Cedar Deck refinish (and potential nightmare)

[sailor55330]

I have a 4yr old cedar deck that I have maintained since new. I stained and sealed it the first year with Cabot Oil Stain (cedar toner) and then 2 years later with Sherwin Williams Deckscapes. Both of those products have been less than satisfactory. The Cabot held up "ok" getting about 1 year and 1/2 a summer and the Deckscaps slightly less. Both products went from looking decent and beading water to failing and peeling in about 2 weeks time, of course in late October, which up here is to late to do anything.

So, here I am trying to salvage/save this deck. It doesn't look that good as neither product has really stopped the weathering or checking or cracking. Keep in mind both of these are supposed to be mulit-year products. I'm in MN so yes we get some harsh winters, but the UV is next to nothing. I'm really dissapointed in the two products (I did my best to follow the manufacture's instructions on prep both times).

SO, I'm in the process of trying to refinish my deck. I've chosen to use TWP products this time as they are the only products I couldn't find any real negatives about online. I just finished trying to strip the old product which was about 75% successful, with spots that won't come up/off. Next is a two part cleaner/brightner process. The stripper and the cleaner/brightener both say to use a low power pressure wash (800psi or les). I hate to pressure wash wood, but not much choice given the situation. I'm waiting on the brightener as TWP sent me the wrong stuff when I ordered.

The final step is a 80grit sand of the whole deck then stain. My problem is that 80grit isn't cutting the wood to get down to fresh wood where some stain patches remain stubborn. I don't want to go to 60, but my not have a choice. I've been using my random orbit, but I did try a belt sander on some flats, with no luck. Additionally, I have learned that even while taking Clariton and using a dusk mask, I am highly allergic to cedar dust, so that really makes it tough. Additionally, even though the stripper is supposed to be "eco safe", it was strong enough to take the finish off about 1/2 of the deck screw heads, yet not the stain. Go figure--now I have to replace them or face rust.

I'm not worried that I have basically ruined the deck at this point. Any words of advice?

[cabinetman]

You may have to use an MC based stripper (methylene chloride). It's much stronger than eco ones. It's very toxic and you should follow the directions for use very carefully. Using 40x or 60x should get to the bare wood, but IMO way too coarse of an abrasion.

Once you get the old finish off, try Penofin red label on a sample, it comes in clear and in colors. Any deck finish will need some regular maintenance. The extent and complexity of that maintenance depends on what is used. Film finishes will fail and require more heroics to refinish than an oiled finish.

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[sailor55330]

At this point I think trying to sand out the stubborn spots is better than going with a stronger stripper as the majority of the old stain did come of. As for maintenance, the Cabot and sw product were oil based. Hopefully i'll get Lucky

[downtheroad]

Just did a set of redwood patio furniture (15 pieces) for a client. The pieces were about 20 years old and heavily weathered, black with staining and very rough. We used a cleaner and brightener first. On some areas, the staining was pretty bad so we used a 2-part wood bleach on some areas to try and get the coloring more consistent. That worked well on some areas but there was still some blotchiness. Sanding with 80, 120, and finishing with 180 grit left us with a pretty good surface for finishing. We used TOTAL WOOD PRESERVATIVE (TWP) Cape Cod Grey. That worked well and the clients were happy with the results. First time using the TWP but heard good feedback from others. Time will tell how well it holds up.

[jdon]

We recently moved into a house with a neglected cedar deck- unevenly worn stain, checks, warps of all kinds, popped nails, (presuambly) inadvertent stain blotches, yadayadayada.

I tried pressure washing - BE CAREFUL- very easy to eat away softer wood, leaving pronounced and raised grain.

Popped nails kept tearing up sandpaper, and eventually I decided that the easiest way for me to get a clean surface was to pull up all the boards and run them through my portable planer.

Worked great (although went two sets of planer blades), and used deck screws to reattach. Looks great, and not all that difficult or time consuming, given alternatives I could think of. Just my 0.02

[cabinetman]

Additionally, I have learned that even while taking Clariton and using a dusk mask, I am highly allergic to cedar dust, so that really makes it tough. Additionally, even though the stripper is supposed to be "eco safe", it was strong enough to take the finish off about 1/2 of the deck screw heads, yet not the stain. Go figure--now I have to replace them or face rust.

No matter how you prep the deck, it's going to be a mess and labor intensive. Wood allergy can be from inhalation, and direct skin contact. Can be from subjection to any orifice, such as eyes and ears.

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[JoeyGee]

Can you just flip the stained boards? Otherwise I would just replace them and save the time and aggravation.

[sailor55330]

I still have the cleaner and brightener to apply once it gets here, so I'll make the final evaluation after that process. The grain was already raised before power washing, so not much to lose there. Flipping could work, but I wonder how it would look given that there is some old stain on the underside from drip down during the initial stain process. Either way I'm sanding.

The planer option I hadn't thought of, but that won't work for the railings. As for replacing the boards, 18x20 worth of cedar decking isn't in the budget.

This is going to be interesting to see how it comes out.

[Knottscott]

I rented a drum floor sander from HD for < $70 last summer and used it on our pressure treated deck....took about 3 hours. It was surprisingly easy and the results were good....better and easier than pressure washing (which I tried unsuccessfully first). You'll need to reset the nails/screws. Good luck!

[crybdr]

For what it's worth.....I've given up on keeping my deck in pristine condition from an appearance perspective. It seems like the winters take a big toll on horizontal wood surfaces in our neck of the woods. I did a full strip and application of Cabot's....it lasted about two years. I chose Cabot's because of the very favorable reviews online - but I'm not entirely convnced that there is any appreciable difference in performance from other products I've used in the past.

I recently power-washed, sanded and re-stained the entire deck with Weatherscreen stain from Menard's. Time will tell if it does any better.

The deck looks much better now - but will most likely need to be refinished in a year or two.

If you find a a more long lasting solution.....please share. Staining all of the individual spindles on my railings is TEDIOUS work.....

Good luck!

[crybdr]

One other thing.....

Just make sure the wood is 'dry' enough to take the stain. The dry weather we've had lately should leave that deck wood 'thirsty' for liquids. Better to put stain on now before any potential rain.......otherwise you'll have to wait.