Deck Runoff Effluent

[Mountain View 14]

How do you folks deal with the runoff from stripping a deck? What happens to the waste material that runs off onto the customers property? Some of it must be pretty soupy stuff.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Not really. The product breaks down into very small particulate matter which is the simplest form it can take from the caustic reaction it has been subject to. Unless it is paint, there is hardly ever any evidence of a strip being performed with the exception of the wood pulp which is most prominent from cedar and redwood decks.

The Neutralization process creates salts from the caustic that has been used rendering it harmless to exposure.

IF we have stripped paint (which I dont like to do because there is no way to neutralize the stuff we use to strip with), we clean up the debris using a wetvac. Otherwise, there is no "soup" to deal with in stripping stain from a deck. The water is absorbed into the ground and the salts are utilized by the plants.

Rod!~

[patrick k 14]

Hi Beth/Rod,

In the post above you mentioned you strip paint. I bought a house and the deck was painted... Now it just looks ugly and I tried some HD-80 on there, did not really do much to it. This paint job is ugly... any suggestions on how I could strip this off?

thanks,

Patrick

[steve r 14]

Hi Beth/Rod,

In the post above you mentioned you strip paint. I bought a house and the deck was painted... Now it just looks ugly and I tried some HD-80 on there, did not really do much to it. This paint job is ugly... any suggestions on how I could strip this off?

thanks,

Patrick

You could get some severe strip from sunbritesupply.its made for heavy striping and very strong chemical www.sunbritesupply.com

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Most paints require the use of MEK to be removed. Very nasty stuff. A typical sealer stripper will not touch most paints. This includes HD-80 and Severe Strip. Some paints yes, but at least 50% of them...no. We are not paint fans for many reasons.

Beth

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Patrick,

We use eacochems stripsol.

Rod!~

[bforbis 14]

Hewy Rod,

I see a lot of decks coated in heavy duty paints/acrylics etc and have little luck with typical sodium hydroxide based strippers. HD80, F18max, Wolmans decks strip, severe strip and a few others. All barely scratch the surface and seem to take up to 45 min + for each coat/layer and have to hit it pretty hard to get any results.

Would you elaborate on your experience with Eacochem stripsol?

Thanks

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Sure,

It is used straight out of the pail non-diluted. It breaks up the paint and causes it to bubble. Once the entire surface is bubbled, you can wash it off. The P.I.T.A. factor is in the clean up. The paint does not break down into molecular components and needs to be vacuumed up in order to get it off the ground once you have allowed it to dry.

The drawback to this product is that it is susceptible to sunlight and dries out relatively fast. This increases your costs because it requires more product to do the job due to frequent re-application. Each 5 gallon pail costs $185.00+shipping and will cover basically 200-250sqft/gallon. But as I mentioned, you will need to reapply often if the deck is in full sun.

Does that help?

Rod!~

[bforbis 14]

Thanks Rod, yes it helps. After trying so many different "strippers" (IMO)they all work about equally well (or not so well) on the dreaded acrylics and deck paints. I feel I am just missing something and keep digging or the right product

It sounds a lot like the typical "stripeaze" type stuff used to clean wood furniture.

Some years ago I had seen on one of those home shows there is a commercial stripping gel that is enviro-friendly that appeared to work great. Have you heard of anything like this. I don't remember a name, but they were using it on exterior house that had many years of paint. They smeared it on gave it a dwell time of about 45 min+-?

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

No, haven't heard of that one. But 45+min in a demo...I for one would not be impressed. 15 minutes is about the max you have in an outdoor scenario before the product is completely dry.

Rod!~

[Mountain View 14]

As a follow up, do you have many clients that raise the question of the effect of chemical runoff (i.e soil or ground water contamination)? If so, how do you deal with this question?

Awsome answers as always, thanks to everyone.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

For our company, mostly this is a question raised by housewives who are concerned with their vegetation plantings nearby. Some are told by other contractors that they will cover them with plastic while being washed. I inform them that the weight of the water pooling on the plastic is enough to break and injure most plants. Pre-wetting before, during and rinsing afterwards limits the effects of the chemicals used. Neutralization afterwards helps also to eliminate caustic residue which could be of harm to those who would perform any gardening shortly afterwards.

Overall, the area is exposed to a great deal of water and so far, we have not seen any negative effects towards the plantings in proximity and in fact have actually seen a significant growth from the chemicals that were broken down into salts that the vegetation uses for nutrients.

Yes, spraying a caustic onto a plant, bush or grass will cause harm to it left unchecked. Taking the time to serve the property with respect to the clients endeavors helps to ensure that the only difference that will be evident is the structure you just completed service to is looking great.

I am impressed at our photos which show before/after and the surgical precision effect it can have done properly.

Rod!~

[Mountain View 14]

Great info, thanks again.