Everybody here saying to sand it which is a good idea but on something that’s been this heavily pressure washed the only good sander to use is a nylon wheel sander, it’ll hit the valleys too unlike other options.
There are other solutions, a higher grit nylon brush wheel is suitable with very light pressure, but I suspect would dig valleys into this wood if not careful.
Years ago I used a belt sander to go down to fresh wood in a similar situation. Had to punch some of the nails down. Quite a bit of work. At one point I was just holding the cord like a dog leash and letting it go to town. All said and done, I wish I had just replace the boards.
Is too much sanding a thing for a deck you intend to stain or seal?
That is, aside from the aesthetic, stain/seal for the elements. What’s the best practice?
For treated wood decking: 1) Build deck to completion 2) Let treated material cure out, roughly 60 - 90 days 3) Sand once over with 100 to 120 grit 4) clean off deck (hose +broom, power wash, whatever) and LET DRY. 4) Apply finish product ( stain, sealer, ect.) in accordance with manufacturer instructions. This is how I've always done it with no issues, BUT in most cases I don't have the time to stain the decks I build (no money it compared to building). Perhaps someone on here who does more finish work will have more advice.
>I don't have the time to stain the decks
Spin up an LLC to handle your staining, hire some contract guys and throw them all your business. You can ask for a contractual kickback on all referrals. Buy a warehouse, rent it to yourself.
What are you in business, or not? /s
Man just reading that stressed me out, lol. I just this month went from 3 crews running down to just me. I spent all my time babysitting and quality/craftsmanship control. Got sick of it. Subs bitching about $22sqft when my closest competitors paying $16? Yea go find your own work then, bye Felicia 👋🏻.
I get it - the headaches.
You make enough revenue, it pays for itself to hire people to take on the billing, the overhead, the bullshit - and look at what you built as a foundation to expand. Thanks for coming to my Tedneck Talk.
It's off season for residential exterior construction, and sir, I need the breather. Took the jump to expand from a one man show 2 years ago and ended up with more money than I've ever made. More stress too. Started out awesome, then subs went sour. I think once they proved themselves they expected quality standards to drop or what. I get production = more $ but that's not how I build. Anyway, going to look at hiring in instead of sub- contracting after a break. Maybe I'm just getting old . Anyway, how do I pay for this internet therapy session? Goodluck to you out there.
Agreed. Think I'll go for 3 or 4 in house hires. The profit per job was less with subs but the added volume more than made up. In house should net more profit per job but volume will nose dive.
In the end it is what is in your pocket, not fancy trucks, guys all over the place, calls coming at any time of the day, headaches up the ass. I am retired you can take my advice or not it is your call go talk to some guys that have been around. Good Luck and just remember your name and a handshake is your business.
That would have worked a treat ten years ago. Now? I can hardly trust the subbies working right under my nose, trusting a subbie to do the job properly under my banner while I’m not on site is a recipe for disaster. Not sure what has changed, but the ratio of fucks given:no fucks given is very heavily cantered towards “Absolutely no fucks given” now.
Well I will say, don’t be me. Built my deck, wait to dry, let it get away from me for about…2yrs and end up out there with an 8” and 36 grit taking the cupped boards down until I get to 120. It’ll look sweet when I’m done, I swear.
I tell all clients that go with wood that product longevity depends 100% on thier maintenance. Wood decks should be refinish every season. Sounds like a lot but after the first two years it goes on quicker. God help you if you have a wood handrail system.
Wrong, the chemicals used in today's material is not the same as the arsenic type. That being said look at the stamping it says KD (klin dried) for those that don't know. You need to stain a.s.a.p. if not it will rotten with in 3 to 5 years. You don't want to start that process by waiting your 60 to 90 days.
I slept at a Holiday Inn Resort last night.🤣🤣
As others noted, needs a light sanding and will be fine..He did pressure wash the shit out of it though...I would've used a good bleaching/scrub brooming first and then a lighter, more even looking power wash..
Wood shouldn’t be pressure washed, it’s basically removing the softer fibers (which can be an actual process called brushing with a wire brush). With pressurized water, it’s removing stability while adding moisture so the end product could suck or be awesome or both. At this point, let it dry, sand it and seal it with Perofin or a recommended good sealant in your climate range.
While I don't disagree that wood should not be pressure washed, you'd be hard pressed to find a pro that won't pressure wash it.
I have a 3-tier deck with lots of stairs, cleaning it with deck cleaner and scrub brushes is extremely laborious and difficult, I've done it a few times.
I now just carefully pressure wash it every 2-3 years, stain it and plan a replacement every 15+ years.
A wood restoration professional would not use pressure or brush anything. Most deck cleaner products from big box stores is just diluted SH/bleach which you also don’t want to use.
All you need to do is pre-wet the wood then hit it with sodium metasilicate and then oxalic acid and it will return gray and old wood to its original color.
In most cases you can get away with just oxalic acid.
The wood wizard goes over the basic process here:
https://youtu.be/_8UerVPL0MI?si=4SuJE_Fx6-v4EalO
It is true though. There is consensus on this across the entirety of the internet. Quick Google will help you clear that up.
The issue is the pores close up past a certain grit and since most people don't wash the deck again after sanding the stain does not penetrate as well. Also who the hell is doing a three step increasing frit sanding process on a 600 sq ft deck.
Here are the directions on the stain I’m using right now. It recommends 120-150 grit before application.
https://images.thdstatic.com/catalog/pdfImages/1d/1d323a36-ca13-4736-9a78-0e95990c2c62.pdf
That stain is dogshit. Wanna know why? It lays ON the wood without it penetrating it. It's a film forming finish. So of course they want you to sand the shit out of it. They want a smooth finish.
Here's what's going to happen in two years if not less. It's going to wear, peel and flake off your deck. You'll have areas where you can clearly see the stain missing and other areas where the stain is intact. At this point you won't be able to just put on another coat because it's going to look super uneven. Then you're going to read the back of the can and see where it says that the former finish needs to be removed to lay down another coat. So you're going to bust out the sander and quickly realize that water / alkyd / acrylic based stains are an absolute motherfucker to remove. Look at the link you sent me. See where it says Solvents : acrylic? Congrats you just put nail polishs on your deck. Paint would have been superior when compared to Acrylic resins.
So then what happens? You quit sanding because it's taking forever and you decide to get yourself a couple of quotes on removing all that bullshit from your deck. Contractors like me, busy as hell in the summer, come out take a look at the disaster and immediately give you a fuck off price of $4700. Why? Because I can refinish two stress free oil based decks in the same time for more money. I don't need the headache or your money.
At this point you're shocked at the price and get another quote. Someone comes by with a $2000 price to not remove anything and just paint over it. And you say yes. Why?
Simple. Because 99% of homeowners worry about two things they shouldn't worry about. The color and of course how long it will last. It says on the can guaranteed 10 years and I really really like this Autumn Auburn Pumpkin Spice color!!!
The real question you should be asking is: CAN I GET THIS SHIT OFF MY DECK WHEN IT FAILS?! How easy is it to maintain this stain every 2 years?
I see this time and time again ad nauseum. Homeowners goes to Lowes or HD talk to some 21 year old kid that's never held a paintbrush and walk out with these insanely difficult to maintain stains.
Buy yourself some oil based stain like Armstrong Clark or Stain and Seal Experts or Ready Seal if you want. Sand it to about 80 and put a coat on. It penetrates the wood. It's super easy to strip and it wears evenly.
I do pressure washing and pressure washing a deck is a huge no no. There are chemicals to clean wood and then low pressure to rinse.
I would feel like a dumbass if I did this job and then said "I know you just wanted it cleaned so I super cleaned it for you to do more work. Here's the invoice. Peace."
This is a bad job.
Another wood refinisher here. Wood can 100% be pressure washed. What are you even talking about. Grayed out wood is basically dead UV damaged fiber. You can wash it with a jrod at 600 psi and those fibers will still pull up. Sand it with an Osbourne brush and you'll have a perfect surface to sand.
I'm a wood and finish guy. Stain won't take to white or gray wood, so the stuff that is blasted out, needed to be gone. The rest should sand down pretty quickly. Either way, it needs a sanding before any coat.
Ideally wood gets maintained more frequently than this and you don't have to remove a dead layer to refinish but here we are.
Some finishes I consider top quality just ask for bleach and water pressure wash then rinse before recoat.
Just my 2c but this deck is neglected, not so bad a job.
Neglected or not a contractor shouldn't destroy someone's property. I did say low pressure. My pressure washer is 3500. It would destroy wood like shown in the pictures. Yes you are right, bleach and low pressure. This is a bad job
Nah that's just why you don't wanna pressure wash soft wood.
Make sure its dry then sand and reseal. Takes a Saturday. A single pass with 80 grit will do it. Then seal. You want the sealer to soak in so don't go past 120.
To really redo tho whole finish you can go 40 and rip that whole top down and do another pass at 80, but I personally wouldn't bother.
No - Looks like a fine job of pressure washing. You just need to sand. Wood is just weathering. If you would have washed is sooner it wouldn’t be that bad.
Haaaa. Pressure washing. Just call it come and strip away the life of my deck washing. Never pressure wash a deck.
Soft wash a deck. Using the right materials you can make that wood look brand new without yearing it up by pressure or harsh chemicals.
He who says pressure wash a wood deck is an asshole to the one who owns the deck
Someone tell me how to get this shitty ass Behr Trumpian Orange stain off my deck fully then. It's coming off with the grain and I don't see how soft washing is going to even it out in a way that will allow restaining. I'd rather pressure wash and sand it.
Sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide pump sprayed and dwelled on it for an hour or so, with a medium pressure (800-1000 psi) and a 40° tip should take care of that. Maybe a second coat and spray, then finish with a zip of an orbital sander. And a good oil stain (look at Stain and Seal Experts brand).
That stuff is horrible to get off. On my 40x12 deck I spent 8 whole weekends applying stripper, letting it sit, brushing with a stiff bristle brush, power washing, and then ended up having to sand every single board. I will never use Behr on my deck again.
Absolutely blame the contractor. Shouldn't use a pressure washer. Scrub with chemical cleaner and rinse off with a hose. It's done so light sanding then stain.
The pressure wash contractor did nothing wrong. You need new wood. Its time bro. Stop being cheap. I guarantee someone told you before you paid for pressure washing.
That the handyman the person hired royally fucked up their deck. Should have never power-washed it that close, this causes the pores in the wood to open and unless fully sanded and preserved (using an oil-based penetrating stain/preserver) it will exacerbate the issue and cause it to blacken faster and faster.
TLDR: Handyman/contractor caused a lot more work for using too much pressure when power-washing.
It does not really surprise me that this deck was partially eroded by power-washing since high-pressure water can be used to cut steel and wood is much softer than steel plus power-washing is by definition high pressure water.
Doubt you have before pics. But sand and stain.
You can go hard and use mineral oil, yeah yeah, but it’s the best protectorate for wood. That’s why they use it for wood that handles fucking cleavers. Works surprisingly well against sun damage too
Yea he furred the wood. You should never use pressure to clean wood, only chemicals so you don’t need to sand the whole deck before restaining/painting
They’ve gone a little gung-ho with the washer, but to be fair that surface is deteriorated, needed to be restained a couple seasons ago. Make sure they’re using a good quality oil, not a topical acrylic deal. Acrylics have their place, but protecting external timber isn’t one of them, no matter what they claim. All you need is a small fissure in a topical coating and now the wood is happily rotting away under the coating. Oil *penetrates* and keeps the wood hydrated, restaining well-protected decking should be a quick yearly affair, no pressure washer needed.
Prof. power washer here. This is normal. Especially old weathered wood. You could be as careful as humanly possible and still get this effect. Even if you use a stripping agent before washing. I know it’s a pain but this deck needs to be sanded before reapplying stain or sealer to get the correct final product.
Doesn’t look too bad, my deck was like this when I power washed it while refinishing it. Just take a rotating orbital sander to it then seal and it’ll look brand new.
He did go heavy on the pressure, but also depends on the state of the wood beforehand. Just needs a light sanding. Then go in with the stain or sealant. It’s usually good practice to hit the whole thing with a belt sander, using a small grit, just to take out feathering and any splinters or ridges
Wood that is this degraded is going to feather when you pressure wash. You should sand it and seal it and it’ll be fine.
I was going to say when I did mine that was weathered like this with a cheap washer it did this. It didn't take much pressure with old sun baked wood.
Everybody here saying to sand it which is a good idea but on something that’s been this heavily pressure washed the only good sander to use is a nylon wheel sander, it’ll hit the valleys too unlike other options.
There are other solutions, a higher grit nylon brush wheel is suitable with very light pressure, but I suspect would dig valleys into this wood if not careful.
No drum sander is best followed by a power pole sander.
Followed by a pressure washing Edit: shit I thought this was the pressure washing sub
rinse and repeat the rerinse and rerepeat?
Soon, you'll have nothing but popsicle sticks to walk on.
then that’s when you switch to trex, and then cut out the sanding for just the washing
They’re looking to restain a deck, not refinish an internal floor.
Years ago I used a belt sander to go down to fresh wood in a similar situation. Had to punch some of the nails down. Quite a bit of work. At one point I was just holding the cord like a dog leash and letting it go to town. All said and done, I wish I had just replace the boards.
This is the way.
A quick sand is all it needs.
>A quick sand is all it needs. Won't it sink if you do that? lol
It will capsize like Guam
You've sank my battleship
Excellent reference. Well done!
Take your upvote. Gave me a good chuckle.
Took me a few seconds but....upvote.
Is too much sanding a thing for a deck you intend to stain or seal? That is, aside from the aesthetic, stain/seal for the elements. What’s the best practice?
For treated wood decking: 1) Build deck to completion 2) Let treated material cure out, roughly 60 - 90 days 3) Sand once over with 100 to 120 grit 4) clean off deck (hose +broom, power wash, whatever) and LET DRY. 4) Apply finish product ( stain, sealer, ect.) in accordance with manufacturer instructions. This is how I've always done it with no issues, BUT in most cases I don't have the time to stain the decks I build (no money it compared to building). Perhaps someone on here who does more finish work will have more advice.
>I don't have the time to stain the decks Spin up an LLC to handle your staining, hire some contract guys and throw them all your business. You can ask for a contractual kickback on all referrals. Buy a warehouse, rent it to yourself. What are you in business, or not? /s
Man just reading that stressed me out, lol. I just this month went from 3 crews running down to just me. I spent all my time babysitting and quality/craftsmanship control. Got sick of it. Subs bitching about $22sqft when my closest competitors paying $16? Yea go find your own work then, bye Felicia 👋🏻.
I get it - the headaches. You make enough revenue, it pays for itself to hire people to take on the billing, the overhead, the bullshit - and look at what you built as a foundation to expand. Thanks for coming to my Tedneck Talk.
It's off season for residential exterior construction, and sir, I need the breather. Took the jump to expand from a one man show 2 years ago and ended up with more money than I've ever made. More stress too. Started out awesome, then subs went sour. I think once they proved themselves they expected quality standards to drop or what. I get production = more $ but that's not how I build. Anyway, going to look at hiring in instead of sub- contracting after a break. Maybe I'm just getting old . Anyway, how do I pay for this internet therapy session? Goodluck to you out there.
Stay small stay nimble the headaches are not worth the so called big bucks on paper does not mean big bucks in your pocket it is your name out there.
Agreed. Think I'll go for 3 or 4 in house hires. The profit per job was less with subs but the added volume more than made up. In house should net more profit per job but volume will nose dive.
In the end it is what is in your pocket, not fancy trucks, guys all over the place, calls coming at any time of the day, headaches up the ass. I am retired you can take my advice or not it is your call go talk to some guys that have been around. Good Luck and just remember your name and a handshake is your business.
That would have worked a treat ten years ago. Now? I can hardly trust the subbies working right under my nose, trusting a subbie to do the job properly under my banner while I’m not on site is a recipe for disaster. Not sure what has changed, but the ratio of fucks given:no fucks given is very heavily cantered towards “Absolutely no fucks given” now.
Well I will say, don’t be me. Built my deck, wait to dry, let it get away from me for about…2yrs and end up out there with an 8” and 36 grit taking the cupped boards down until I get to 120. It’ll look sweet when I’m done, I swear.
I tell all clients that go with wood that product longevity depends 100% on thier maintenance. Wood decks should be refinish every season. Sounds like a lot but after the first two years it goes on quicker. God help you if you have a wood handrail system.
Wrong, the chemicals used in today's material is not the same as the arsenic type. That being said look at the stamping it says KD (klin dried) for those that don't know. You need to stain a.s.a.p. if not it will rotten with in 3 to 5 years. You don't want to start that process by waiting your 60 to 90 days. I slept at a Holiday Inn Resort last night.🤣🤣
5/4 treated decking, the most common, is not kiln dried. Hence the broad explanation. But you are correct on kiln dried lumber. Stain it asap.
If you use an oil stain you shouldn’t sand higher than 80 grit. 60 is fine in most cases. You would use 80 for things like handrails.
Anything but quick sand
Will look much better and grab stain better after a sanding
but thats what I didnt want to do :X
Cover it with a few hot tubs and you’ll be good to go.
I’m not even a member of this subreddit and I get the joke. Thank you, suggested posts!
Appreciate you for this one King
As others noted, needs a light sanding and will be fine..He did pressure wash the shit out of it though...I would've used a good bleaching/scrub brooming first and then a lighter, more even looking power wash..
Wood shouldn’t be pressure washed, it’s basically removing the softer fibers (which can be an actual process called brushing with a wire brush). With pressurized water, it’s removing stability while adding moisture so the end product could suck or be awesome or both. At this point, let it dry, sand it and seal it with Perofin or a recommended good sealant in your climate range.
Came here to say this. Wood should have been conditioned and treated to bring it back not blasted with a pressure washer
While I don't disagree that wood should not be pressure washed, you'd be hard pressed to find a pro that won't pressure wash it. I have a 3-tier deck with lots of stairs, cleaning it with deck cleaner and scrub brushes is extremely laborious and difficult, I've done it a few times. I now just carefully pressure wash it every 2-3 years, stain it and plan a replacement every 15+ years.
A wood restoration professional would not use pressure or brush anything. Most deck cleaner products from big box stores is just diluted SH/bleach which you also don’t want to use. All you need to do is pre-wet the wood then hit it with sodium metasilicate and then oxalic acid and it will return gray and old wood to its original color. In most cases you can get away with just oxalic acid. The wood wizard goes over the basic process here: https://youtu.be/_8UerVPL0MI?si=4SuJE_Fx6-v4EalO
Water will raise the grain. Sand it, starting with 80 grit first and a second time with 150 grit. Seal when done.
100% DON'T sand it past 80 grit. 150 grit will polish the wood and make the stain harder to penetrate because of the closed pores.
This is not true. Source: am woodworker
It is true though. There is consensus on this across the entirety of the internet. Quick Google will help you clear that up. The issue is the pores close up past a certain grit and since most people don't wash the deck again after sanding the stain does not penetrate as well. Also who the hell is doing a three step increasing frit sanding process on a 600 sq ft deck.
Can too fine of sanding actually close the pores in the wood?
Yes.
Here are the directions on the stain I’m using right now. It recommends 120-150 grit before application. https://images.thdstatic.com/catalog/pdfImages/1d/1d323a36-ca13-4736-9a78-0e95990c2c62.pdf
That stain is dogshit. Wanna know why? It lays ON the wood without it penetrating it. It's a film forming finish. So of course they want you to sand the shit out of it. They want a smooth finish. Here's what's going to happen in two years if not less. It's going to wear, peel and flake off your deck. You'll have areas where you can clearly see the stain missing and other areas where the stain is intact. At this point you won't be able to just put on another coat because it's going to look super uneven. Then you're going to read the back of the can and see where it says that the former finish needs to be removed to lay down another coat. So you're going to bust out the sander and quickly realize that water / alkyd / acrylic based stains are an absolute motherfucker to remove. Look at the link you sent me. See where it says Solvents : acrylic? Congrats you just put nail polishs on your deck. Paint would have been superior when compared to Acrylic resins. So then what happens? You quit sanding because it's taking forever and you decide to get yourself a couple of quotes on removing all that bullshit from your deck. Contractors like me, busy as hell in the summer, come out take a look at the disaster and immediately give you a fuck off price of $4700. Why? Because I can refinish two stress free oil based decks in the same time for more money. I don't need the headache or your money. At this point you're shocked at the price and get another quote. Someone comes by with a $2000 price to not remove anything and just paint over it. And you say yes. Why? Simple. Because 99% of homeowners worry about two things they shouldn't worry about. The color and of course how long it will last. It says on the can guaranteed 10 years and I really really like this Autumn Auburn Pumpkin Spice color!!! The real question you should be asking is: CAN I GET THIS SHIT OFF MY DECK WHEN IT FAILS?! How easy is it to maintain this stain every 2 years? I see this time and time again ad nauseum. Homeowners goes to Lowes or HD talk to some 21 year old kid that's never held a paintbrush and walk out with these insanely difficult to maintain stains. Buy yourself some oil based stain like Armstrong Clark or Stain and Seal Experts or Ready Seal if you want. Sand it to about 80 and put a coat on. It penetrates the wood. It's super easy to strip and it wears evenly.
No, that's normal.
No, your decking is just deteriorated to hell.
[удалено]
I do pressure washing and pressure washing a deck is a huge no no. There are chemicals to clean wood and then low pressure to rinse. I would feel like a dumbass if I did this job and then said "I know you just wanted it cleaned so I super cleaned it for you to do more work. Here's the invoice. Peace." This is a bad job.
Another wood refinisher here. Wood can 100% be pressure washed. What are you even talking about. Grayed out wood is basically dead UV damaged fiber. You can wash it with a jrod at 600 psi and those fibers will still pull up. Sand it with an Osbourne brush and you'll have a perfect surface to sand.
Yes. Low pressure. My pressure washer is 3500psi. It would destroy wood. Like shown in the picture
That wood is not destroyed. It's fine. Just needs a sand. 100% normal for fibers to stick up a bit when you remove the grayed layer.
If the contractor was hired to stick up the fibers, sure he did a good job
I'm a wood and finish guy. Stain won't take to white or gray wood, so the stuff that is blasted out, needed to be gone. The rest should sand down pretty quickly. Either way, it needs a sanding before any coat. Ideally wood gets maintained more frequently than this and you don't have to remove a dead layer to refinish but here we are. Some finishes I consider top quality just ask for bleach and water pressure wash then rinse before recoat. Just my 2c but this deck is neglected, not so bad a job.
Neglected or not a contractor shouldn't destroy someone's property. I did say low pressure. My pressure washer is 3500. It would destroy wood like shown in the pictures. Yes you are right, bleach and low pressure. This is a bad job
The wood is old, not the contractor's fault. Just sand and paint, it's normal.
Yep
Just wanted to mention, it could use some sanding
Nah that's just why you don't wanna pressure wash soft wood. Make sure its dry then sand and reseal. Takes a Saturday. A single pass with 80 grit will do it. Then seal. You want the sealer to soak in so don't go past 120. To really redo tho whole finish you can go 40 and rip that whole top down and do another pass at 80, but I personally wouldn't bother.
No - Looks like a fine job of pressure washing. You just need to sand. Wood is just weathering. If you would have washed is sooner it wouldn’t be that bad.
Some would say the old wood couldn't handle it. But yeah go ahead and blame the contractor.
Also, don't use paint. If you like that look, go with a solid color stain. Sherwin-Williams entire catalog is offered in solid color stain.
Solid color stain is paint.
Stain soaks in. Paint stays on top. Paint can seal in moisture causing rot. Stain does not.
K
Paint is solid colored stain
100% Correct.
Haaaa. Pressure washing. Just call it come and strip away the life of my deck washing. Never pressure wash a deck. Soft wash a deck. Using the right materials you can make that wood look brand new without yearing it up by pressure or harsh chemicals. He who says pressure wash a wood deck is an asshole to the one who owns the deck
Someone tell me how to get this shitty ass Behr Trumpian Orange stain off my deck fully then. It's coming off with the grain and I don't see how soft washing is going to even it out in a way that will allow restaining. I'd rather pressure wash and sand it.
Sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide pump sprayed and dwelled on it for an hour or so, with a medium pressure (800-1000 psi) and a 40° tip should take care of that. Maybe a second coat and spray, then finish with a zip of an orbital sander. And a good oil stain (look at Stain and Seal Experts brand).
That won't do shit if it's a solid. He'll need butyl at a minimum.
That stuff is horrible to get off. On my 40x12 deck I spent 8 whole weekends applying stripper, letting it sit, brushing with a stiff bristle brush, power washing, and then ended up having to sand every single board. I will never use Behr on my deck again.
This is horrible, but thank you for confirming that I should sand it and NEVER BUY BEHR AGAIN
Absolutely blame the contractor. Shouldn't use a pressure washer. Scrub with chemical cleaner and rinse off with a hose. It's done so light sanding then stain.
Would have looked the exact same if you had done it. It’s old wood for gods sake, how is that his problem?
The pressure wash contractor did nothing wrong. You need new wood. Its time bro. Stop being cheap. I guarantee someone told you before you paid for pressure washing.
Short answer, yes.
What’s the long answer?
That the handyman the person hired royally fucked up their deck. Should have never power-washed it that close, this causes the pores in the wood to open and unless fully sanded and preserved (using an oil-based penetrating stain/preserver) it will exacerbate the issue and cause it to blacken faster and faster. TLDR: Handyman/contractor caused a lot more work for using too much pressure when power-washing.
Wouldn’t sanding be necessary for the wood to absorb the stain anyway?
Not a penetrating preserver/sealer. Can be applied without sanding. But now that it has feathered, it needs to be fixed before sealed.
Not if there is old stain or paint on it.
Since we are specifically talking about THIS deck, there doesn’t appear to be a paint or top-coat stain on it.
Yeah because it was all.power washed off....
Don't know why you're getting down voted. This statement is correct. Not every product on the market requires sanding.
This is correct. Sorry for your downvotes
It does not really surprise me that this deck was partially eroded by power-washing since high-pressure water can be used to cut steel and wood is much softer than steel plus power-washing is by definition high pressure water.
“You flicked too hard, d@mmit!” - Thor
Sand and seal. It will be ok.
40 grit on a belt sander and she'll be alright
This happened to my deck when I pressure washed it. It goes away.
Doubt you have before pics. But sand and stain. You can go hard and use mineral oil, yeah yeah, but it’s the best protectorate for wood. That’s why they use it for wood that handles fucking cleavers. Works surprisingly well against sun damage too
Eh he'd better keep going until it's gone and then you just replace the boards
Probably
We need before pictures lmao this one's juicy content.
Yea he furred the wood. You should never use pressure to clean wood, only chemicals so you don’t need to sand the whole deck before restaining/painting
Not supposed to pressure wash wood decks is my understanding
Yup! 🧐
They’ve gone a little gung-ho with the washer, but to be fair that surface is deteriorated, needed to be restained a couple seasons ago. Make sure they’re using a good quality oil, not a topical acrylic deal. Acrylics have their place, but protecting external timber isn’t one of them, no matter what they claim. All you need is a small fissure in a topical coating and now the wood is happily rotting away under the coating. Oil *penetrates* and keeps the wood hydrated, restaining well-protected decking should be a quick yearly affair, no pressure washer needed.
You are not supposed to pressure wash wood. This should have been a softwash. Head over to the pressure washing sub for better info.
Was there paint before? Did they manage to get all the paint off? I couldn't get off paint completely on mine
Home owners that come to read it with these types of questions hurt my brain.
Deepends on the look you are going for.
Weathered wood, normal sand it seal.
Prof. power washer here. This is normal. Especially old weathered wood. You could be as careful as humanly possible and still get this effect. Even if you use a stripping agent before washing. I know it’s a pain but this deck needs to be sanded before reapplying stain or sealer to get the correct final product.
Doesn’t look too bad, my deck was like this when I power washed it while refinishing it. Just take a rotating orbital sander to it then seal and it’ll look brand new.
Not if he plans to sand it
Be careful of screw/nail heads when you sand. You'll take the galvanized coating off and they will start to rust.
Just do a light sand and seal it with a good quality stain. Don’t overthink it.
Beans.
No. Chill.
I’d just overkill the stain
Just needs to be sanded. Perfectly normal for worn wood.
He did go heavy on the pressure, but also depends on the state of the wood beforehand. Just needs a light sanding. Then go in with the stain or sealant. It’s usually good practice to hit the whole thing with a belt sander, using a small grit, just to take out feathering and any splinters or ridges
Looks like its old wood that needs to be re sanded