Old stain blotches

HoseHead

New Member
Working on a deck that the owner treated last go-around. Appears that he may have applied the oil-based stain in direct sunlight and in some isolated
places, it is sitting there kind of raised up and blotchy looking. Used a cleaner
on it and the deck looks good and ready except for these patches of ugliness.
Could make the assumption that the best thing for me to do would be to
simply use a stripper on these spots although I think this will leave light
patches and possibly show through the new finish. Of course the best option
would be to strip the whole deck, but frankly, aside from these spots, it
does'nt appear necessary. I'm no grand master at this, so any suggestions
are appreciated. Deck is ordinary pressure treated, and the old stain is semi-trans oil base. Thanks
 

HoseHead

New Member
Well....duh....there's an idea. For whatever reason, I must admit it had'nt
occurred to me just to try something simple like that. I swear, I can overthink
just about anything. Will have a go at it. Thanks FCPWLLC.
 

Tim Lynch

New Member
FCPWLLC said:
Have you tried sanding?

So on! A light sand is quicker 60 grit... so much faster and less burning the good wood around it!

Allways! sand that crap! if possible less work better results.
 

HoseHead

New Member
And sand we did. Looks "fair", but not great. That'll learn me. I'll make a mental note to bid high for fixing someone elses screw-ups in the future.
Thanks for the tip fellas. Now scuse me while I go put band-aids no my fingers
 

Everett

Member
If everything is as you stated originally this is called "flash drying." This occurs when the surface is too hot and when the product is applied it is not able to penetrate or coat as it was designed. It actually dries too quickly near the surfaces. When this happens you get the shiny areas that you describe. Another way for this to occur is in high humidity where the wood actually sweats and there is moisture in the wood cells that prevent the coating from penetrating completely. When this occurs the stain also does not adhere as it was intended and dries close to the surface as well. In any event, the best way is to strip the entire deck and brighten so that your final outcome will be consistent. As was mentioned when sanding in "areas" you will change the character of the wood so that areas where you didn't sand will not appear uniform after sanding. Actually, where you sanded may appear shiny now after applying your coating. It really is all in the preperation. The mistakes, blemishes, and imperfections are all highlighted after staining and sealing when it is much harder to correct. Good luck.
 

HoseHead

New Member
Thanks for the info on that Everett. In fact the owner did say he applied the
stain in direct sunlight/extreme heat. I met him today for a walkthrough and
actually, he was tickled to death with the results. The fact is, it looked so bad before, even a rookie like me could'nt help but make a good impression.
Maybe too good. He has a very large front porch with an even worse stain job
than the deck that he'd like me to bid. Holy Moly....all I can see is about 3
miles of plastic trying to cover the siding and porch pilars. Can any of you
recommend a decent stripper for the semi-trans oil stain??? Was considering
Wolman's, but after reading some info on this site, I'm thinking maybe there's
something better out there. I'm really needing to find a supplier and settling
into one brand that I like for everything. Running all over the countryside for
this and that is cutting into profits. Thanks guys.
 

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