patrick k

Hello, Attached is a before and after (prep) of a mahogany deck I am working on. This deck has never had a finish and is about 5 years old. Last summer, homeowners hired someone to clean the deck, all the person really did was bleach it and never came back to clean. It looked like the deck was painted in bleach so removing has not been to fun. I cleaned the deck and brightened with EFC and Citrilac. I did not acheive the results I wanted so I sanded the deck. Any advice on good mahogany stains to use? The Sikkens SRD looks good on a sample board we have, Benjaman Moore Mahogany (Natural) is also an option. Homeowner did not like the look of any of the Wood Tux Products. Thanks, Patrick

Beth, I cannot seem to locate where you can add a signature? Do I have access to the control panel? I looked up the process in the FAQ but cannot seem to figure this out! Lyle, thanks for the reply. I was hoping to avoid the sanding but it seems like it may be the best way to go. Attached is a pic from the stairs (closest one I took). PS... any suggestion on that rust stain? Deck is only 8 years old on a fantasic house.

Speaking of bleach... I have a question. I got called to look at a mahogany deck that is gray but the HO is telling me it is gray from a lady they recently hired to clean their deck with bleach. I guess this lady cleaned it with bleach and never showed up again. The HO said the mahogany was in pretty good shape prior to the bleaching but now they want their deck back to (or as close to) it's orginal color. The deck has never had a finish on it. I am going to approach this with EFC-38 and then brignten it with Citralic. I was curious if anyone had ever seen something like this before, do you think my approach is the way to go? I am basically going to approach this like a weathered deck but I am curious to see what type of damage this lady may have put on this deck. Thanks in advance for your feedback... Patrick

Hi Beth, is the hotel out of rooms under the convention code?

UCONN fell to low in the poles this week, they are #2 not #4. Big East tourney should be interesting, I wish BC was still in the league.

Thanks Beth, I am looking forward to it! I am going to sign up for the two-day wood seminar. I have been on and off the last three years but this year I am looking to bring on a lot more work. I also have family in Dallas so this just works out great for me! I am looking forward to meeting you both, try to soak up some of that knowledge!

I will be attending the ***** all the way from Boston!

Hi Beth/Rod, In the post above you mentioned you strip paint. I bought a house and the deck was painted... Now it just looks ugly and I tried some HD-80 on there, did not really do much to it. This paint job is ugly... any suggestions on how I could strip this off? thanks, Patrick

Boston, MA here. It is wicked cold......

Hi Jon, what product did you use to seal?

Hi everyone, I am in my second year and for the first time I put an add in local yellow books. I received a call from a condo complex in which they would like me to power wash and seal 41 decks, all 10X12 with about 18 linier feet in railings/spindles. These decks each have one privacy wall which consists of 24 boards 5'x5.5". The decks are all ground level and are all 1 - 2 years old in good shape, pressure treated wood. I am going to submit my bid today but would like some help on my pricing. I will be using the EFC-38 on the floors, 120 square feet. They do want all of the staining done by brush, no spraying. What I am projecting is: 41 decks at $240 a peice, and 41 divider walls at $90 a peice which gives me a grand total of $13,530 for the 41 decks/walls. Does this pricing seem right, to high? to low? This is by far my biggest bid and could really help my company. Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks, Patrick.

Thanks to everyone for their replies. Tony, I was debating going with a test deck to show them the work that we do and explain the process in detail, I think I will make that offer and if I get the bid I will estimate on 40 decks. I will lower the overall price to maybe something that brings me down below 10k. The decks I can definatley do at the $1.80 sq ft, it's the privacy walls and the amount of spindles that are really adding up. Again, thanks for all the advice, I'll keep you posted as to whether I get it or not... Thanks Pat

Step right up with the advice!! Or you can PM me? I am just at a lost right now, I see a lot of people viewing but not a lot of responses... All feedback is greatly appreciated.

Hi Beth, I tried logging into the chat last week but my username and password were unsuccesful. Do you need a separate profile or anything to enter the chat room? Thanks, Patrick

Hi everyone, I have my first HD-80 job coming up this week. To this point I have used just the EFC-38 with the Citrilac Acid. I have this vision of accidently getting a little overspray on a window or some siding and the window melting or the siding catching on fire! Now of course I am exaterating here but seriously what are the steps you all take when stripping to cover up surrounding areas? I plan on covering every possible area around me with clrear plastic but any other tips? I just hope it does not take me 2 hours just to set up. Thanks, Pat PS When all you pro's were in Vegas, anyone take the over on how many days it would rain this year? This weather is crazy, it rains at least everyother day here in MA and I am not joking....

Hello, I cleaned a deck yesterday with EFC-38 but after the final rinse I think I should have used HD-80. I thought the deck was just old and gray but there must have been some existing finish on there. I would say the EFC-38 took off about 90% which was impressive. With the existing 10% of sealer should I sand this, or because it is faded could I just stain over it? I am doing this deck pretty cheap as I know the person so I do not want to spend to much time here. I will be finishing with Wood Tux Western Cedar. The existing sealer is faded and shows up in different areas, the home owner was impressed but I know there must be some existing sealer there. Thank you, Patrick

Hi Tony. Where can you find the gutter zap? Any websites you can recomend? Thanks, Patrick

Hi Everyone, I have been on this board and Greg's for about 5 months now, in conversation I feel like a pro, in reality on the job I realize still very new! I have a few questions I am sure seem very basic to many of you. First, I am going to be cleaning a deck with EFC-38 and then brightning with the citric acid. My plan was to pump spray the EFC, pressure wash, pump spray the acid, pressure wash. Is that the correct plan of attack? Also, in a few decks I have done in the past I have had a few lap marks, any advice on those? I am starting out part time, I work full time in the financial services but looking to get outand work for myself. The pressure washer I have is a Honda engine, 2500 PSI, 2.5 GPM. I realize this is not the best one to have as the GPM is pretty low but it was in the budget as I bought it at Home Depot. As I say in all my posts and I'll say it again, thank you to everyone for all of your in put. I spend so much time on these boards my girlfriend periodacly checks up on me to make sure I am not looking at anything dirty on the web!! Thanks to everyone and Beth I am looking forward to using your products this week, the pic's of the wood tux look awesome, I am from Boston so I should say, the pic's of the wood tux look wicked awesome!! Thank you.