Hey,

 

So we're redoing our deck...and I'm dying here.  Who here has done it and how much sanding did you do?  My deck is huge and I feel like I'm barely making a dent and I'm using a belt sander with 40 grit (I'll go over it with a 60 or 80 really quick after 40 is just to get the paint off) to get this crap off.  I'm going down to pretty much the wood with very little paint/stain still showing.  Am I doing too much?

 

I had a couple of guys come out saying they could get it done in 2 days.  One said I'm sanding too much, the other said the sanding I'm doing is what he'd do.  HOW COULD YOU SAND THE HOLE DECK IN A DAY WITH JUST YOU AND YOUR HELPER!?!?  It's taking me hours just to do a small amount.

 

So, give me some tips and tricks cause I'm either doing too much or what.  I really don't want to pay what one of them was asking, and the other one didn't really sound as good as the second guy.

Wonder if a pressure washer would help? Seem to recall my brother took the stain off of his that way but that was 20 years ago.

Yeah, I forgot to say we used that already.  Neighbor lent us their 3100 PSI pressure washer.  It took off some of it.  But some boards still have lots of crap still on it.

Yup. I'd recommend a pressure washer for sure. Should strip it really good then a nice sanding and your good to go. Just saw the last post. I'd just say sand it until it feels good to you cuz u won't be able to get it all off unless you use a stripper of some kind and even then might not get it all.

Is it stain or paint or combo Logan?

You should just move..

Probably a solid stain Frosty.  You don't really "paint" a deck with the same kind of paint you use on your house so I think we'll go with the solid stain or semi-solid.

 

Thanks Goalie, I'll try that instead.  I think we're doing way too much sanding.  Looks good but holy hell is it taking forever.

 

Dee...you suck.

Hey Logan, I don't like re-doing the deck thing...that's work. But if you don't mind stain...as opposed to moving, that's fine too.

why sand a deck? was it painted? 

 

seriously. 

 

Oh I see…. it's Logan….

 

anyway what I do is  pressure wash it, then I stain it. 

 

I like solid stain, "Flood" brand. 

 

done the deck more than a few times, this all seems to work well.

 

deck is probably fifteen years or more old, I've replaced one board.

 

anyway, use the best stain you can afford.

Brother said he used a floor sander. To Home Depot we go.....

I can't believe people strip and sand decks. 

why sand a deck? was it painted? 

 

seriously. 

 

Oh I see…. it's Logan….

 

anyway what I do is  pressure wash it, then I stain it. 

 

I like solid stain, "Flood" brand. 

 

done the deck more than a few times, this all seems to work well.

 

deck is probably fifteen years or more old, I've replaced one board.

 

anyway, use the best stain you can afford.

I'm sanding it because whatever the hell the previous owners put on this deck, some of it is barely coming off.  Plus everywhere that I read online it says to sand the deck at least a little if you pressure wash it because pressure washing roughs it up and can leave splinters.  Which it did.  I'm probably sanding it more then I need to.  Again, whatever they put on before, it was solid stain (or maybe it is paint, I don't think so though), and some of it is really sticking.  I was hoping to put on some semi-transparent stain but I doubt that's going to happen.  I'm not a fan of the solid stain.

 

Anywho.  Yes, I'm going to use Flood brand.  I'm guessing the only place you can pick it up is at Dulux correct?

 

And no, I didn't strip my deck first.  I read quite a few places that it barely took anything off.

Brother said he used a floor sander. To Home Depot we go.....

The problem with a floor sander from what I've read, is that your boards have to be perfectly level and not rounded in any way, otherwise the floor sander won't work very well.

got it… we've stained our deck every two or three years since it was made. Think that makes it much easier in the long run.

 

 

 

you can get Flood stain at Western Paint on Hargrave /William in Wpg.

 

good luck with all of it.

Thanks.  This thing is a *****.  It's 36 feet long and 16 feet wide.  I'm so close to just giving up and paying someone else do this crap.

My dad sands his deck every time...  it will look better but it's o so much work.  

 

I'd only do a clean sanding if you are changing the color of the stain... otherwise I'd pressure wash and maybe sand the spots that are rough. 

I've gone to Thompsons water seal and forget about any stain of any kind for he future.

My dad sands his deck every time...  it will look better but it's o so much work.  

 

I'd only do a clean sanding if you are changing the color of the stain... otherwise I'd pressure wash and maybe sand the spots that are rough. 

We are changing it.  It's this awful grey color right now.  I don't know why the previous owners stained it that way.  I've always hated it.  It use to be brown as I've seen old pictures of the house, and I have no idea why they painted it grey.  Or whatever ugly color that is.  But yeah, next time I don't plan to do this much work.

I had to do the same with my deck, I used a really strong grit with my belt sander and it cleaned it off really nice. I then used a cedar stain and it looked good as new.

I'd recommend getting some friends over with beers and extension cords and it will make it go by faster.

I had to do the same with my deck, I used a really strong grit with my belt sander and it cleaned it off really nice. I then used a cedar stain and it looked good as new.

I'd recommend getting some friends over with beers and extension cords and it will make it go by faster.

LOL yeah I was thinking that.

 

We're not getting it down to complete bare wood though.  It's already taking too long as it is, so we'll just have to re-stain it solid again, and next time we re-stain it after this, it will be the same damn color!

I'd recommend getting some friends over with beers and extension cords and it will make it go by faster.

You're my only friends here...so let me know when you're going to come by to help.

It would thrill me to no end if this thread somehow continued until it was as long as the Rider thread.

 

 

The standard for what is thrilling really does change as one ages.

 

 

So...what brand of brushes are you thinking of using?

where's the update? 

Where's my beer?

Where's my beer?

At my house...where the sander and paint is.

 

No update.  The **** that was on there before is taking forever to come off...and it's a big damn deck.  Had these losers not painted it gray (geez it was an awful color) and left it brown, I'd be done by now.