cjansa

As promised here are some of the pics I took during the cleaning process. Hope they retain the detail after resizing. CJ

Well here it is. And none too soon with the first snowfall here already! I'm a bit disappointed with the discoloration. Next year we will have to look into cob blasting and do this job right.

Hmmm....the lack of response can't be good. I did my best with what I had, good thing I don't do this for a living or I'd starve. I have a deck situation that needs to be dealt with next spring that I would like some advice on. That is if I haven't exceeded my quota of neglegent homeowner questions. :)

Ok, I just ordered the Makita polisher and a couple 6" square Osborn brushes on the suggestion of Jon Fife. The folks at www.aloghomestore.com were very helpful and assure me they will be here Thursday so I can head back up and finish this job properly. I will post some pics of the finished product next week. Hopefully you all won't be so shy with feedback once it's all done : )

Unfortunatley gutters are not an option. The snow and ice will just rip them off while the house sits vacant over the winter. The roof line was a very poor design for the decks and stairs. The rot you mention is being repaired on another of the decks in the back of the house. I have a feeling this is going to be a never ending problem.

Testing testing......is this thing on? Did I screw it up so bad no one wants to comment?

Finally, here is a view from the underside that shows the valley of the roofline which is causing all the trouble. The 3rd pic here is a closeup of the raised grain. How will this look if I stain over the top of it. Time is not on my side here, it never got above 45 deg this weekend and I'm afraid I will run out of time if I have to de-fur the whole thing.

This log on the house gets a lot of splash off the staircase.

From underneath.............

The other side........

My parents have a very large, steep (20 step) log staircase off the front of thier log home. It is 8 years old and has never had ANYTHING done to it (shame on them huh!) The treads are half logs and the flat surfaces were solid black before I started pressure washing them this afternoon using a 6 hp 2.2 gpm p/w. I wish I had found this site before I started. I didn't use any cleaners at all, I just went to town with the washer for 4 hours. I assume the black slimey stuff is mildew yes? It came off surprisingly well but there is a lot more to do and I am hoping for some advice on how to proceed. The house is North facing and spends most of it time in the shade. There was green moss in several spots that cleaned off very easily. There are black drip stains that run down each tread around the rounded side of the logs. I had to get very close to the wood to get the stains off and It left marks where I took the wood down too far. I'm hoping that sanding will remove them as well as the furry appearance. This staircase is 20 ft from the ground at the top step with 14" dia posts, and 8" rails. All have this nasty black grime on the top surface. The work I did today made a marked improvement but I have a lot more to do and I want to do it right. I will be heading back to the house this weekend and need your collective expertise to help me with a shopping list, surface prep guidlines, and pressure washing tips and techniques. (sheesh I don't want much huh?) I have much more to ask you folks but I think we should eat this elephant one bite at a time. This house is huge (6,000 sf - 4 stories tall) in a very remote location in Wyoming accessable only by snow machine in the winter. We have tried to find professional help but no one can do it right away and we will be closing the house at the end of October. The staircase is covered in snow all winter so it is very important that we get it cleaned and protected before the snow flies. Whew, that was a mouthful! Sorry to ramble but I'm desperate to find some help. My parents spent my inhieritance on this log beast and I have to protect my investment. LOL I look forward to your replies and will try and post some photos later today. Cindy

More photo's will be on the way this weekend. I will be bringing my laptop with me so I can send them from the house. With only having dial up for a connection it may take all night but I'll do my best!

Beth you wern't kidding about some excellent wood care folks hanging out here. I want to give a shout out to Mr Jon Fife from Heartland Log Home services. Not only has he been a wealth of information regarding the staircase, but he is actually going to open a facility just 40 miles from the house!! We will certainly be recommending him to the more than 100 log home owners on the ranch!! Did I really just say "give a shout out" ?? I've been hanging out with my teenager too much! lol

Thank you very much David. Inspite of all the work it requires there is no where else on earth I would rather be. I have been searching the posts and you are right, there are some very knowledgeable folks here. And the site itself is much more user friendly than many forums I belong to.

I'd like to run something by you guys and see what you think. I have to get this staircase done fast before the weather turns and I thought I might do the following: Use a 1:3 mixture of household bleach and work from the bottom up 5 steps + railings at a time. Allow to sit for 15 min or so, scrub then rinse with p/w. If we get lucky and have good weather for 2 more weekends I can spot sand when dry and finish with the SuperDeck Log Home Finish we have on hand. The whole house was done with that product 8 years ago and has held up remarkably well except for the areas that get constant runoff from the roof namely this pesky staircase and the other two decks off the side and back. Am I on the right track with this plan? Or is there some better way to remove the mildew and brighten the greying with a product I can find redily at a homecenter? Or should I just leave it alone until next year when we have the time to do it right? Sorry to be a bother but I sure would like to get this done. Cindy

When my Dad designed it he failed to mention how much maintenance it would require and that we would need 4 levels of scaffolding just to wash the darn windows! I just pray we never have to do anything on the roof. YIKES! Cindy

Well I ran away from that job so fast last night I forgot my camera up there! Here is a pic from better days when the staircase was in its prime. Sorry its so far away but I have to back all the way down the driveway to get the whole house in the frame. I will have all the pics I took this weekend on Sunday when I get home.Cindy