Beth n Rod

Yeah, you could go with the EFC-38 at about 8-10 oz per gallon (12 if it is worse than I think), or something like HD-80 at about 4 oz per gallon, 6 if it's worse than I imagine. When things fail ( we see it most with Behr clear, but have seen it in other products too) you get a uniformley black deck that just goes from bad to worse, and we have seen it hit as soon as about 3 months after the initial application. I always differentiate that from the light mildew growth you will get after a year or so in just your splash zone on your verticals. (that's just regular growth not product failure) Sometimes these are tougher strip jobs than they look to be. Do a test spot - if it doesn't clean too easily you probably have a failed sealer over dirt rather than a failed sealer that went on clean wood. Big difference... Beth

Adrian.... Do you know if at any time the homeowner has perhaps put Behr clear on there? We have seen severe mildew infestation like you described when Behr clear has been on the wood. If you have any doubts, or if the current owner bought it in that condition and doesn't know, then I would suggest stripping the wood or perhaps I should say using something that will clean but will strip if you have a clear on there. Pete from Sunbrite sells EFC-38, and if you don't want to strip it, then you might speak to him about the EFC-38. We have seen many, many decks like this, and what you don't want to have happen, is to get there and have a clear that has failed, but the owner didn't wash and sealed over the dirt. This is why in particular I suggest the EFC-38... it's a percarb, so will do what a "bleach" would do, in terms of killing mildew, but will remove any clear barrier you may have and not see. Good luck, let us know how it goes. Beth

Surface being cleaned is made of....? (got the window sashes got the roof) Beth

We've used the 60' articulating boom, but not one as big as what you describe. Pics? Beth

My sister told me about this the other day but didn't have a link to share. Thanks for the link! Beth

Very sharp! We have had results like that with F-10 as well. Bob's percarb is great for gentle maintenance such as this. Now go sell the seal job! Tell them the wood will be grey in a year. Tell them if you seal it with a semi-transparent, they will get at least 3 years out of it. Beth :groovy3:

Rick, I have a couple of questions... What did you do before you put the aussie down? How old was the wood and how weathered before you put the aussie down? Is the owner willing to just have a wash from time to time, since it is a high traffic area, and gets less sun (if that is the case) rather than putting on a finish? Persoanlly, we always let the owner know it will be a short lived product due to the woods density. Lots of folks want it done for entertaining or general life use for a certain period of time (parties and summer events) and know it will not hold all that well. None of the sealers out there will last on hardwood like they will on softwood. Lack of porosity. Increased density. If it were me I would say do a light strip on it. Give me a shout on my cell if you like. Also you may want to call Everett, he sees quite a bit of Mahogany up that way, more than we see here. He may have other insight. Beth

Personally, if the deck was old and abused I would suggest a darker semi-transparent, but not a solid, if enough solid was removed to not have it show thru... do you have a shot of the floor? If you have solid inthe cracks, and it won't come out, I would suggest going back with a semi-solid or a solid but not a semi-transparent. Even if you sand the entire floor, it is possible to not get all the solid off, if it goes deep enough into the cracks. Normally on an old dry, abused deck I would suggest a darker semi-transparent, if a solid has never been on the wood. But when a solid has been there it is hard to go back.... Beth

I meant Jon Fife. :cool: And we are all just having fun... I may not agree with his point of view, but its his view and he's entitled to it. I understand he's selling his house to Walmart? (kidding) Beth :cup: :sunshine:

Does anyone think Jon F. is perhaps fueling the post to keep it going? Not saying he is... I don't know. But I do wonder.... Beth P.S. Glad to see everyone having fun in this thread! :groovy:

New PT lumber deck needs to be cleaned and sealed. Jeanette Parks 12677 Crabtree Falls Dr. Bristow, VA 20136 571-338-6761

Try increasing the strength of the F-18, and let it dwell longer on just those areas. You might also mix the F-18 with warm water rather than cold. Other than that, at times you do have to do some sanding regardless of what you strip with. If you have pics, post them...in case they can shed a little more light. Beth p.s. 60 grit sounds about right.

See advice in this thread. http://www.thegrimescene.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4038 Don't feel badly that you didn't catch the shiny spots before you left. Sometimes you have to look at the deck from different angles and sides to catch them. The rest of the deck may go from wet looking to more satin like or dull, and the shiny spots will not. Beth

After you have encountered this you will learn to spot it as it is about to happen. Keep an eye out for how well your boards are absorbing product. You are looking for a board that doesn't appear to be as absorbent, or a board that is only partially absorbent. Your board that seems slow to absorb, is the one to watch. Hope this helps. You can keep mineral spirits or xylene on hand and put a little on a rag and rub the shots out if it is still tacky. If not still tacky the shinnies are more difficult/time consuming to remove. Beth

No one should be able to take the land of a US Citizen from them. Owning land and a home is one of the biggest American dreams we have. It's just wrong. Beth

Got a photo? What PSI did you use? What chems did you use? How close to the wood were you? What kind of wood was it? How old was the deck? Beth

Sounds like Wilbond is a good thing to keep on hand. Beth

Very cool pic! Neat! Beth

Will click, and read. Beth

All the talk about Ipe lately has made me wonder which hardwoods some of our members have worked with? Which did you like best? Beth

I agree with you Jon. We have seen the same thing. I have seen PT decks that were 20 years old and look a year or two tops, and 5 year old decks that look 15! I have seen Ipe that I have even questioned, but it is far more rare...I have seen an Ipe board split and warp. I have seen it splinter. It's a minority, but a concern as well. Around here some communities the builders took shortcuts on the "two tone" decks that were installed. They built the floors from PT, and the rails from plain (not pt) pine, then painted them while damp and the owners are watching them rot - and these are 2nd story balconies with little kids that hang on the rails and things like that. Makes me sick, and maked me worry. Had a builder try to pawn off their rotten wood on us, saying it was because we cleaned and sealed the floor that their rails rotted. NOT! The rails were out of warranty and the builder refused to do anything about it. We felt horrible for the owner, and helped them go after the builder. Meanwhile she had to keep her toddlers away from the rails. Beth

Personally, I would rather see an alkyd film build up, than deal with a failed polymer resin any day (like Cetol DEK). Your alkyd will strip more easily if need be...and that is just one point in it's favor among others. Around here a few years ago, everyone and thier brother was building with cedar. Then, everyone started building with Trex. Now it's the new PT lumber and the Ipe, and the cedar mostly shows up on rails, but rarely on a floor on a new deck. Some of the builders I have spoken to seem to have been burned by the cedar and are moving away from that. When we built our deck last year we spoke to about 5 builder, and they all pushed hard away from cedar. The majority didn't even like it on the rails. Very interesting.... Beth

We did a log home last year that was kiln dried PT pine logs. Beth

That's close to the size (a little bigger I think) of the one we just finished. Was about 2K s.f. of wood, not including supports and crossbeams. That, is the monster party deck! Nice layout. Don't suppose you have any real pics? Beth

Cedar can be a huge pain in the butt! I agree! Beth