Flash Drying

[PressurePros 249]

It seems every deck this season has been southernly oriented and it's been very hot and sunny. Does anyone ever mist down a deck prior to sealing to overcome this effect?

[tropical wave 22]

you would think that it would be ok to cool the wood that is too hot to seal with a light misting without raising the moisture content as it would cool the wood and evaporate without penetrating.........havent tried it yet, but I can see a backyard expirement happening real soon

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

We recently washed and sealed a deck the same day, and since the deck was in full sun the WMC was fine when we went back to seal it about 4 hours later. Rod and Roger washed it, and then Rod, Roger , Celeste and I sealed it.

I'm interested in hearing if others have noticed how rapidly wood dries in warmer temps, and it anyone has taken advantage of it.

Also while Roger and Celeste (CarolinaProWash) were here we washed and sealed some ipe and teak boards the same day, they dried in full sun and were fine that afternoon.

On our own deck (full sun), I know when I go out and water the plants, I frequently cool the deck boards down so I can enjoy the deck more with less heat, and they seem to dry quickly.

Beth

[Aplus 525]

It seems every deck this season has been southernly oriented and it's been very hot and sunny. Does anyone ever mist down a deck prior to sealing to overcome this effect?

Never done that, but I often mist a deck down to cool it before applying strippers or cleaners.

But you make a good point about flash drying, and I've always contended that stain that is finely atomized when sprayed, may well flash dry before it has a chance to penetrate the wood properly.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

When temps are above 85* and the deck is in a mostly sunny exposure, there is a good possibility that you could wet the floors down and while you are working on the prep (sanding and masking) the deck will dry and be cooler when you go to seal it.

Keeping in mind that many products have a threshold of around 90*-95* application temperature limit, this could be a good solution, but I have got to think about what anyone (especially the customer) would think if they were to see this going on and ultimately, how it could effect the longevity of the product being applied if not a "wet" formula?!

There have been a number of instances where water spilled on the deck prior to sealing due to moving a grill or table/furniture that retained pockets of water from the wash or recent precipitation. The wood dried just fine and the seal was a success with no undesirable results from where the water spilled.

I will also mention that WT was the product at the time and before WT, we would not have done this without giving the wood at least a few hours to dry.

I will leave the floor open to those who would like to add their input...

Rod~