When is it to cold to do different types of deck work

[Crownroyal 14]

A few homeowners that called me today wanting there deck cleaned and sealed when is it just to cold to do work like this?

I told the homeowners that it was not the right time to do these types of projects but they really want it done. (Going to sell their houses in January)

Both are over 1000 sqft and I bid them at $1.50 a sqft. Which is higher than my normal. I wouldn’t mind doing them since I have some free time this winter.

Sometimes temps reach 50-60 in December is that just to cold?

Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks Dan

:lgcold:

[JFife 14]

I try and work all year. Have to be cautious with your products, and know how they all react to weather changes. For instance, I know i can put TWP on wood with moisture in the higher teens. I also know I can apply it down to near-freezing, as long as I warm the product (leave it indoors). Still penetrates and dries reasonably fast. Just put it on a cabin deck last week in Northern MO in the evening when it was around 45-50deg. By the time we had finished spraying, most of the deck was already dry. RS can be used down near freezing as well, but the problem with it is the need to get 12% moisture.

[steve r 14]

Cold Is Nit Bad Just Cold And Maybe Slipery.ready Seal Will Apply In Cold Weather And Do The Job.the Only Thing Is The Moisture Content In The Wood Has To Be Between 10 And 12% .hd 80 Will Also Clean Strip The Deck

[Russell Cissell 65]

The key is not so much the temperature outside as the temperature of the wood. The warmer the wood is, the easier it is for the stain to penetrate. The drying and curing processes are also quicker under warmer conditions.

If you are staining in cold weather an important consideration is temperature flux. As an example if you stain a deck in the afternoon the outside temp may be 40 degrees and the temp of the wood may be even higher if you are in direct sun. As the sun goes down if the temperature drops quickly the wood may shrink and force out some of the stain that hasn't cured.

You also need to allow for additional time before the wood gets rained on after finish application. If I were using Wood-Tux in the summer I know it can get rained on after about 15 min of application. If it is below 40 degrees outside I would look for a window of at least an hour between application and the first rain.

[Crownroyal 14]

Good info guys thanks.

[JFife 14]

Russ,

have you tried the WTW yet in this weather?? I understand it is quite thick, would you apply more water now to aid in penetration, or what changes would you make?

[seymore 90]

40 degrees is my limit but we were in the 80's today so it's not even close :D

If the temps are that cold I myself don't want to out working below 50 degrees.

Decks are tough in cold temps but rough cedar fences will soak in better unlike smooth PT decks.

[tropical wave 22]

Shane, stop teasing about your weather... :)

we're getting 4 inches of snow and I just shoveled the deck.. :(

[seymore 90]

Mike

You are welcomed here in Tx.anytime you wanna get away from the snow :cool:

We should be cooling down Sun. Night but still no snow tho :D

[John Orr 206]

I would recommend that the customer have you clean the deck and not seal it - due to the time of year and because it will still look great for the buyer. You might suggest that they pay you to stain it, but give the new owners a gift certificate for the staining in the spring.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

I agree with Russ.

Next question is....

What's the exposure of the decks? North, south, east, or west? If Northern, you may have a hard time getting the wood to the right temp. If southern with full sun, you might catch a break. Exposure can matter.

Beth

[Russell Cissell 65]

Russ,

have you tried the WTW yet in this weather?? I understand it is quite thick, would you apply more water now to aid in penetration, or what changes would you make?

Jon

"This weather" is a subjective term my friend! Everything is frozen here right now so I would have to say no. I have worked the product right around the freezing point.

It's not so much a matter of the stain being thick. Like any oil based product Wood-Tux does thicken up when it gets colder but that is easy to deal with. If you are trying to reduce the viscosity of the stain for application, you can add a small amount of mineral spirits. Mineral spirits will thin the stain better than water. Mineral spirits will also have less of an effect on cure time. Adding water reduces the cure time. Adding mineral spirits speeds it up if anything.

Cure time is the real issue.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Adding mineral spirits speeds it up if anything.

Exactly! I concur with this from experience as we had a couple of decks to finish up this season and the temps barely reached into the upper 40's. The stain still curred in the 2 hour time frame as we noticed from adding about 16oz/gal to the stain to make it thin enough to spray through a pump up on the cold days. It worked really well and the end result was still very much like the deck and fence we had done earlier that year across the way in a townhouse community. The very ones that got us the job in the first place.

I hope this helps others in the low temp pinch at the end of their season.

Rod~

[Adrian 155]

Great tip on the mineral spirits with the sealer.

Does anyone know of a good brand of pump sprayer for WTW or Ready Seal.

I seem to always wind up with a clogged tip or wand when I am through spraying and the fan spray pattern seems to always reduce by the end of the job. Usually end up trashing the pump sprayer after a couple of applications. 25.00 bucks here 25.00 bucks there. I would just like a reusable sprayer that I can get at least 4 or 5 decks out of.

[CLASSICPW 14]

I agree with John. I target Real estate agents and this time of year I just wash the deck and house for sale then target the new owners for the stain.

[Jarrod 22]

Great tip on the mineral spirits with the sealer.

Does anyone know of a good brand of pump sprayer for WTW or Ready Seal.

I seem to always wind up with a clogged tip or wand when I am through spraying and the fan spray pattern seems to always reduce by the end of the job. Usually end up trashing the pump sprayer after a couple of applications. 25.00 bucks here 25.00 bucks there. I would just like a reusable sprayer that I can get at least 4 or 5 decks out of.

Buy a Titan airless - no more problems and does a way better job.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

If you are having any problem with the tip clogging, use a paint screen to pour through. This filters out the larger nozzle clogging debris that causes the porblems. It is a extra step but it saves down time to repeatedly clean a clogged tip and potentially a clogged lance too.

We use the Wolman pump ups and clean them after each use with a heavy duty degreaser to keep them in good working order. I only throw them away when the bottom billows out under pressure making the bottle more of a weeble that wobbles and falls down. :-)

These sprayers typically cost aroung 25-30 bucks and are part of the seal equipment in the event one of the airless sprayers has a problem. Merely a backup tool but there are some jobs that are just too small to break out the airless unit for.

Rod~

[Jim Carroll 14]

you could always put a tarp on the deck and stick a heater under it to warm up the wood before applying your stain. not that familiar with wood but it works for concrete and masonry.