new deck

[caz247]

Hi, I'm a newbie to this site and to reno projects.  We've just had a new verandah put in and need to finish and protect it. It is jarrah wood.  From my research I believe an orbital sander is the right sander to finish the new raw surface before applying deck sealer.  Hoping to please get confirmation of this approach. I dont want to ruin it!

[Jason]

Hi @caz247,

Welcome to Workshop. Great to see you make your first post. We trust you'll get heaps of helpful information, advice and inspiration for all your projects around the home and garden from our amazing community members. 

It would be great to see your new verandah if you could please share some photos. It might also help members to see whether it does need a sand or not before oiling. And can you please confirm when the new deck was installed? 

Please let me know if you ever need a hand getting the most from the Workshop site, or have any feedback about how we can make Workshop even more useful to you. 

Jason

[MitchellM]

@caz247 please take a close-up of the decking showing the grain and how smooth it is.

New decking mostly comes finished and smooth, not needing sanding.

You may however need a liquid deck prep product before oiling, though this is generally only needed for merbau.

[caz247]

Here are two photos of the new deck.  The second is an attempted close-up of the jarrah wood to show surface.  It is new timber.  It is quite smooth and nice and clean (at the moment)!

Not sure if my original response posted - having some computer issues today.  The deck was finished yesterday, so I want to take the opportunity to seal it over the weekend as I think it is forecast to be rain-free for a few days.  New verandah posts to sand and paint also.

Excited to be a new member of this community.

[MitchellM]

@caz247 I presume you want to sand back the filler than has been used on the screws?

Bunnings offers deck Sanders for hire, but I would not be using an aggressive grit.

@Jason could you tag in someone please that might have some experience here. Perhaps @ProjectPete  .

Personally I would use a random Orbital then feather in my sanding marks to the plank.

@ProjectPete do you think we'll have to sand the whole deck now? I'm concerned if we don't we are going to see sanding marks from taking back the putty.

[Kermit]

Don't do it this weekend @caz247.

New timber needs to be exposed to the elements for a while before oiling. 

https://cabots.com.au/faqs/how-long-do-i-have-to-wait-to-coat/ 

[caz247]

Thank you MitchellM for all of these tips.  I'll need to sand back the filler and I agree that it likely needs only a light sanding. I'm not sure though whether I should also be doing a light sanding of the whole deck so that there are no obvious sanding marks around the screws. This is a very valid point you make.  I'll need to hire sanding equipment for the job, so need to work out whether I need just a small hand held sander or a larger one to run over the entire deck.  Thank you for your time ... I really appreciate these insights.

[caz247]

Hi Kermit

Thank you for this information and for the link.  It makes sense. I think it would be best to do a very light sanding by hand where the putty is then leave the deck for several weeks.  Thank you again.  Will eventually post pics of the finished product.