and films on top of the wood. Even more difficult to strip when just applied. You may need to stand as well to remove all. You always need to brighten after using a stain stripping to neutralize. As for the stain after full removal, try the TWP products.

Thanks so much for your reply! After reading in your forum, I'm afraid I got the sequence out of order and sanded AFTER brightening. We used Jomax stripper (which we bought at Lowe's) fairly successfully to remove Sikkens Cetol SRD four years ago before reapplying. We had some left over so used again on the Sikkens this time. But we didn't have a pressure washer and some of the vertical services, especially 2 X 6 headers, were difficult and the Sikkens had turned very dark. Rinsed with hose nozzle then used Wolman powder brightener and once again rinsed with hose. I rented a drum sander which was recommended by the rental center and went over with 36, 60 and 80 grit. Then my wife did spot work with both stripper and brightener. In the meantime we bought a pressure washer (recommended by Consumer Reports!) and used on our smaller deck but same sequence. Wood on this deck is nicer so I only went over it once with 80 grit. Also have done some disc sanding on the headers and some touch up with a belt and pad sander. SO . . . Lots of sanding so far.

IWe again have some Jomax stripper left over. Would you advise RAD anyway? It seems pretty clear that more than one application may be necessary no matter what we use, but now having the pressure washer is bound to help. We have a good forecast and can afford to wait a little. (I had to laugh when one post mentioned his wife had changed her mind about the color!)

thanks again,

Tom

You will have difficulty stripping this newly applied Behr no matter the stripper brand. Try theJomax and see if that works. If not, switch to the RAD stripper or HD80 and mix strong. It will not be easy to get this off. Strip what you can, sand the rest and clean and brighten after. Only one coat of stain this year. Apply another next year after a light wash.

We actually did run out of Jomax, but since it's locally available will give it a shot. It seems pretty strong as I can't use it without a respirator! Failing that, we will follow your suggestions. Behr instructions advise two thin coats. We stopped after one so perhaps that will make removal a bit less difficult. They also suggest applying with pad but I had built a step and applied to those boards with a brush with better results - seemed to soak in more.

Which TWP product do you recommend for maritime NW climate? (Larger deck mostly half in sun, half in shade in Summer, but plenty of cloudy and/or rainy days in other seasons,. Smaller deck mostly indirect light during Summer months.)

Greatly appreciate all the info you provide.

The TWP 100 series.

Progress report: Lowe's was out of Jomax stripper so we got some of Behr's own product, which was OK. It has a milky consistency and I didn't need the respirator. Required considerable scrubbing. We returned to Lowe's after confirming they had restocked Jomax and got some more. Still did scrub some with Jomax although instructions don't suggest that but rather keeping boards wet and pressure washing. After a second application of Jomax and very little scrubbing, we have been able to remove almost all of the Behr, which was starting to look Iike cream of pumpkin soup. It resemble paint more than stain. Jomax stripper works best if applied liberally and then allowed to sit and foam up with light pressure washing before full rinsing. We are taking a break before trying to strip the Behr off our read deck. Lots of work. A little worried that all the water is going to hurt the deck and getting close to the foundation. Of course the rain over a whole season will hae more of an effect, I suppose.

I read somewhere (maybe on this site) that an orbital machine was better but rental store insisted that the drum sander was the way to go, that 9 out of 10 used it on decks. Perhaps they were pros because the drum requires considerable control. Anyway, I may have overdone it with three passes on front deck with 36, 60 and 80 grit, but only one on rear deck with 80. Now further sanding required but hope to get by with minimal using 80 on a belt sander. I realize now that patience and effort with a good stripper will make some of that unnecessary.

Meanwhile we ordered two samples of TWP 100. Would there be any reason to try Armstrong Clark?

Also, you may notice on one of the photos that some of the bench boards are cracking? If I replace those or any other boards, do you recommend letting new boards weather a while before staining and adding to the old deck?

Thanks!

Wood cracking is normal. Just leave alone. AC makes great stains as well.

Hi, hope it's OK to add to a nearly two-year old thread.  In summary, two years ago we removed (as much as we could) newly applied Behr stain, were advised to apply one coat of TWP 100 and then a second coat the following year (last year).  Here's what it looks like now.  Less weathered sections under eave and bench still look pretty good.  How to proceed now?  I need to order whatever cleaner or restorer I'll need with the stain. I want to avoid sanding after renting drum sander in 2016.

These pics are from front deck. Back deck gets much less sun and still looks good so I figure it could go another year.

Ordered 5 gallons of Pecan in 2016 according to calculations suggested, but didn't come close to using it all - had enough left to stain all the soffits around the perimeter of the house.  So maybe I didn't us enough?

Thanks for any tips.