Best stain for Redwood

[yazbird8 17]

I need help deciding which product to use on Redwwod. I am on the east coast and normally use Readyseal..What is everyones favorite product to use for Redwood and favorite colors of that product?...Why do you prefer your product over others?...Thanks....

Stephen Andrews

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[seymore 90]

This is Gray Away Redwood blend 50/50 Redwood/Brown on PT pine and

Cedar...I have a pic of a redwood fence somewhere i'm stil looking for.I also have Redwood only stain that looks pretty good I don't see redwood much

[seymore 90]

Here is the redwood fence i was looking for.

one more of a PT decking with the Redwood Blend.

[yazbird8 17]

Thanks Sane.....I guess Redwood decks are a rarity in the east..My customer couldn't get replacement boards when he did a repair a few years ago and put down a ptp board to replace an old one...I'm suprised no one has much experience with it here in the east...I want to do a super job with this deck....This fella belongs to an elite country club up here and I want my name to get around.....I'll do a test with RS before I procede..Hopefully RS won't darken it...The RS blend made for Redwwod seems like a possible PITA...I'm concerned about Lapping, and an uneven finish........

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[Beth n Rod 1,278]

We use Wood Tux on redwood and get great results.

Beth

See Dirt Run! - Redwood deck after sealing - Powered by PhotoPost

See Dirt Run! - Redwood stairs and rails after sealing - Powered by PhotoPost

See Dirt Run! - Redwood deck sealed with Wood Tux Western Cedar - Powered by PhotoPost

[yazbird8 17]

Thank you Beth...I love visuals...Tomorrow I will take some pics of the deck..I will post them here (if I remember)..lol......I want your take on the proper type and color of WT to use.......Wouldn't WTW draw the tannins to the surface and make the Redwood to dark?...............

Stephen Andrews

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[seymore 90]

Thanks Sane.....

Stephen Andrews

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No problem Stephen :cool:

[Beth n Rod 1,278]

We have not had a problem with that. WTW has worked fine for us on redwood.

Beth

[Deck Guy 14]

My only experience with redwood is using SW Woodscapes Redwood Toner. The customer is happy, and I do annual maintenence, although I will also consider going with something else when I completely strip it down next year. You do have to apply it like a traditional stain. I'll check for photos if I have any and post them here. I don't think he would like the gold/yellow color of some of the decks posted here already. He likes the red shades.

[RPetry 564]

Yaz,

Dug up the pics of the old growth redwood deck done in 2005. Will be back this summer for a maintenance. RS redwood only formula is very easy to apply. Did this staining on one of the hottest days of August with no "lapping". The color is medium red.

Redwood was ~25 years old, had not seen a cleaning or stain in many a moon. Original condition before cleaning.

Cleaned with sodium percabonate and brightened with citric acid, no rinsing.

Stained in about 95 degrees F. with RS redwood only formula, medium red.

Stopped by last year while in the area and the wood looked good. Maintenance this year will be a light bleach/little soap mix and a hose off. Blow on about 3 1/2 gals. of RS and we are out of there.

[Tracy Handl 108]

Ready Seal has a "Redwood Only" formula to keep the tannins from rising to the surface after application which would destroy your prep-work and result in a muddy or black finish. It really is as easily worked as original formula Ready Seal. Nice pics Rick! If you have any of the "RO" formula left after the job, it can be mixed into regular formula, or used on other woods with no worries. Med Red is typicaly the color used on Redwood wood. Hope this helps!

[yazbird8 17]

Rick,

Great pics of RO in action..It surely helped to see the end results..

Tracy,

I'll be in touch shortly to order 10 gals of RO medium red.....

Thanks all for your help

Stephen Andrews

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[RPetry 564]

Yaz,

You may not need the RO formula of RS. Most redwood within the past 20 or so years, from what I understand, is "tree farm" redwood. It is much younger growth, lacking in tannin content of older mature trees. In most cases, regular RS will be fine. Know they use tons of the normal RS in California on redwood.

This job was an exception. Old growth, tannin rich, prime redwood. Sand a small patch of wood and put down a test app of regular RS. If the surface color does not turn black within a minute or two, regular RS should be fine for staining.

This particular wood turned black within a second on a test of regular formula RS. It is an exception to the rule.

[James 624]

Redwood holds a stain better than any other wood and take's less product. I takecare of a couple decks and a cabana made with redwood. Ready Seal.

[yazbird8 17]

There are a couple boards on the deck that are being replaced due to rot at the ends...My guess is the deck is a pretty old one...The owners are retirement age and have probably lived there for 30-40 years...I want to put Medium Red on this baby and I have none in stock (only Light Brown)....I might as well just go with the RO on it.....Owner is paying for materials anyway............

Stephen Andrews

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[yazbird8 17]

Thanks everyone for your help on this deck....I would post some photos but the Kodac Easyshare photos are to large for this website to accomedate....I usually bug Beth to shrink them but I want to stay in her good graces...lol.....I sent some photos to Rick so maybe he can give some feedback......

YAZ

Stephen Andrews

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[RPetry 564]

Yaz,

Email the originals to me and I'll post them using my web server tonight. I had problems with the Kodak site.

[RPetry 564]

Yaz,

Let me be the first to say REAL NICE JOB! The middle pic of the prepped deck floor and the stained balustade shows the craftsmanship and effort you put into this terrific premium wood. The finished pic speaks for itself.

Yaz sent me a bunch of pics and I picked out three. First picture is during stripping. We talked and figured it was probably some junk Behr's semi trans originally on the redwood.

Second pic is of the floor prepped and the balustrade already stained. That redwood is so bright it hurts my eyes!

Last pic is finished job. Why don't builders use decent stainless steel fasteners on premium wood?

Ready Seal redwood only formula, medium red. Results speak loud and clear. Congrats, Yaz.

[yazbird8 17]

Rick...Thanks for your help on the selection of stain....And thank you for helping me post the photos.....Medium Red Readyseal does look quite beautiful on Redwood and Cedar...I will start using it exclusively for those two wood species....Light Brown Readyseal for Pressure treated......and ??? for Mahogany......

YAZ

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[seymore 90]

Nice job Yaz :cool:

Is the wood that black like in the pics or it just me?

[yazbird8 17]

Thanks Shane...This deck had a bunch of replacement boards added due to rot..There are lots more boards that should be replaced...Some are rotted at the ends..Some boards would not give up the black even after a strong citrolic bath while others where like new wood.....Rick has some photos showing the mold growing on it.....I also had some areas that looked like circular tea stains.........Rick, post the rest of the pics so I can get some feedback from other woodies.....I'm sure I could have done something better..........

YAZ

Stephen Andrews

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[MMI Enterprises 289]

The darker the board the more the old school tannin moving around in it.

Since it moves around within the wood and comes come up from even water your best bet is a lite oxalic spray after most of it has leached up and dried after the main cleaning and neutralizing phaze.

You Eastern folk come out this way you can see whole forests and state parks full of black tannin ..heck we got a stump at Calvaras Big Trees with a stump the size of these decks. They never stain it and thousands of people trapse around on it every year..It'll never give up the ghost in our lifetime. It something like 20' diameter of old school. :)

[RPetry 564]

Yaz asks:

Rick, post the rest of the pics so I can get some feedback from other woodies.....

For a Jersey guy, OK. Lets not make a habit of it, it is a bit of work!

I'll id with numbers, you provide the commentary.

PIC #1

PIC #2

PIC #3

PIC #4

PIC #5

PIC #6

PIC #7

This post should give my web server a good workout.

[yazbird8 17]

Thanks fellow homeboy from the great "Garden State".....I think the before pics show how bad the deck had become with lots of rotting and splitting...There are spots just as you step up to the upper deck where the rotting is at it's worst...you will be able to see the ground below in a few years if not replaced......Pic#3 shows the PITA stain (unknown).........

YAZ

Stephen Andrews

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