A Little Advice Might Be Nice

OK,FF4H, how would YOU incorporate the citrus wash? DS straight from the bottle, or mix tank at what %?

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Well that all depends on what product you use if you go to pressure works and get the citrus you need 1 gallon citrus .5 brown to 3.5 gallons of water in a 5

I wouldn’t neutralize anything if a dark stain is going on. Heat won’t help and will probably hurt

Heat will definitely help. You need the warm water for the salt

@MDA1775 set these guys straight :joy::joy:

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I haven’t done much with cedar shake. I would be inclined to go with sodium percarbonate applied with a 12v so I could dial in the mix for different areas. It also milder and I would be much less concerned about overspray/drift. I would probably still neutralize it with oxalic or citrus just because you are going to ensure the stain will appear as it is advertised and not super dark. IDK what stain is being used etc but that is a pretty good rule of thumb, especially if you’re prepping for someone else. Dwell time will be your friend but it can be tough if there is a lot of wind and sun, that means more chems so price accordingly so you don’t get burned on that end of it. As for the deck, I would use the same thing and I would do it first so you don’t get spotting on it. Good Luck, looks like a cool project.

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@Innocentbystander neutralizing is not just to restore colour… its to mitigate the effects of the cleaning agent from further acting on the wood. You certainly want to neutralize to avoid dried out shakes that will begin to crack. Sealing / staining these shakes already puts enough strain on them.

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Fair enough

What about cleaning with oxalic and a surfactant?

@MrSparkleVA What’s the update? How’d you end up cleaning it? And how’d it turn out?

I bid the job at $3200, because the limitation of no chlorine made me leary. I think the painter was offended, but to be honest I’m relieved to have avoided that potential disaster.

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