Do I need to sand deck after powerwashing?

[Jaspernuts]

3 year old deck in need of new stain. I have powerwashed and cleaned. Do I need to sand before staining? Some say to do it, others say not needed. Do you think I should?

[mrklean]

We are in the same boat as you we are going to sand the bad areas or areas that look like they might come up some areas look fine so we are going to leave them alone.

[lindy rig]

I've done a couple decks this way and it really depends how badly (or not) you roughed up the wood when powerwashing. If there are any rough spots I would sand it otherwise if it's smooth then you are fine.

The trick is getting the old finish off without roughing up the wood and apparently I have not fully mastered that yet

[PurpleFloyd]

A powerwasher is not a finesse tool.

If you end up with a lot of fuzz then yeah, sanding may help but if you don't have the right sander and know what you are doing you can do more harm than good.With sand paper if the grit is too fine it will plug easily and you will go through tons getting the job done. Too coarse and it will leave deep scratches and swirl marks which will be pronounced by the stain.

[BuckSutherland]

3 year old deck in need of new stain. I have powerwashed and cleaned. Do I need to sand before staining? Some say to do it, others say not needed. Do you think I should?

You are an insurance adjuster and you cant figure it out???

No wonder you guys blow every single claim you work on. Just pretend its some random homeowner that you are screwing over for your company and do what you would expect them to do after a hail storm. If its good enough for their house it should be good enough for yours.

[DrJuice1980]

Just goes right from the throat, jeez Buck. Aggressive.

[Jaspernuts]

Im not an adjuster for home repairs. You will have to forgive Buck Dr. Juice, he's crabby because mother nature is trying to fill up all the natural wetlands that have been drained over the years. He probably has ducks and geese on his land and as we all know, there is no place for wildlife in the ag industry in minnesota.

[fishersofmen]

[JeremyCampbell]

Always better to go the extra mile and sand.

I and most find this gives way better results not just on decks but any material your applying a liquid coating to.

I always power wash any deck I'm doing but there are a small percentage of pros in the industry that are against it and use brush and chemical for removing grime.

If you have not done the deck yet, here it a few tips:

-Remove as much loose material as you can.

-Sand evenly, not just the bad spots.

-I like useing the shop vac for collecting all the dust.

Three year old deck shouldn't be too bad depending on the condition of the old stain this should be a breeze for you and go swiftly.

[Pat K]

I've worked for both Sherwin-Williams and Home Depot/Behr. The tech support people for both paint companies recommend using the chemical cleaners instead of power washing. They claim the pressure washer drives decaying wood fibers into the pores of the decking. This prevents the stain from being absorbed by the wood. Then when the decaying wood dries and shrinks the stain starts to peel.

I've yet to see a deck product that performs as well as the manufacturers claim.

[Surface Tension]

Deck wash, stiff brush, and elbow grease does a good job on dirty and stained wood.

[pikestabber]

Will power-washing suffice to remove all the old stain, or do I need to go with a chemical stripper? I have read bunches of reviews on the chem strippers and almost all are negative. I'm not afraid of elbow grease or taking my time to do it right, but I need to know what to do to strip my deck the best way... Any "step a" to "step z" run-downs from our resident pros out there for re-staining a deck?

[Surface Tension]

Deck Stain can be broken down into two groups.

One the penetrates the wood (semi transparent) and one that coats the surface of the wood (solid). A deck stained with semi transparent can be washed with a deck wash product. Read the instructions for cleaning. This won't take off the old stain and IMO that isn't necessary but it will kill mold and remove dirt and gray wood. Restain and you should have good results.

A solid stain will peel and why I would never use it, not until the deck was deteriorated enough to where I had to cover it with a solid. If you use a pressure washer to remove the stain then your removing wood too and for sure you'll have to sand it after. Do the deck wash, let dry and then use a wire brush to remove more loose stain/paint. Then decide if you want to sand/feather out the stain. Most would put a solid stain on at that point and forgo any sanding.

[pikestabber]

Thanks for the reply, ST! I appreciate it.

[chanfish]

dont do what i did..used deck wash and too stiff a brush and my cedar deck came out looking like a chia pet with the fibers coming out..so i sanded and sanded but it still looked hairy. cedar is soft wood so be careful...now i just use bleach and water with a garden hose sprayer..i use the same stain so i dont really have to strip the old stuff...file under lessons learned!!!