alternative to bleach for mildew?

[ghouchu]

this must be a common problem, but i've not seen it discussed, even in a moderately extensive search in the archives. after soaping down the deck--clorox, with a cup of liquid tide and about a cup of new dawn--through the downstream injector, 15 minutes of dwell and a thorough washing with a 25 degree nozzle, there would remain some patches of mildew. resoaping those areas will usually get the mildew, but it bleaches out the wood, making it lighter than the rest of the deck. result is that i have to go back and do the entire blasted deck again to get consistency.

i've tried a deck washing/brightening product obtained at national chain hardware store, to no avail. any suggestions?

also, i use the brightener mentioned above to nuetralize the deck after washing. the only active ingredient mentioned is 10% oxalic acid. it is diluted 4 to 1 and applied through a pump sprayer. i give it 15 minutes dwell, as directed, and rinse it of with a 40 degree nozzle held about a foot from the deck--so it's a rinse-off, not a pressure-wash off. is that the way to do it? should i look for a product with more oxalic acid? wash it off more thoroughly? less thoroughly? the homeowner has been pleased each time, and it's definitely done a good job, but there could be a product/approach that does an even better job, and good is not good enough if better is attainable.

thanks

richard

 

[Mike Hughes]

Richard,

Did you say you dillute the brightner 4 to 1 before you spray it on??????


Also, how much does that downstream injector dillute your cleaning mixture?? Perhaps too much? And dont' you think you would have better control over applying your deck cleaner if you did it with a pump up sprayer or something similar?