dperrin

So you dont spray the deck? Do you roll or brush it? Where do you get the pads for backbrushing from? Thanks.

Well, I have a couple of decks under my belt for '07. Completed them with brush and rollers. Wow, thats back breaking work! After having unsatisfactory results from the roller on the deck floor and to many hrs painting lattice I decided this year I would move on to some type of spray applicator. I recently got a Wagner HVLP sprayer from Ken. Not bad for $100 and, oh so much faster. We got this as a test to see if a sprayer would really be faster and more convienient than a brush....I'm sold. But of course this will not do for mass production. We hope to do many more decks this coming year. For one, you have to keep filing up the cup, thats a hassle. The other big concern was the amount of mist in the air (is this what people mean by overspray or is over spray the amount of product that passes through the spindles?). I mean the mist was like a fog. Hard to breath until a breeze would come through every now and then. More importantly the stuff would settle on stuff near by including the house siding and other parts of the deck not ready to be stained yet. We learned real fast how important masking and tarps are when using a sprayer. I was hoping you guys could suggest a sprayer that would best fit my needs. I will be using it mainly for staining decks. I will be using either WTW or RS stain for the most part. My first thought was getting a deckster from Sunbright. I believe this can be used to apply the stripper as well? If so that would be great. I am planning on stopping in at the store soon but wanted to be armed with real information before the sales folks start talking me into stuff I dont need. This site has been a great source of info for us over the last year. Thanks!

So it sounds like the Deckster is an hvlp sprayer. I sure would like to tag along with someone who uses one of these. Can't see buying something this expensive without some hands on. If anyone is in the Atlanta area and has a deck to stain let me know.

Are they basically the same just made by a different manufacter? Also, I have become very confused on the type of sprayers. Are these HVLP and is hvlp the same as airless? I assume the one from Ken is not airless as it attaches to a unit using air to force out the stain (I think this is why there is so much mist and I probably dont want this type again)???

Never heard of anyone use a mit for the spindles. Does that save a lot on the stain in comparison to spraying. Where can you get them? Does it get on your hands? Also, did you have to sand all the boards?

As temperatures begin to fall I was wondering how cold can it get before I might have issues restoring decks? I would be using HD80 and WTW. I am in Atlanta so a good cold day in Feb would be around 45 during the day and in the low 20s at night. What issues might I run into if I were to work in temps just above no-go.

We have only done a few decks so far. As we do not have a great deal of experience we are hoping you guys can give us some desperately needed help. Working a medium size PT deck without prior stain. Applying a redwood color water base stain. 1. Right now we brush and roll the stain. How do you recommend getting in-between the floor planks. When I came back after applying to the floor you can see the light colored unstained wood where the planks have separated (the gaps). 2. The roller can not make it all the way to the edge of the deck as it hits the spindles. So to complete the coverage I used a brush. You can see a line in many places where the roller stopped and the brush was used. How best to blend the two so the line is less apparent. (Sand?) 3. Noticed that some deck boards were darker (more red) than the board right next to it. I guess its just the way each board absorbed the stain. Although I did go over the wood several times with the roller to get a good thick application. IS IT OK TO APPLY A COAT WITH A BRUSH AFTER THE INITIAL STAIN IS DRY. I am thinking I might apply a light application on selected floor boards that came out real light. Lastly, what does the term 'back brush' mean. I hear people say that after spraying they back brush. Is this just the act of using a brush to smooth out the stain that was sprayed? Do you have to do this when using an airless sprayer? We are considering a sprayer for next years decks. Seems like having to brush after spraying is more work than just brushing and rolling. Thanks for any advice you can give!

I certainly understand the pump up will have different spray volumes every step of the way. I certainly do not want to be using it for very long. But while I am stuck with it, I want to be sure I understand how to make the best use of it. Please verify that I have this right.....Even if the flow is different and uneaven, I will be able to make everything right once I back brush it....correct?

Brother you are so right. It definitely over applied the product. No doubt this is a big factor in my lines and variations in the stain color. And I can see how spraying is superior in many respects not the least of them, getting between the boards. I guess I will just have to go back and spend some time on the deck going over the cracks that need stain. Hopefully the owner will not be overly picky. I know I am spending too much time on the staining process but I will get a good sprayer by next spring. In the mean time is there any reason why a pump up sprayer would not work in conjunction with a pad for back brushing?

I guess they call that pad painter 'Floor and Deck Speed Mop' ?? Do you dip that and apply it or do you spray the stain and then brush with the 18'' pad? I think the reason for most of my grief is coming from the fact that I did not back brush this time as you mentioned above. I think I will move to (at least) a pump up sprayer and a large pad for brushing the stain so as not to leave a heavy or blotchy coat on the wood. Should also relieve the issue with lines and such.

Yes, we are looking into a sprayer for use in the near future. Just not sure if we should go the airless way or a Deckster type. At this point we are doing it the cheap way while we pay down some of our startup costs. I look forward to the ease of spraying over rolling, although I would imagine the cleanup can be a bit more involved. I may try to use a pump up sprayer and back brush until then. Hopfully that will speed up the process a little. Not to mention that this project has shown that rolling (at least without some brushing, does not give very good results). As to the stain we used...I have been using Flood UV5 the last couple of times but the customer did not like the tone of the redwood so at the last minute I bought some Behr stain from Home Depot. I found the Flood much more forgiving on the application. Plus the colors were clear to natural, I guess the more colorful the stain the more tone changes and lines will appear.

Would it be possible to either call someone so I could discuss when various saftey items are required or is there an easy to understand document or thread I could read. I'm fairly new to the biz and mostly do houses and decks. I have a deck coming up soon and I will be using hd-80 so I am very interested in the subject. Thanks David Atlanta Pressure Washing