tropical wave

Beth, thanks.....used the TimberStrip and the TimberBrite (ox)..... the behr was pretty nasty, and was only on there for about 2 years tops....... between the floor boards was tough to get to but worked out well.... :)fence next spring....also a behr product, yipeeee

awesome score craig........ "drive for show, putt for dough".... :)

Shane, tooooo :cool: I like the stripper dwelling pic... Scott, very patriotic position.....them guys n gals over there can use that sort of help..... very cool gig :)

Beth, so you're saying that if a company started up somewhere else in MD, you guys would have a problem if they named the company "See Dirt Run-Even Faster".............. LOLOL kidding :cool:

beth n rod, looks awesome......hope you didnt have to do the underside??!!! :cool:

word for word is bad....using others project pics are bad.... that being said, there is only so many ways to explain the weathering process or explain what UV rays do to wood etc.....most Ive seen have been somewhat similar, and I think Ive seen the wood drawing with the boards cupping, spliting, mold, gray, etc on every wood site out there.... :)

Rod, excellent post and Im sure that I assume nothing, there is all kinds of crap being sold in all areas of merchandise......Im just shocked that sealer companies are promoting their own bleach products to go along with their sealers.... not that I really give a crap, Im not using any of these products, but to get called after a real hack job by homeowners buying into advertising junk, just thinking too much I guess.... :cool: have a great weekend

do you have any pics of this project ? it would be interesting to see this thing

I went into my local Sherwin Williams dealer today for some for a customer unrelated to wood care, but I wandered into the "professional contractors" area and looked at some stuff.....as Ive heard by quite a few people, Deckscapes isnt all that bad although Ive never used it, anyway, I look at all 3 of their Deckscape line of prep chemicals...... very expensive by the way... Deckscapes Stripper-----$18.99 gallon-----contains sodium hydroxide Deckscapes Brightner----$14.99 gallon-----contains oxalic acid Deckscapes Deck Wash--$12.99 gallon----heres the kicker, sodium hypochlorite, bleach, and sodium chloride, common salt....?? why do all these sealer companies keep using chlorine bleach to kill mildew if it really is bad for the wood? I mean they've been around for a long, long time and I would imagine have tested stuff for years....why wouldnt they just sell percarbs in a much lower concentration if it would be better for the wood and make their product last longer?? just wondering......Im straddling the fence still on this one.

if these plastic decks need to be maintained and stained/sealed like wood, can someone explain the benefits....?? especially for the ridiculous price..... Im confused

NOW that makes sense......excellent point Rod.... I have a bunch of percarb and will continue trying it.....Im gonna check on a few of the jobs that ive used both styles of cleaning and see how they are reacting......

i understand the request if its for the purpose Im about to relay: In my full time gig, there are now a LOT of contractor/home repair scams going on here, and probably all over, where a "contractor" bids a job for say, a roof or an addition, sells the job, collects a deposit and ADIOS AMIGOS......gone like the wind...they then have a criminal report made out, it gets dumped on my desk and Im supposed to go track down a ghost....good luck doesnt make too much sense in this biz, but whatever......maybe if they see some real equipment, they'll feel a bit more secure...

I think everyone does it different and has their own system.... If the floor is big, we break it down in sections and work away from sections still needed to be done (to keep them from getting soaked with water and diluting the stripper when its time to do that section).... for that same reason, (not every time, but in general) we work from bottom up, steps, fascia, floor, then railings etc..... works for us, Im sure others do it different and probably completely opposite :)

Nice job !!! :cool: was the client thrilled?? sorry bout the problems you had with this job, but I sure learned a lot from it, so thanks for sharing !!

We've used bleach to clean neglected gray wood, used a percarb for the same thing.....if its just dirty and mildew, and after trial and error and lengthy conversations with Shane and Pierce as well as others, I like the chlorine/soap mixture just a tad better, thats just us, not trying to say better or worse, just "is what it is"....for cleaning a previously sealed deck to "clean" it, we use a light mix of percarb......and if its a really nasty job, bust out the stripper..... and we always neutralize after, regardless of what we cleaned/stripped with... its literally pennies and it doesnt take too long.....I'll spray it on and while I'm packing the gear up it does the work and just before Im ready to disconnect the water, I rinse it off and away we go.....

Looks good Rick......glad its working out !!!! did you strip off the blackened RS before using the redwood only formula??? dont forget the after pics when its all done :cool:

Rick, Ive done 1 redwood project with RS and when I talked to Pierce and I gave him the details and history of the wood, he said to use regular RS without the special redwood only formula. This thing was old and nasty too, like the pic you posted, that is really dry....... my point being when I sprayed it with RS natural cedar it was pretty damn dark which concerned me, but when it reached it final color in about 10 days it looked good......I stripped it with SH and when I neutralized it, I used Oxalic and I really hit it and let it stay on there for a long time, so when I sealed it, it was BRITE !!! the thread is further down in this forum...... http://www.thegrimescene.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=2238 best bet is to call Pierce.... good luck :cool:

Partridge Family Power Wash

Saw a TV commercial for Lowes, they are selling a new Olympic deck stain that they are giving an EIGHT (8) year guarentee on the sealer........ :(

try looking for air hose reels.....but only use it for the storage and reeling it in....

if your gonna do wood, the stink of sealer, wet tarps and mineral spirits in a van would be reason enough to go with a trailer....

saw the ad again tonight, they were claiming the 8 years as the actor was brushing it on the deck floor..(clever advertising) and it looked like a solid... I think its in a red can and is called maximum or something.... I have to run to the store tomorrow, maybe if I remember I'll check the label.. I gotta call B.S. too.......... you cant get 8 years if you put the damn bark back on the wood !!!!! :)

my next shurflo will be this type......mess with the pressure switch too much and it will get wrecked.....I would like to be able to dial the cone tip to a small opening at times but then the pulsating begins.... but to answer the question, the prior posts have already done that.. :cool:

this redwood porch is 10 years old and has been neglected since it was built and never sealed...its attched to a two flat with rental tenants and it is used as the primary entrance/exit for the people and 4 dogs......it had the nastiest mildew and ground in dirt............cleaned it today, will seal as soon as we can..