I clean a few PT decks here and there but we don’t do the full restoration- strip, brighten, seal- because there just isn’t much demand for it around here and it doesn’t fit into our flow.
What about you?
We still do deck restorations. I was ready to get out of it because it is so weather sensitive. Instead I raised my price quite a bit this year.
same here
We will wash them and usually refer them to someone else to get it stained… It seems like one more headache I dont need.
BUT there is a huge demand for it here a few real good companies specialize in it.
We started last year and found it to be a great add on service for us. We have done about 30 decks so far this spring and its getting easier and easier. We have been using Armstrong Clark stains and love it. I still haven’t tried Ready Seal due to them acting like an ass when I called to place an order. I hear its good stuff tho.
Anderson Clark is number 1 for me.
We do wood restoration and still stain a couple of houses a year but slowly where pulling away from that… It’s good money in wood restoration but it is so weather sensitive when it comes to the staining process it’s a headache at times…
What do you all tell the customer when they want their house and deck cleaned? I don’t really mess with wood decks or fences, too much time and it’s better for someone else to do.
Tell them about what? Could you be more specific with your question?
I would just tell them you don’t do decks. Sorry we don’t provide deck cleaning.
Sorry, I should have quoted, I was asking how to tell them we don’t do decks without losing the whole job. Currently, we sub that work to a painting company, but they also do pressure washing which worries me a bit.
Decks are in high demand in my area. Good $. Turning them down would be a foolish thing for me to do. I am actually starting to get known for doing good work when it comes to them.
We do decks. Good money. We’ve done $15k in decks and fences so far this year. Ready Seal mostly. We had a drought, but much rain now.
To answer the direct question on decks, no we don’t. Learned on mine last year and did not really care for the process. That said I would not turn them down in the slow season, which is now, which is why we are painting home Tues-Thurs this week.
Deck Restoration is the industry where you can also find to restore, repair, and maintain all of your Exterior Wood Surfaces and more!!!
That is about all I did my first 20 years.
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When you guys do a deck with the screen in porches, what do you do for the wood where the screen is located? Just curious and should probably start another thread for it…
I clean it the same as if the screen wasn’t there. Gently 
Use your imagination! If cleaning, be careful not to damage the screen. If staining cut out cardboard and insert where screen is. Remove the screen where possible. Use a screen friendly stain.
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[COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]I have stained many screened in porches and gazebos. You should never use high pressure on wood anyway. There are charts available that will tell you how much pressure you will have at the nozzle for various gallons per minutes and at various PSI machine, but generally I never use over 800 PSIat the nozzle tip for wood. I use less PSI if I can.
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[COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]This is one of the falsehoods about pressure washers when people try to clean a deck. Many people will buy a 3 GPM machine that puts out4,000 PSI. It would be much better for a person wanting to clean a deck to use a machine that put out 4 GPM or even more at 1,200 PSI or less.
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[COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]PM me if you need more information about how to get your pressure down. But let’s say you have plenty of GPM and you pressure is down where you will not blow out the lignin (the soft tissue in the wood between the harder growth rings). If the screen is in good shape you should be able toapply your cleaners right through the screen with a pump up sprayer. I am assuming you are talking about cleaning the balusters and post…right? [/FONT][/COLOR]
[COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]After the cleaners have had some dwell time, use caution as you spray through the screen making sure you are not too close to it, but only close enough to get the job done if the screen is holding up okay. It should,but I have seen some screens that were very old and even the slightest touch would make it fall apart. If that is the case, tell the owners that they will need to replace the screens after you are done and go ahead and take them down.BUT DO TELL THEM FIRST BEFORE YOU BEGIN.
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[COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Okay, so now you made it through the cleaning process and you are ready to stain. One of my favorite stains is Ready Seal. It is a non-dryingoil and is very thin. Thin enough, in fact, to be easily sprayed through screen wire. There a lot of other good things I could say about Ready Seal, but I willfocus on what you asked about. [/FONT][/COLOR]
[COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]While they say Ready Seal is non-drying they are talking about it not being non-drying in wood. It will dry on exterior surfaces, but the good thing is, it does not dry on surfaces very fast and you have time towork with it. Anyway, what I do is spray the Ready Seal right through the screen. I will apply the Ready Seal to the wood through the screen for 20 minutes or so and then I will stop and go back with a terry cloth rag, spray a little Simple Green onto the rag and wipe off the screen I was spraying through. The terry cloth rag will pull the stain right out of the screen. When the rag gets soaked with stain, I get a new rag and repeat until the screen is clean. It only takes a few wiping’s so it is not a hard process.
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[COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]When you are done no one will know how you stained those balusters and railings behind the screen but you. [/FONT][/COLOR][/SIZE]
