Floor Sander strip

[Doug Dahlke 114]

Any of you wood guys ever use a sander like the ones used to strip interior hardwood to strip an acrylic deck? I have one with multiple layers of latex on it and was thinking a mechanical strip might be the best option.

[acegot 14]

How large is the deck? Your best bet would be a drum sander with 36 grit followed with a 12x18 stand up orbital with 60 grit.

[Doug Dahlke 114]

Its not very big. About 12' x 12'

[charlie 14]

Cheaper to replace boards then sand them. The problem with sanding them you won't be able to get in between them.

charlie

[James 624]

Depends on many factors. Type of wood, how much cupping , nails or screws,. I find it better to use a stripper first then do the mechanical prep. But 12 by 12 is pretty small. Stripper Cream is a good choice for a stripper to remove that stuff.

[acegot 14]

Depends on many factors. Type of wood, how much cupping , nails or screws,. I find it better to use a stripper first then do the mechanical prep. But 12 by 12 is pretty small. Stripper Cream is a good choice for a stripper to remove that stuff.

Ditto what James said, Its a small enough deck to sand, Do you need to sand the cracks? What color is the deck now. There are ways to sand the cracks. There is a thread discussing crack sanding with pics.

[Chappy 138]

what kind of stripper cream, Jim?

[acegot 14]

Eachochem Stripper cream, The Pro Sealer Store has it. Home

[PetersonDecks 14]

We always just run to Home Depot and rent one of there drum sanders for $45/ day if we have a crappy deck that we can't get all the stain off, works beautifully, use the 36 grit, always debate on buying one but only use it 7-8 times per year. John Peterson, Peterson Deck Restoration

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Welcome to TGS John,

Please go to your My Controls and add your signature. :)

Beth

[big mike 14]

John, hello!

Have used a sheet sander a few times, but really, what a PITA. If my DS stripper and a Makita can't make it look good, forget it!! If the deck is that bad, either go with a solid and call it a day, or walk away. I've found that these type of restorations are ALWAYS underestimated on time, and ALWAYS fall short of the profit margins I expect. Leave them for your competition......

[acegot 14]

There is usually a difference in patience & thought process between a deckrestorer that does p-washing & a p-washer that does decks. Since I do mostly decks I feel some p-wash jobs are a PITA.

Edited February 27, 2010 by acegot
typo

[PetersonDecks 14]

the decks we usually hit with the drum sander are the sikkens decks or the crappy behr decks, Yes, Mike usually more hassle than anything. usually kick myself and regret not putting on cabot solid, just HATE doing solid stain decks!!!

[Greg R 82]

We end up media blasting alot of painted decks and it works well - some need a light sanding thereafter but often they are ready to stain once we're done. Pressure treated pine holds up to it nicely to blasting - cedar you have to be real carefull on. We've also chemically stripped many down to sand out as well but I dont think I would ever try to sand it all off unless its a real thin layer.

[acegot 14]

Greg, which media do you use on the solid stain, cob?

[Greg R 82]

Hey Lyle - crushed glass has worked better than cob. It also depends on how heavy the coating is though. If its really caked on there we're more likely to chem strip it. If it just a layer or two and peeling the glass works great. In tends to want to profile out the verticles so you usually have to sand those areas. If the rails are painted we try to convince the homeowner to go two tone though.

Edited March 1, 2010 by Greg R