RPetry

Ania,
 
Anchorseal works well on ipe' cuts.  Used it when "reskinning" and installing ipe' on my own deck.  Stain will not be effective in preventing checking at end grain cuts.
 
Caveat.  Take your time and be careful when applying Anchorseal.  Make sure you only apply the product on the "cut" of the ipe', nowhere else.

Bobby,
 
Just noticed you are using "Restore a Deck".  AFAIK, this is primarily sodium percarbonate which in solution has a pH of ~ 10 - 10.5.  Thereby caustic.  Follow up with a acid neutralizer and after a bit, a water rinse.

Voted Stripper Cream for those nasty verticals. A bit pricey and laborious to apply, but does work well. Also voted HD-80, although we have not used that product in about
11 years. ACR Products supplies a very similar product, ACR 760, which is similar and works well. For those really snotty finish removals, some ACR ADD-633 along with a surfactant,
a bit of time keeping it moist, works well.

Wrong. If one hires and trusts a contractor service, they have to deliver. Simple business. We have never not been paid for exterior wood services in 13 years. This is not rocket science, just knowing what has to be done and who to do it.
You make a mistake, you fix it. Just like any other good service business.

Tom and Barbra Vogel of ACR Products started this early Spring seminar 12 or maybe 13 yrs. ago. For contractors. A get together, pig roast, pep talk, and education in March to get contractors set and excited about the coming season.
Jack Kramer was involved early on. Wonderful presenter and knowlegible in the business. Last year, Thad and the PWRA got involved. The best industry event I have attended.

ACR is a great find for new or old salts in the PW business. We're fortunate to have Tom, Barbara, and crew local to keep us in business. Been dependent on ACR for now 14 yrs. for nearly all of our chemicals, stains, equipment, and repairs.

ACR is a great find for new or old salts in the PW business. We're fortunate to have Tom, Barbara, and crew local to keep us in business. Been dependent on ACR for now 14 yrs. for nearly all of our chemicals, stains, equipment, and repairs.

^^^ Now that is cruel. Good for you!

Phila. Phillies when very young.  Grandfather and father took me to some games down to the old Connie Mack stadium.  Saw Sandy Kofacx pitch a no hitter.  In the early '80's was at the Spectrum for every home playoff an finals game of the '76 Sixers.  Moses Malone was so dominating, Kareem was just beat up.
 
Been a fan of the Eagles mostly, with a long time interest in the Raiders of the NFL.  Suffering for many moons.

Tommy,
 
You are located in Phillipsburg, NJ?  Holy smokes, you could almost spit to ACR Products.  Thought I had it good here in Ringoes.
 
I've been doing business with ACR for 13+ years now.  They have been key to keeping me in business.  We're not true pressure washers, but use a fair amount of specialized equipment, various chems, exterior wood stain, etc.  Tom and crew have fabricated custom equipment, maintained PW's, and have just been a terrific partner.  They carry more parts than I had any idea existed.  Highly reccomended.
 
ACR carries some used, but tested and maintained PW's.  I would suggest visiting and talking with them first.

Beth,
 
My nephew and I cut off all the branches, sectioned the trunk, and hauled it to our road in front by dragging with my pickup and chain.  Rented a backhoe, dug out the stump and sectioned it, and deposited it in the strip of woods bordering the sides of our property. 
 
A local small nursery chipped it all up and took it away.  The next spring we purchased 15 yds. of mulch from them.  Bet part of the load was that tree.  Got us coming and going!

Big house.  Lots of windows and dormers.
 
It is a shame to put a solid stain on decent lap cedar.  I'd charge an extra 20% on labor just to put up with the sacrilege.

Big house.  Lots of windows and dormers.
 
It is a shame to put a solid stain on decent lap cedar.  I'd charge an extra 20% on labor just to put up with the sacrilege.

Just a couple of pics of a project I am working on, this was some really old shakes that needed two fat coats of amber. you can see on the front where i left off on the second coat.

Guy is the real deal.  Had the pleasure of sitting down with a bunch of friends and getting to know him over drinks.  Very interesting, knowledgeable, astute PW'er and just all around nice, engaging person.
 
Next year will even be better!

Guy is the real deal.  Had the pleasure of sitting down with a bunch of friends and getting to know him over drinks.  Very interesting, knowledgeable, astute PW'er and just all around nice, engaging person.
 
Next year will even be better!

Just got back from the D.C. PWRA convention.  Thad and crew put on an outstanding 2 day event.   Just a ton of contractors and high quality vendors.  And a chance to catch up with friends in the business.

Wood gals and guys make magic.  That is why we do it.

John,
 
I'll be there.  At the moment, Diamond Jim is also coming down with me.  In fact, he is borrowing that scaffold unit I purchased from you years ago.  It has been very handy in restoring some homes.

Tom,
 
If you own, know someone, or can rent a planer that will handle the board dimensions, do it.  Fast, easy, and the wood will be "brand new".

Mike,
 
In all honesty, you may be dealing with one, or two idiots.
 
I'm fairly certain I'd pass on the job, unless ma and pa take some miracle common sense drug.
 
"Experts", my foot.  The only experts are those that do this this work competently for a living.  People make mistakes, they don't know and believe in some silly marketing scheme.  There is an old quote, "There's a sucker born every minute" attributed to P. T. Barnum.  Probably not a quote from him, but a critic.  After all, he made a small fortune from little of value and would never disparage his audience, and others called him out on it.
 
Look, if a customer does not want to service ipe' every year, strip it and be done with it.  A cleaning would be good once a year for appearance.  Otherwise, no stain.  Ipe' is near bulletproof.  It does not need stain protection.
 
Good luck.  There are better potential customers out there.

Hi John,
Our first working day this year was April 21st. If I recall correctly, our best starting day in 13 yrs. was March 20th! Very late start this year, but business is quite good.
But then again, we are not pressure washers, only wood guys.

Mike,
No shame in that. Just starting out in wood restoration, most of us have taken more than one little no profit, or evem loss jobs. Comes with the learning territory.
One trick is to carry a few strippers when doing estimates. 1st, it is easy to tell if you have a potential nightmare. 2nd, it becomes easy to know you can do the job with the knowledge and chems you know. 3rd if you are good with mostly clueless competitors, you can get well paid.
Wood restoration is a lot different from house washing or concrete cleaning. In the right customer market, not price but quality oriented, it can be a good seasonal business. Get good and experienced, especially on difficult jobs, and you can do well.
Hard part is you have to charge for the experience, knowledge, and effort. Takes a while. But you will become more than worth it.

John,
Ouch. My prayers to both you and your family. Hope all will be well.
Rob is nowhere as good looking as your wife. A very poor substitute, but he is a very nice guy. See 'ya there!

PWRA-- Bam!! Cya "Stinky" guys and Beth there..