Deck strip, sand and oil

[DIY_Dan]

Hi Workshoppers,

I thought my deck experience might prove a handy reference for many on here. Our deck was about 5 years old and ready for re-oiling - after earlier failed attempts I knew that a total strip and sand would be necessary to get the best result.

This was the original state, clearly in need of some attention.

Initially I resorted to using Power Prep and the pressure sprayer, which wasn't quite enough for stripping back of the existing deck finish. Here is one of the initial stages of using Power Prep.

I shifted tactics to a paint stripper (Liquid 😎 which was a little more potent and got the result I needed.  You can see how effective it was in the photo below.

After going over the entire deck with Liquid 8 and the pressure sprayer, I decided to sand the entire surface.  I wanted a really high quality result when oiling, and so took the time not only to sand, but to sand over the decking twice.

Below is a photo after a coarse sanding (P40 sandpaper) and then a fine sanding (P280 sandpaper). Smooth as a baby's bottom now!

I'm about to add a couple of coats of oil, and will share pictures when done!  Can't wait to see how it comes up now that the hard work has been done - anticipation in the household is high as you might imagine.

[Jason]

Welcome to the Workshop community @DIY_Dan. It's fantastic to have you join us. I hope you find the site both useful and fun.

Thanks for sharing this project. It looks like you've done a great job sanding the deck and I'm sure it will inspire others. Looking forward to seeing the finished result after you have oiled.

Please post again soon.

Jason 

[Kermit]

Good result. Do you think you would have got the same result using just sanding or was the paint remover necessary? I wasn't happy with the results I got last time when oiling my deck. It looks patchy because it cops different amounts of sun. Just scrubbing it with deck clean clearly wasn't enough. I was planning to sand it next time but the paint remover could make it much easier...

[DIY_Dan]

Hi Kermit, the original stain was Cabots Aquadeck and it had six coats on from the previous five years' use. As the deck is covered it only weathers on two sides, with the less exposed regions appearing almost pristine. To just sand it back was just too hard for me - maybe with an aggressive belt sander or something, but I didn't really want to go gouging out a few millimetres of board to get rid of the stain. Using Liquid 8 made it so easy to remove the Aquadeck, but I used a power washer to get it off, so the grain of the timber stood up a bit anyway, so required sanding regardless. If you have a Dulux product on there already ie Cabots, Feast Watson or Intergrain, give their product technical team a call. They are super helpful - I wish I had have called before taking advice from storemen and women. Then I wouldn't have spent money on Power Prep which didn't work at all for me.

[DIY_Dan]

Finally gotten around to updating this post with the finished product!!

Here is the deck after the first coat of Intergrain Nature's Timber Oil:

And after the second coat:

Now the deck is made from River Reds hardwood, which has almost as many colours as Spotted Gum, but it is primarily pinkish with the odd bit of almost pure white. The whiter boards have taken on quite an orange tint, which isn't overly pleasing, but I think next year when it's due for another oil, I'll whack a Jarrah tinted Nature's Timber Oil over the top and darken it up a bit.

Hope this provides some sort of info for all of you doing, or re-doing, your decks.

[Barker]

@DIY_Dan

I need to start again with my deck too. It's a big area so your suggestion of using paint stripper sounds good - I was thinking about hiring a floor sander but I also don't like the idea of taking a few millimetres off the timber. Just wondering what you ended up using when it came to sanding? Did you just do it by hand?

[Jason]

@Barker

Sorry, I noticed that you didn't get a reply to your question. 

You might be interested in my deck renewal project. I hired a floor sander. It was an easy job. 

Jason

[Russell]

My deck was painted with an acrylic which is super hard to get off! I tried a commercial sander but the boards aren't even so it just chews throuigh the paper. A guerney works but only if I can get purchase on somewhere where the paint is lifting and the paint stripper I had doen't really make any difference. At this stage I think I need to replace the whole deck!

[Jason]

That sounds very frustrating @Russell. Let us know what paint stripper you were using, and if possible share a photo or two of the deck so we can see what you are working with. There are plenty of Workshop members with deck rejuvenation experience so hopefully the community will be able to suggest some alternative tactics for you without having to replace the boards.

Let me also extend a very warm welcome to Workshop. It's lovely to have you join us. I'm looking forward to reading more about your projects and plans. I trust you will receive plenty of helpful information and advice from our members, both for this project and many to come in the future.

Please let me know if you ever need a hand getting the most from the site.

Jason

[Kermit]

@Russell

Another alternative to replacing the deck would be to paint the boards with decking paint like @SoMuch2Do did here - https://www.workshop.com.au/t5/Outdoor-Living/Replace-or-Paint-worn-decking/m-p/5125 

I'd certainly try to do everything to get them back to the timber first though.