Redwood home

[RPetry 564]

We do not stain homes. Aside from the PITA factor, you must use ladders or lifts or scaffolding of some sort. I do not put help up more than 12 feet, and at my age, going higher than that is risking my own neck.

Being said, this was a job too sweet to turn down. 32 yr. old redwood home, neglected for most of its' life. Tannin bleed galore, but little mildew/mold growth.

Cleaned up well. The wood sucked in a ton of Ready Seal natural cedar stain. Wish the stained photos were taken in sunlight, but the job turned out well.

The home goes on the market next month. The cost of the restoration will pay at settlement.

[plainpainter 217]

Looks good! Do you worry about the readyseal running down onto that concrete foundation as it weathers?

[James 625]

Very nice Rick! Dan, not a concern with RS running down. Only when doing the job and a few days after.

[RPetry 564]

Looks good! Do you worry about the readyseal running down onto that concrete foundation as it weathers?

Daniel,

Ready Seal is a penetrating, paraffin oil stain. It does not "bleed" or "run down" wood, unless you over apply to the point of being stupid. Given the fact that this is old untreated redwood, it could have taken even more Ready Seal. A 2nd application was quoted, but the owner's declined as the home is going on the market.

[acegot 14]

Rick, Ahhh.... the Sights & Sounds of Redwood, Beautiful!

[RPetry 564]

Rick, Ahhh.... the Sights & Sounds of Redwood, Beautiful!

Lyle,

Good redwood is a pleasure to work with. Much more forgiving than many Western Red Cedars. Unfortunately, we do not see much redwood, aside from high end kids playsets, here in NJ.

A very good ipe' customer of mine just ordered 1200 sq. ft. of old growth, T&G planed redwood from Ca. She is a designer, working on a new outdoor living area for a regional auto dealer magnate. I've used this foundation in the past to obtain some premier old growth redwood. Service can be a bit spotty but their wood is terrific.

Overview

[John T 744]

:o:oHey Rick sweet work.. And your right about heights in our age bracket. Since I turned 50 my body is breaking down like an old pinto with the gas tank that use to explode on fender benders. I blew out my knee just walking along while we were doing a parking garage a couple of weeks ago. A couple of days ago my doc says the knee looks good so far. Today I go for a swim and now my knee and shin area look like they soaked up the water.. Back to the Doc tomorrow...

If I get any jobs over a foot off the ground I'll give you a call:D

[RPetry 564]

:o:oHey Rick sweet work.. And your right about heights in our age bracket. Since I turned 50 my body is breaking down like an old pinto with the gas tank that use to explode on fender benders.

Hey John,

Yeah, as a kid I use to sit on the rim of the Grand Canyon for the view. Jumped out of perfectly good airplanes for a thrill. No more. Although bungee jumping is still on the wish list.

I blew out my knee just walking along while we were doing a parking garage a couple of weeks ago. A couple of days ago my doc says the knee looks good so far. Today I go for a swim and now my knee and shin area look like they soaked up the water.. Back to the Doc tomorrow...

Best wishes for a successful recovery. And thanks for being a police officer. Being said, flatwork sounds more dangerous than wood work. I think I'll stick to what I know.

If I get any jobs over a foot off the ground I'll give you a call:D

Only if they are in the Hamptons and own a car worth more than my home.

Edited September 13, 2011 by RPetry
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[sprayer dave 14]

Rick,

How did you apply the ready seal ?

Brush or spray ?

[RPetry 564]

Rick,

How did you apply the ready seal ?

Brush or spray ?

Dave,

Sorry for the delay. Just got back in from a family gathering and christening out on Long Island.

The vast majority of the redwood was sprayed with Ready Seal med. red, using a PumpTec pump on a Decker 5'er setup. Some hand cut in around the windows & doors, but all the high areas were sprayed. Those high windows and soffits were cleaned of errant stain using Simple Green on an extendible pole with a "mop" type head.

Works well.

[Chazz 14]

real nice job, I would love to tackle something like that someday

I just did my own deck with ready seal med brown

It's a new home and the builder gave me a temporary deck with pressure treated cheap wood

But I stained it with ready seal for the experience, it's a small walk out deck and I used a gallon and came up short

Because the wood sucked up more then I expected. I now have to buy another gallon but most places only sell it by the 5 gallons. I only need one gallon to complete my deck but shipping alone is about 22 dollars

Do you guys know where I can buy a gallon with cheaper shipping costs?

Also it was a pleasure to work with, I like the product but then again I have zero experience with other stains

[sprayer dave 14]

Rick,

Thanks for explaining, I always learn a lot from your posts.

[Pat Norman 18]

Beautiful work Rick! We did a Western Red Cedar home , the garage turned out great, we did it with a small lift. But when we got to the mans house it had so many leaks we just kinds switched to a strong caustic and did like a house wash and not a full strip. It still took off all the loose and discolored stain so he could re stain it. Any way the homeowner was happy although I wanted to do a full strip.

[Scott Paul 164]

Excellent work Rick!

Very impressed with the cleaning and removal of the tannin bleed.

[RPetry 564]

... We did a Western Red Cedar home , the garage turned out great, we did it with a small lift. ...

Pat,

That is some nice WRC under that foul looking old stain. What an improvement!

I thought Dixie only had southern yellow pine!

[RPetry 564]

Excellent work Rick!

Very impressed with the cleaning and removal of the tannin bleed.

Hey Scott,

Thanks. The redwood had not been touched in 30+ years and in some areas the tannin was thick on the surface, like a crust on bread. 4 oz./gal. of ACR 760 NaOH wood stripper and a bit of dwell time did the trick. Rinsed with fairly low pressure.

We neutralized/brightened with Ready Seal's #80 acid mix. A bit costly but I have found it very effective in suppressing further tannin coming to the surface after cleaning.

[Pat Norman 18]

Pat,

That is some nice WRC under that foul looking old stain. What an improvement!

I thought Dixie only had southern yellow pine!

Thanks Rick, Yep WRC is rare here. This garage was only ten yrs old per homeowner. The house itself was much older and a lot of the wood was black down deep and was not a pretty site. He was going to use a solid stain so it did not really matter that much as long as the "loose" stuff was off. You can see in that before pic where I did a test nearly 8 months prior.

[RPetry 564]

... He was going to use a solid stain so it did not really matter that much as long as the "loose" stuff was off. ...

Pat,

That is a small tragedy. You prep the cedar to near perfection and then the owner covers both your efforts, and very nice wood, with an opaque, paint like finish. He should have built with SYP ...

[Adrian 155]

Awesome work as always Rick.

um...... what is your helper in the front seat rolling up in the second pic ? heh heh. He's buuuusted. Kidding of course. great work again.

[RSuds 24]

Here is a log home that we are doing for the second time. We did it in 2003 and we are now just prep cleaning it and ready seal, also we are doing all brown trim. The weather sucks. They are replacing the roof and that is why we did not do that. And yes I had one on the deck with a rod in my hand and did not catch anything. Nice people and we stay at the house, it takes 4 of us 3-4 days.

[RSuds 24]

[RPetry 564]

Awesome work as always Rick.

um...... what is your helper in the front seat rolling up in the second pic ? heh heh. He's buuuusted. Kidding of course. great work again.

Adrian,

Worst helper I've had in 10 yrs. The younger brother of a 2 yr. former good helper, named "Oscar" by me. You are possibly old enough to remember the film and TV show, "The Odd Couple". Well Mike is actually Felix, that is why I named him Oscar. He doesn't know it so please don't tell him.

The father and 2 sons are intellectually gifted to the point of amazement. Sad story, difficult times for the father and the mother died suddenly many years ago.

Anyway, I always give nicknames to my younger help. Matt, who is in the truck, is "Snoozie". Never hire a physics major. He does not know what weed is.

[RPetry 564]

... The weather sucks. ...

Brian,

You've got that right. If it is not raining, the fog in the AM is thick and soupy. We have Chilean cedar garage and front doors that are still not dry enough to stain after prepping last week.

And yes I had one on the deck with a rod in my hand and did not catch anything. Nice people and we stay at the house, it takes 4 of us 3-4 days.

Nice job and nice digs. I could retire to a log home like that on a big lake. I thought you didn't like to service wood!

[RSuds 24]

I do not like to do the wood that much but still need to keep busy and when I get good money it is hard. I always say I will do anything for money.