Deck staining procedure and followup

Hello Deck pros - question about the procedure on properly staining a deck. Lots of online guide states one should wash the deck with wood cleaner/brighter prior to staining but does one still need to wash the wood if I am going to sand the whole thing? Doesn't sanding remove all surface impurities, mould or oxidization?

 

Other than to repair areas that were washed overly aggressively - I've never sanded a deck. The nails/screws will eat sandpaper in short order! Is there a reason you want to sand rather than clean?

To answer your direct question, no you don't need to clean the deck if all the wood is sanded down to raw wood. You would need to remove the sanding dust.

 

I would power wash the deck then sand it lightly to smooth out any fuzz. Sanding alone will take forever and a day, you won't be able to sand around ballusters and such so you might as well power wash it all to get all the nooks and crannies... and no, sanding won't remove everything. Plus sanding paints, stains and finishes is never a good idea because you can inhale hazardous chemicals/substances. Says so on almost every paint can. A little bleach (25% is a good ratio I use) will help brighten the wood which is important if the finish will be transparent or semi transparent.

 

If there is fuzz on a deck after cleaning that is indicative of either too much pressure being used or the cleaner was mixed too strong.

 

I agree, but if the deck is cedar, the sun and rain have already done 50% of that damage and so there is pretty much always fuzz, unless you are washing it with a garden hose.

 

thanks all for the quick responses. The deck is made of pressure treated lumber (unsure of the wood) and has been installed since 2012. I am in Toronto Canada so our winter here is pretty brutal and the deck has never been stained so that's why I am thinking of sanding it to restore the original "new" wood look before staining it with Sansin DEC stain. I will be wearing the proper chemical respirator for painting when sanding the deck with the orbital sander. Its not too big of a job and I should be able to get it done in 3 to 5 hours. Without washing the deck will save me an extra couple of days of drying time though.

As for the nails and screws, I've already driven them beneath the wood surface so hopefully it won't eat my sandpaper So what do you all think? Skip the washing?

 

Since I'm not overly fond of sanding I'd clean the deck first. Using a bleach/water solution or finishing with a wood brightener often brings the new look of the wood back. You could also argue that sanding dirty wood could grind some of the dirt/mildew deeper into the wood.

The PT decking is almost certainly pine. While I haven't painted that far north I've stained numerous PT pine decks that had been neglected for several years without sanding them. Depending on how well they cleaned up would determine what type of stain I'd use. Not having seen your deck I feel relatively confident that you could clean and apply a semi-transparent stain without any sanding.

Not saying you shouldn't sand but that is more work than I'd be willing to do unless absolutely necessary.

 

I'm with Mark, I'd clean the deck.

I bought my house new from the builder with a cedar deck attached. Builder claimed he was going to come back and seal the deck but he never did. By the time I figured out he wasn't coming back, the wood was almost black. I cleaned it with a 50/50 bleach/water solution and it was almost back to new. Cleaned it one more time and the wood was blond. After staining, a couple of my neighbors came by and told me I had gone from the ugliest deck in the neighborhood to the best looking one. I did not sand anything.

 

After a few weeks of preparation – getting all the tools, sander, cleaner, pressure washer and deck stain in place, it is finally action time over the weekend, despite the 40C weather. On Tuesday, I thoroughly cleaned the deck with Scott outdoor deck cleaner, formulated with Oxiclean oxygen bleach that doesn’t wreck grass or flowers. Scrubbed the board and the pressure washed it.

After letting it dry and bake in the hot sun till Friday, I started sanding the board with both a belt sander and palm random orbital sander so ensure every surface on the deck received is sanded to ensure optimal stain absorption. Washing alone won’t do it, sanding with a 60 grit paper is the only way to fully open the wood pores and remove any surface imperfections. It took me 20+ hours to sand the entire deck, including the railing and spindles.

Some of the tighter areas require hand sanding or using an oscillating tool with delta sanding attachment. I was wearing P100 full face mask throughout the sanding process and a shop vac in minimize the dust. After sanding is complete, I double vacuumed the deck and finally begin staining the deck railing and board. The stain I used are Sansin Dec (pine) and Sansin SDF (white).

I’ve done a few weeks of research on deck stain and chose Sansin for the following reasons:

- Sansin specializes in paint and stains for wood for over 25 years
- Very good reputation amongst professional deck builders for very high end properties such as Muskoka cottages
- Special formulation that allows the wood to breathe even when stained, which guarantees the stain from peeling or flaking
- Water based and exhibits zero odor. I can barely smell anything after working with the stain from Saturday evening to Sunday night.
- It is extremely easy to work with and has very fluid property that is almost immediately absorbed into the wood. It is almost like pouring water on a roll of bounty paper towel. The deeper the absorption the better and longer lasting
- Fast dry time, between 6 to 8 hours.
- Cost is 5 Gallon for $369 from Monarch Paints.
- Last but not least, it is a 100% Canadian company and couldn’t be bothered to shop for oil based stains from the States with higher VOC content.

It is backbreaking job, especially the sanding part but at the end of the day it’s all worth it! We’ll see how the stain fares throughout the season!

 

Threads combined for better continuity.

Not a pro but looks good.

 

Thanks! Could've done better to make the stain more even but it was hard to see at night despite wearing a powerful headlamp

 

Looks great the finish looks similar to Flood's CWF
I've never heard of Sansin Dec, hope it holds up well since it's kind of pricey.