Beth n Rod

We do a bit of close proximity work, and we always rinse the areas near where we are working. Dilution help quite a bit. Beth

Hey Mean Papa, At some point share some of your travel stories so the rest of us can live vicariously through you. Some of the pics you have posted before were a blast...I remember some from cookingout, and some blurry ones of beer.... In any case, take care and don't be too much of a stranger. Even infrequent contributions here are highly valued! Beth :sunshine: :island:

Do they offer permits and meters so they can charge you for the water? It's not free. I would be surprised if you can't access it with a permit and meter, since all construction companies need water, and when construction is under way, there is no water until they are ready to plumb. Beth

HD-80, used with Boost may work well here. You might want to call Pete at SunBrite and see what he suggests as well. If this is laytex, EFC-38 will not work. You might be best off with a gel you leave overnight. Again, call Pete. Beth :groovy3:

We have also had the same experience that Tony and Celeste & Roger have had. :cup:Now that I have some coffee in me, I'll elaborate a little more. :cup: We have found that the dwell time when the two products are mixed at the same ratio, is longer for F-18 what it is for HD-80. We have found that you need a larger amount of F-18 to do what HD-80 will do. We have found that HD-80 darkens the wood more when working. This means it is more alkaline. Not necessarily good or bad, just what it is. We have found you can neutralize and brighten both equally well, although it is easier to neut/lighten a less alkaline deck. We have used the F-18 on PT lumber, Ipe, and on log homes. On a log home we did, we had to go back and restrip an area where we used F-18, with HD-80 to remove the Defy product the F-18 would not take off at the same ratio. We mixed both at about 6 oz to the gallon. On an Ipe deck we stripped, it worked fine, but then Ipe is very hard and tight, and there is not alot of product penetration. The product stripped was Olympic Maximum, 2 coats, age 6 months in that case. The F-18 area was easier to brighten thatnt he HD-80 side on the Ipe deck. When we were selling products, I was hesitant to speak out about these. Now that we are selling nothing, I feel we can share our findings, as contractors who do the same work that you all do. These are our results. We have said it before, and will say it again. The key to making any product work, regardless of what you choose ( assuming the products is capable) is the dwell time, which means patience. I don't care how strong you mix something. If it is too strong, it will fuzz the wood more. They key, is knowing how strong to mix for your job, and how long to dwell. This takes experience, and practice. You won't get it straight out of the gate without some coaching. We have used HD-80 to strip at as low as 2 oz per gallon, had no fuzzing, and a great result, all due to our working with it for years now and knowing how to use it when. Get to know your tools. Get some pallets, apply various stains and sealers, let it cure a while, and practice. Try differnet products and see which one works best for you. We all work a little bit differently. We do use both products. We welcome folks to call if they need field support, just as we have done in the past. We are glad to answer questions. Beth :cup:

Very sharp work! Beth

We have not done anything to these decks yet, they are two years old with no maintenance in between in these photos. But, the maintenance on these is easy. Percarbonate wash and neutralize. Beth

Oil on oil, I agree. Paraffinic, followed by an alkyd or a tung.... I would be cautious about following a paraffinic with an acrylic. I don't care for acrylic products much. I would like even less to have a stripping nightmare on my hands. I'm curious about which "film formers" folks have tried as a second step? Beth :cup: :groovy:

It's really important to have the respect you deserve from the customer, and to have them see you as the professional and to trust what you have to say. If you have this, then these situations are a non-issue. If you don't have it, and believe me sometimes there is no getting it with some people, then you are better off avoiding it. I got confirmationa few minutes ago from a potential client via email. He's signing the contract, but has already said he is not trimming back all the shrubs around the deck. Imagine his surprise when we refuse the work. The shrubs are growing through the rail system, on 75% of the deck. It's a hassle waiting to happen. Don't need the hassle. Beth

Hope this heads up I found is helpful to those who use TWP. Beth :cup: :groovy3: :sunshine:

HD-80 will take it. But the bigger question is, do you need this job? Not do you want it, but do you need it? Some jobs you are better off passing on. This seems like one of those jobs to me. Beth

Here are a couple of decks done with Wood Tux Wet, Warm Honey Gold, where the PT lumber was pretty dry and was between 7 and 10 years old. Beth

This looks too good to pass up! Beth

Ryan, I'll go crawl under our deck and snap a pic of the supports. ( we have a tub)

Thanks :groovy3: I'm attaching a couple from today as well. Both are maintenance coats, one in Warm Honey Gold and one in California Redwood. The Warm Honey Gold was applied to a PT lumber deck that was severely neglected before we began servicing it two years ago. It's 15 years old. The other, is a redwood deck with the California Redwood color applied. Beth :dancing:

Combination spraying and back padding. Occasionally I also brush, and I just love those little spray bottles ( like window cleaner bottles) for detail work. Beth

Just a reminder..... When stripping there are some things a SH based product may remove, and some things that it won't. This is why knowing what you are going to strip helps so much. Rule of thumb, if it is an oil, including tung, linseed, paraffinic, alkyd, etc. a SH stripper should work. If it is a Polymer resin, it forms a film, but will still melt like an oil, dwell longer, mix stronger. If it is an acrylic or latex - May or may not work ( depends on age and number of coats), test and dwell long, this will turn rubbery, not melt. Hope this all helps. :cup: Beth

Actually Ken, you have the answer. Stronger, dwell longer. At 8 oz I have always understood you may have to go as high as 40 minutes depending on the finish. I think Tony pretty much nailed it. Beth

Excellent job! Patience is a virtue! Beth :dancing:

Here's a shot of a deck before we washed it today. This deck was done 10 months ago by another company. The customer said at 4 months he was disgusted, by 7 months he called us. The durability was just not There. This was not a clear either. Beth:lgbugeyes

Did he have a history? That's my question. Beth

This is a very good one.... Beth

We've had it rain on us 30 minutes after applying WT and have had no ill effects. However in those cases we would err on the side of caution and do another light application to the horizontals. Wood Tux wet does work on wood that has a higher WMC, but it doesn't mean you can apply it in the rain. Beth

They are pulling your leg. Don't do it. Beth

We can tell you that after two years, the Wood Tux holds up very well, and maintenance coats look very sharp. When properly applied, it doesn't form a film at all. If over applied, like MANY things, that is possible. With a proper application there is no film present. Beth