Pressure Washing Guide

Midwestpro

Today's deck stain market is a multi billion dollar industry. Every paint and stain company that wasn't already on board is jumping on quick. The do it yourself homeowner is bombarded with literally hundreds of choices when it comes to choosing a deck stain.

What I am finding is that homeowners are grabbing whatever can of stain promises the most years of protection. Olympic, Behr and other companies have decks stains and sealers on the market that claim will last 8-9 years. They are acrylic and silicone based and come in solid colors. Unknowingly the homeowner slaps this stuff on a deck that was not cleaned properly and certainly not prepped correctly. Most will spray the wood with a pressure washer thinking that is sufficient and I recently talked with a man who did not wash his deck at all because it was only a year old.

What you have to understand is that the number one reason a deck stain or sealer will fail is because the wood was not prepped before the deck sealer was applied. This gentlemen that I recently talked to will be lucky to get a year or two out of his 9 year solid deck stain because he did not wash the deck before hand (I plan to document this deck and the stains longevity over the next couple of years). Even though the deck was newer it still needed to be cleaned and brightened before being sealed. Of course he will be mad and blame it on the stain company and may even call them about it. But they will ask if he first cleaned the wood and when he says no they will be off the hook.

These stain companies have hundreds of loops they can jump through as to never be responsible for their deck stain not actually lasting as long as they claim. Even when a deck is prepped correctly by a professional there is no stain on the market today that will last that long. It just isn't possible when the deck is subjected to the elements.

The sad thing is, once these solid and heavy pigmented stains do start to fail putting more stain on top of it (another coat) will only add to the problem. These stains do not adhere to each other well and the top coat will usually start to peel and flake within a year. I've seen many homeowners play this game of half-ass washing the deck and then slapping on more stain year after year. Finally they get sick of it and call a professional. Unfortunately, even though the sealer does not hold up well in some areas of the deck like the floor, it is almost impossible to get it off other areas like the spindles for example. This stuff is more like paint and is extremely stubborn to strip off completely without sanding the entire deck. In my opinion, if you use these heavy paint like deck stains and sealers, you are pretty much stuck with it at that point. So you may as well plan on washing and re-coating the deck every year or two with the same stuff.

Contractors like myself know that the only way to completely restore a wooden deck properly is to strip off any remnants of old stain and rid the deck of dirt and mildew followed by a neutralizing step. Once the deck is back down to bare wood and completely clean it is then allowed to dry for a couple of days before a new deck sealer is applied. In perfect conditions with these methods almost no stain will last longer than 2 to 4 years regardless of what it says on the can.

Some contractors will walk away from a deck that has multiple layers of solid stain on it. They know it is a total nightmare to try to remove that stuff completely. These solid stains are too much like painting the wood and in my opinion are very over rated. It is the opinion of many professional wood restoration contractors that you are pretty much ruining your deck by painting it with one of these acrylic or silicone enhanced solid deck stains. Think twice and research a little before grabbing the can that "promises" the most years of protection. You are better off prepping the deck correctly and applying a semi-transparent oil based deck stain with a slight tone to it. You are still going to get 2-4 years of protection but at that point the deck is still maintainable and can be restored again with out a huge expense.

DavidT73 · Joined: 23 Oct 2007 Posts: 10 Location: IL

My Uncle bragged two summers ago about how great his deck looked during a family cookout. He showed me the can in the garage, it was Behr in the brown can good for 8 years. The deck did look good but he had just done it getting ready for the party.

We got together again this Memorial day and the deck looked like crap already, I couldn't believe it. It was all flaky and peeling off. He was so mad and said he wouldn't buy Behr ever again. This was a great post and very informative. From what I've read here, I guess my Uncle is stuck with a crappy looking deck now unless he pretty much sands it off. That sucks!

jj5645 · Joined: 23 Oct 2011 Posts: 1

Hi. What is your suggestion for properly cleaning a previous stained deck and what is the "neutralizing" step? Do you have suggestions for a brand of semi-transparent oil based stain? Thanks.

Midwestpro · Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:53 pm Post subject:

It's best to completely remove any old sealer and get the deck back down to bare wood for the best results.

The stripping agents used to remove old sealer are caustic and high in pH. The neutralizing or brightening step is to neutralize the caustic cleaner and lower the wood to a more acidic level. This brightens the wood up again and leaves it a low pH which is what is best for the new sealer.

There are a lot of good oil based sealers, the key is in the prep work.