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Hi All, Time has come again and now I really want to get the crappy solid stain off the floor of my deck. Three years ago, I took the advice of this forum and put the Cabot's primer and solid stain on my deck. It held up ok, but now, because of signifcant peeling, I want to remove it all off the floor. I know the railings would be be too much of a pain to strip, and they still look decent. That said, I'll probably just re-solid stain the railings. My question has to do with the stripping the solid stain off the floor. Can someone please recommend a good chemical stripper or should I rent a belt sander and just strip it that way? After it is stripped-off, what is the best stain/sealer to put down on top? I have very little vegetation around the deck, but it is rather large (probably 200+ sq feet) Any advice would be great...thanks in advance.

I made the mistake of putting a solid stain on my deck two years ago and needless to say, it is not wearing well (I wish I would have found this site back then). Anyways, could I get some recommendations on the following? Best chemical and/or method of stripping the old solid stain off the floor of the deck. Best stain to put down on the floor of the deck after the solid is stripped Can I add color to the new stain (My spindles are Cedar color)? Thanks in advance for the help.

Well, I have my last coat to put on tonight and, overall, it looks pretty good. Granted, it took me a couple weeks of working on it off and on, but it turned out pretty well. I first cleaned all the dirt off of it and then I sanded most of (I missed a couple) the boards that were starting to splinter. I then put on the Cabot primer and that seemed to cover everything very well, but it was pretty messy to work with and clean up. After the primer dried, I put on two coats of the solid stain with a roller. After every few boards, I back-brushed each one and tried to get into the cracks as best I could. I just did the floor, but the color we chose seemed to match the railings pretty well. Anyways, thanks for all the help and hopefully my hard work will last a few years or so. Now I can take the $600 or so I saved by doing it myself and hire a good chiropractor…ha!!

Last weekend, my wife and I cleaned the deck with Wolman Deckbrite that worked pretty well. Now I have a ton of peeling paint that I'm going to scrape and sand Friday. It rained last night (5/1) and I'm working on the deck Saturday. It's not supposed to rain here again until Tuesday (5/8). I bought 2 gallons of the Cabot Problem Solver Primer and I had two questions about it. 1. Can I apply it with a roller? The directions say brush or spray, but is there a difference if I use a roller? 2. Do you need to use an oil based stain with an oil based primer or doesn't it really matter. Also, has anyone used the Cabot Problem Solver Wood stripper? I debated buying a gallon of it and seeing if it worked, but it cost $20. I figured I'd just stick to my guns and re-apply a solid. Thanks again for the help.

I should be working on this pain in the neck project within the next few weeks (if the weather cooperates).

statement was a joke. If I'm going to all that trouble, I'm just going to rip the boards out and replace them with some sort of composite boards so I never have to worry about this stuff again. I have to to try to do this myself. The company that quoted me the $1100, was going to clean, sand, and re-coat with a solid as well. I'm going to try to do the same thing.

Well, it looks as though we don’t have the money in the budget to have our deck professionally done, so here’s my plan. I’m just going to re-do the floor and not the spindles. Give the deck a good cleaning. Wait a week and then lightly sand the peeling spots. Re-apply either Flood or Cabot’s solid stain. From several paint and deck professionals I have consulted, it seems as though I’m stuck with my deck being solidly stained forever. I hope I’m making the right decision, but at this point, I’m kind in a bind in regard to the actions I can take. Thank you all for the advice and if you have any more, please keep the ideas coming.

OK, here’s the latest on my dilemma. If someone could please help me, I would appreciate it. I’m hoping to tackle this project in the next few weeks. I took your advice and got several estimates on my project. A local company is going to charge me $1.75 a sq ft to lightly sand the bad spots on the floor only, strip the old stain, and apply another coat of solid stain. He is also going to give me a 5-year guarantee on the work and is using a solid Flood Stain. Since my deck is 600 sq ft, it’s going to cost me around $1100. Do you think this is a fair price? OR, should I do it myself? Would you go about it this way? Remember, my experience is very limited when it comes to staining decks. Chemically strip the old solid stain off the deck (it’s only 2 coats). What is the best product to use? Lightly sand the deck. Then, re-stain the deck with the best, non-solid stain I can buy. What is the best stain to use?

Thanks for the quick response. *I used Olympic Maxium from Lowe’s *It is pressure treated pine. *I’m somewhat comfortable using dangerous chemicals, but would rather not. I also have a pressure washer. *I was going to leave the spindles the cedar color. It was such a pain staining those the first time, I can’t imagine trying to take the stain off of them. *I was thinking about giving the deck floor a darkish look so I could more easily cover the imperfections. Thanks for the website tip…I will check it out.