Planning my deck finishing...a few questions.

[Dublin 14]

Hiya folks,

Well I'm finally coming down the home stretch on my deck project. I have just a few more rows to lay and still need to put up my hand rails but by and large, I plan to seal this thing before winter! The decking is tatajuba (similar to Ipe but not quite as dense/heavy) and I have approx. 450 SF of the stuff to seal. I was planning to wash with percarb and neutralize with citric. I will need to sand this deck prior to sealing. I have an ROS and belt sander but was thinking I might be better off with an orbital floor sander. I'd have to rent such a beast so thought I'd ask what folks are recommending in the way of a sander and what grit to go up to? I can rent one of the orbital floor machines from my local Lowes or go with something a bit more industrial from a rental shop. Obviously I'll need to hit some some spots with the ROS and I have no intention of breaking out the belt sander (or should I?). Ultimately, I'll be using Armstrong-Clark stain/sealer on it (haven't decided on color just yet). Thanks for any inputs you can give.

Cheers,

jlc

[RPetry 564]

JLC,

A random orbital with 60 grit should be fine for a light sanding. There should be no need for a "hard" sanding with a belt sander or monster orbital.

450 sq. ft. is not a lot of wood. By the time you go to Lowes or HD, rent the thing, and return it to the store, you could be relaxing on your new deck with a cold beer after finishing with a RO.

[PressurePros 248]

I bought one of those vibrating sanders from a rental place a year or two ago. I was worried about the aggressive nature of powered sanders so i was especially tentative when I was told to use a very course (low numerically.. 18?) on decks. It was the best move I ever made. Its very easy to use and I would venture to say - homeowner friendly. On ipe you can go with a grit in the 30's and not mess it up. Yes it may take you an hour going back and forth to rent one from a box store but to me, well worth it.. even on a smallish deck like yours. I find sanding ipe with a random orbital a bit more of an art. Its easy to make your deck look blotchy when applying final finish.

[Dublin 14]

Thanks Guys. I will probably just stick with the ROS and go with the 60 grit as Rick advised. I certainly could get to Lowes, get a floor sander, and get back much faster than using the ROS but this project is a 3 hour drive from my home which means I'd end up renting the sander for a couple of days. I'm hopeful with 60 grit, it will go relatively quickly.

Cheers,

cc