Steve wrote:

Scott wrote on 22 Sep 2007 in group
alt.home.repair:



Scott wrote:

I know I've asked the question before about whether a
do-it-yourselfer should try pressue washing a 3-year old cedar deck
by himself or hire a professional. I see where Target is selling a
Black & Decker 1,600 PSI Electric Pressure Washer for $88.00. This
seems like a good buy, since hiring someone to do the deck every few
years would be around $100. My 3-year old cedar deck greyed
considerably last winter, after being cleaned with bleach and
re-stained (Sikken Natural Cedar stain)last year in the spring.
Cleaning it by hand this summer with bleach did very little. The
greying is only on the deck floor and top rail. The verticals are
fine.

I'm wondering if it would be worth it to buy this unit now for $88
and use it on my deck next spring, being careful not to spray too
close to the wood. If I'm careful, is it unlikely I'll damage the
wood?

Thanks!
Scott

I tried the pressure washer out on my small treated wood front porch,
and it worked fairly well. I hadn't cleaned this wood for several
years. I put the 1,600 psi spray as close as possible to the wood
without damaging it. It's still somewhat dingy in many places. I'm
wondering if I should try hand scrubbing the wood with a strong
cleaner and/or bleach solution first and then follow up with another
pressure wash? Hand scrubbing has worked well in the past, although
it's a chore.

Go over it again with the pressure washer. You'll wind up with a surface
that resembles a sandblasted sign, but it has it's own charm.

There's no way to get all the grey off in one pass without damaging the
wood. If you don't mind an irregular surface, the power washer will do
it for you. If you want a regular surface, you'll have to start thinking
about a sander.
--
Steve B.
New Life Home Improvement

Steve,

I scrubbed the front porch with a good cleaner and bleach, then pressured washed
it again. It came out great...not perfect, but as light as possible, considering
the age of the porch (at least 15 years). The wood appears not to undamaged.

Then I did a trial section in the corner of my 3-year old cedar deck that had
become very greyed over the last year and a half. The pressure washer did a pretty
good job, although it was slow going. I had to be very careful to avoid gouging out
the softer wood. Now that it's dried, it looks better, but still somewhat dingy.

I'm thinking, should I consider renting a power sander? Would a power sander do
the job on the heavily greyed wood, or would I want to pressure wash first and then
finish with a sander?

I noticed that the top rail could not be cleaned well enough with the pressure sander.
(Last time I used a circular sanding pad on my electric drill, which worked very well).

Thanks again!
Scott