Do I have to clean my wood deck before sealing or staining?
Question:Deck was built October 2006.
Answers:
I would pressure wash the deck before staining.
yes it would be nice go to the hardware store and tell them what your doing they will give you something like tsp and get a brush and just clean it only takes a few let it dry and off you go
A thorough pressure washing wouldn't hurt. Dust and dirt gets tracked/blown on everything. It would be the best idea I would think.
Yes, simply use a pressure washer with deck cleaner and spray the deck off, then let it dry, and apply the stain.
You probably shouldn't have to since it was built recently. But I guess you could if you wanted to.
Yes my wife works for a world wide paint and stain company called Benjamin Moore and she knows all there is to know about stains and paints.She just stained our deck around our pool that we built August 2006 and the first thing she told me was that we had to give it a light sanding to remove any dust or environmental settlement. The deck must be completely dry and you must not stain it if the wood is warmer than your body temperature..meaning if you touch it and it's warm to the touch DON'T apply the stain. we ended up putting a tarp up over the deck to act like a tent and after about an hour the wood was cool to the touch and she went ahead and stained it and it look great. good luck
Yes, you must for best results.
if you decide to pressure wash your deck, be sure and not use the maximum spray setting. the water force can easily shred up wood splinters and then you"ll have to sand and smooth down the wood. I would go with the tsp method or even a light soap and water wash. with the fact that your deck is so recent, you shouldn't have to do a lot.
Just hose it down, let it dry and roll on the sealer or stain. Have someone ready with a rag to wipe up any streaks or overlaps.
What ever you do please do not pressure wash your deck it is the worst thing you can do to a deck. Go to Home Depot and ask them for the proper steps to stain or seal your deck. There are 3 steps. First one is in a green bottle then step 2 is in a white bottle, then the finally step is in a blue bottle. If you don't follow these steps you WILL be reapplying the stain again in 6 months. Trust me I am a coatings consultant.
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