byrdiblack

Hi everyone! I have a 1200-sq-ft, 2-story deck behind my building in Chicago. I noticed the wood was greening earlier in the summer (it hadn't been sealed for 7 years), and purchased TWP 1500 in a dark color, after speaking with OPWDecks/The Sealer Store (they suggested it would hide any flaws and look great, i think it ended up being too dark and muddy looking). After waiting months for a good weather window to power wash, let dry 48 hours, and then stain the deck, I thought I had a clear week but ended up with rain 6 hours after application. What's more, I think it was applied incorrectly. The power washing went great, and Restore-A-Deck Cleaner was used to remove most of the dirt and green. They applied the stain on the top deck and stairs, it seeped through the cracks and looks horrible on the underneath deck boards, and there are drip spots all over the unstained portions of the lower deck (see photos), but they said it was half done and planned to come back the next day to finish the bottom deck. Then it rained. I now have water spots, greasy tacky stairs, and everything looks muddy, uneven and horrible. PHOTOS here: https://picasaweb.google.com/107996769051250485397/Deck?authuser=0&feat=directlink I hated the color, but not as much as I hate the ugliness of a half stained ruined deck:( So now what should I do? I'm thinking of re-power washing this weekend to strip all of the ruined stain, and then letting the unstained deck sit through the winter until I have the muster to restart this project in the spring. After all, the weather in Chicago is nothing but rain and cold now, and soon enough snow! But I just can't leave it the way it is, half done and ruined. Any ideas would be appreciated! Thanks so much! I'm having so many panic attacks about getting this fixed before the winter!

Thanks everyone. Looks like I'm going to go with Roof-to-Deck Restoration, here in Chicago. They have stellar Angieslist ratings and though I will be paying for this one for a while, I'm determined to get this done right. Thanks so much for your pro opinions. I'll keep you updated with new photos when it's complete.

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately I dont. It was a company hired by my mom at the time and she lost the name:( I know it was a beige/tan color that was a little more opaque, maybe an acrylic mix. I feel terrible because the deck supplies store had me believe that with 7 years, it would have been worn off and just needed to be power washed. That's what I figure. Now my question is, how can I hire professionals to come in and fix the damage with the bad weather? There's nothing but rain in the forecast and the temperature is dipping below 40 degrees often.