Mandy asks…
Why is VERANDA composite deck getting splotchy?
My husband just built our beautiful three-level deck with VERANDA brand composite decking (in cedar color) from Home Depot. The decking has only been up for a few weeks now and it’s starting to get little grayish black splotches all over it. It looks terrible. He installed it as per the instructions. Has anyone else had this happen? Is this a normal part of the weathering process? It can’t be dirt because we’ve barely been oni t and when we have we’ve swept off any dirt. There is an untainted spot on the deck where the plastic box of screws has been sitting…that’s theonly reminaing nice original colored spot on the whole deck.
Suntan answers:
My advice is to type veranda/lawsuits into your browser and see what you come up with. Tyvek has had a load of lawsuits due to fading and warping. Or go to consumer reports to find out if there has been any other complaints of this nature. Hope things turn out for the best, oh, is the deck in a damp area that is shaded, could be mold.
Sandy asks…
What is best wood deck stain preservative?
Consumer Reports say Flood Solid Deck & Siding or Sikkens Cetol SRD. My Home Depot CSR says Behr Ultra Water Proofer. Others I was told are Flood CFW and Cedar Guild TWP 300™ Series Deck Stain. Confused? plesae help?
Suntan answers:
I recently did some testing of products on cement floor tiles. Many of the products that I tested called themselves wood preservatives as wells as masonry, etc..I tested for all sorts of stains. Acid and base. I found that generally you get what you pay for. The really expensive stuff, like $100 a gallon did totally out-preform the products that cost half that and less.
You can see my tests here:
http://www.villalagoontile.com/sealing-cement-tile.html
Donna asks…
WOOD EXPERTS (decking) can you help me find this wood?
i want to build a deck and my house is liighblue/gray and well the deck colors i find are just too bright for the scheme i am going for. i need a darker more espresso wood color. Note: this is an outside Deck. i want the wood to be naturally dark but not black just naturally chocolate colored, this way i dont have to paint the cedar wood or whatever i saw at home depot. Is there any such thing as the type of wood i am looking for? i do not really want to use paint to get it to the color i want because i want the natural flow and detail of the wood to show. or is there a certain stain to get the wood to do this? also does an outside deck wood need gloss? i dont think i want gloss but, wouldnt the wood get direct sunlight and water? please help me find my espresso / chocolate colored decking wood….
thanks
Suntan answers:
Outside decks need to be constructed with material that will withstand time and weather. Natural woods are cedar, redwood and maybe some others I’m not familiar with. There are dark woods, but the cost would be prohibitive and they probably wouldn’t last without treatment. Treated wood, such as you saw at Home Depot, is probably pine and is light colored. However, you can stain it as dark as you like. Note, that if you live in a hot area like Florida, the deck can get very hot in the summer requiring shoes to walk on it. Good luck.
Carol asks…
What is the easiest way to remove paint from our deck and stain?
So our deck had a bunch of chipping paint and my wife and I had decided it would be a good idea to remove all the paint and stain it. Started off with a power wash which took off most of the paint in the high traffic areas and barely any elsewhere. I’ve been sanding the rest off with a belt sander and it is taking FOREVER. Any thoughts to help in the process. We’ve actually tried a paint stripper from Home Depot (not sure which brand, sorry) and it didn’t do diddly-poo. I believe the wood is cedar
Suntan answers:
To answer your question, I highly recommend using Marine Strip, or equal high strength product. It is thick and goopy, you can roll it on with a 3/4″ nap. Be very careful though, this stuff is nasty and will burn your skin, eyes, etc.
Be aware, this product will NOT be available at Home Depot. Depending where you live, a high end paint store should carry it, possibly Sherwin Williams (though their selection varies by location). Our local is called Halman-Lindsay.
My bigger qeustion: why are you stripping the paint? If it is adhering well, just apply solid stain right over the top of it. Removing the paint is just a lot of extra work. If you are going to use a transparent stain, or semi-transparent stain, then I understand, but you probably aren’t I’m guessing. If it is cedar, and you are going to use a semi or fully transparent stain though -you’ll need to revive the wood after you strip it in order to neutralize the stripping agent.
Just know that even solid stain won’t last much longer on a deck surface. You’ll probably get 2 to 3 years out of it, max, on any flat part that you can walk on. The semi trans for transparent stain will last even less time.
Mary asks…
Deck Lighting, where can I find the best deal on post and floor decking lights?
I’m building a new deck soon and decided I’m going to use a pressure treated cedar tone, which looks much like cedar, and I’m looking at putting low voltage lights on the rail posts on top and on the side by the bottom to light up the deck flooring, everywhere I have looked it is pretty expensive, does anyone have any places to recommend that offers a good deal or any products you may have used yourself, Ive looked at home depot, menards, lowes, and looks like they start out around 25.00 ea. well I will be needing 16 for the posts and 10 for the floor and that’s a lot for lighting, if anyone has any ideas or sugg. when doing deck lighting please fill me in thanks everyone for your help, Larry
Suntan answers:
Check prices at the online sites – even Lowes and Home Depot will tell you their prices online.
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