Ready Seal Problems (possibly)

[aquapro]

I have been using Ready Seal for over a year and am finding that the horizontal surfaces are fading out very quickly. I am not sure if I am doing something wrong or if it is the product.
When I begin we strip the complete deck then nuetralize using oxalic acid (rinsed thouroughly). Next we let the deck sit at least 24 hours to dry then apply the Ready Seal.
We use a Titan 440 sprayer to apply then back brush the entire deck using a stain pad (first coat). Next we apply the second coat also using the Titan 440 and backbrush this as well. I have earlier been told that 2 coats are all that is necessary. Many times we apply a third coat to the floor because of the fading problem we have been seeing. This doesn't seem to help.
We have also completed decks, which are fading, by simply applying 2-3 coats with a stain pad only.
After the year, sometimes earlier, we receive phone calls from the customers having us out to look at the deck. They are correct, the horizontal surface have protected, but lost their color.
Can anyone offer any suggestions to what may being occuring here.
As you all know, we cannot afford to redo every deck after a year.

Thanks for any advise!!!

John Moller II
AquaPro Powerwashing

 

[Mike Hughes]

One piece of advice I can offer is to wait longer then 24 hours to seal the deck...........and invest in a moisture meter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I won't do it any sooner then a day and a half......sometimes two days...........depending on the weather. (humidty and night temps)

The wood must be below 12% moisture to use ready seal. If not, it could compromise the job.........which could be what's happening to you...........I'm not positive.

By the way........try one with out back brushing........I have never backbrushed one yet..........the word is not in my vocabulary..........when ready seal dries, it leaves no lap marks or runs, therefore, no need to backbrush...........unless you have a puddle of it or something that you want to get rid of.

 

[aquapro]

Mike

We don't exactly backbrush all surfaces like spindles, but we have brushed the floor on a regular basis. I'll try waiting a little longer the next time I seal. Were can I purchase a moisture meter at a good price?

Thank-you

John moller II

 

[laynlow]

Moisture Meters

Any good woodworking supply will have them. There are many styles and price ranges. You can start looking at www.hartvilletool.com and www.rockler.com


Later,
Sam

 

[johny]

This is a problem i am afraid of too right now,the decks i did look great,but i am afraid they wont last.My problem is putting that stuff on in direct sunlight,in a hot day.This should be a no-no.But what am i gonna do??It rains every couple of days,i cant wait for sun to go down or for a cloudy day.I noticed this on my last one.I sprayed the deck,off course no backbrshing,where it was in direct sunlight,it dried too fast withot penetrating,looked light and nice color.Then i did the steps that were in the shade,paddles sit there a while before dried and penetrated well,off course the steps looked much darker color then the deck,which wasnt noticable to custumer,but guess which part is gonna fade and look light first??Off course one that was lighter to start with.If that stuff sits there a while,your deck is gonna look much darker and lastlonger,than why are you backbrushing,let it penetrate!!
just my oppinion
Jonhny

 

[charlie]

Try lightly sand the decks with 50 grit sand paper. It will absorb quicker.

Charlie

 

[charlie]

Forgot to ad always wear proper equipment when sanding a deck, safety glasses and an a respirator.

Charlie

 

[aquapro]

The only reason I have backbrushed over the years is for 2 reasons:
1. If the deck was sprayed too fast by my employees then the backbrushing evens the stain out. (maybe too thin in places)
2. When backbrushing, our pads are always full of stain so this helps us to get the correct amount of stain necessary for the job.

Thanks for the response!

John Moller II

 

[Mike Hughes]

Johnny,

I personally feel sun/shade doesnt matter. I have sealed many a deck in blistering sun.........and I dont get any complaints.

I dont think that because it looks dry it didnt penetrate.......Ready Seal penetrates rather quickly.

To know for sure, ask Peirce or Sunbrite.

 

[johny]

Mike ,
I am glad i am not the only one doing this.For some reason i always felt you sholdnt do this.I think i read this in some very old post.I feel better now knowing people havent complained
I guess my argument would be,ready seal lightens up in 2 weeks,right.Now i sprayed in the shade were it turned out was so much darker.That should lighten up to normal color.In the sun it was already light,so that will get even lighter
I hope you are right,i want my work to last a while
Thanks
Johny

 

[Mike Hughes]

Johnny,

If you take two steps back and think about it, its really quite simple why the shaded areas look different then the sunny areas.


It is because they are shady/sunny every day of the year. They wear differently. They will always look different........no matter what sealer you use.......or even if you didnt maintain the deck at all............

Thats why I think you are seeing a difference.........its the wood, not the sealer.


Mike

 

[JR Wood]

I always notice that a sealer looks darker if the deck is cool and in the shade.The knots always looks finished instead of whiting out.I suspect that the sealer delivery system is intact as it is working the sealer into the deck.I know that Olympic uses mineral spirits and linseed oil which will evaporate very rapidly when the deck boards are hot.I try to keep my sealer cool and seal the deck when the deck is cool or in the shade.


As for Ready seal,I tried it twice on my own back porch.The first time it faded in 2 months.When i asked about it,everyone said that the deck must be wet or "thirsty".I redid it and the deck was dry as a bone and I used medium brown(a shade darker than light brown) I used the whole sample and spread it out with a stain pad.It was faded out about 5 months.I put cabots natural water based clear solution in march and hasn't faded a bit. Nothing against ready seal but I am not convinced.

 

[Paul]

Ready Seal?????

I'm with JR here, I did well over a hundred decks last year mainly with Cuprinol Oil Based sealer, but I had about 18 or so I put on ready seal. So far this year, I have had 7 call backs, and all of them are the ready seal decks. All of them looked so dried out!!
Color was much lighter. I noticed the real dried out look on what was most of the newer decks. Anyway, I reapplied to all the horizontal areas, but next year when the real recoat time rolls around, I will probably do them all in Cuprinol oil.

The ready seal is super sweet to apply, but I think they lack something in the UV protection area.

Just my thoughts!

 

[Greg Rentschler]

J.R. & Paul.

Im wondering if your problems with ready seal are your not putting enough on .... ? When we seal the floor we apply the ready seal until the deck keeps a wet appearance. I have seen many a deck where the product was wicked in so quickly that you could touch the deck without getting any oily residue...... we apply it until the surface remains wet for 20 mins or more. The same is true for F & P and similar finishes but the coating type finishes tend to require much less product to acheive this. We average 75 to 100 sq ft to a gallon with the Ready Seal. ...just a thought.

I just dont feel that you can get enough Ready Seal on the deck using a stain pad or a conventional airless setup.

Greg Rentschler
TIMBERSEAL

 

[Paul]

Actually I have applied it at a rate as high as approximately 50 square feet per gallon on horizontal surfaces. In reality, if you have to apply it at a rate so high, you are going to use so much more product, that it really doesn't pay to use the stuff. I know its a great time saver since you don't have to backbrush, but if I use 2-3 gallons more soaking it into the wood, I could use a better product and spend 30 minutes backbrushing and fell more comfortable with the finish product.

I have applied via, airless, deckhand, pump sprayer and the black & decker battery operated sprayer and one way didn't seem to do any better or worse than the other.

Maybe I'll try it again and just soak the heck out of it, just to see if it will hold up.

 

[Greg Rentschler]

Since we started using Ready Seal we changed our billing method to account for the additional product usage. Our pricing structure is broken down into the labor to restore and apply per sq. or linear ft with the quantity and cost of the sealer being billed seperately. Customers are told upfront an estimated number of gallons and if it goes over they are billed for it.

Even if we use an additional 3 gallons of product it is worth it to me. I have employees apply most sealers and to not have to worry about them tracking, leaving lap marks, etc.. is one less headache.

 

[JR Wood]

Someday

 

[Fairway]

I would not say that a properly sealed deck w/ready seal, has the same protection as it would if you were to use the other sealers mentioned. It has more. Lets not forget that all the extra gallons that are applied are not wasted, they are working inside the wood. This is a valuable attribute of this sealer. Its true that it is costly to load the wood with this sealer, but when done correctly we've experienced outstanding results.

 

[Mike Hughes]

Lets not forget about how easy it is to clean and reapply in the future........another benefit.

 

[Greg Rentschler]

Actually Mike that is a key selling point for me......

A vast margin of our customers are victims of products that after a year have failed (CWF & BEHR to name 2). They have blistered and began to peel not to mention look like hell. I don't go in selling them on the longevity of a finish or a bunch of hooplaa..... I sell them on the idea of simplified maintenance. I enforce the idea that you can't get away from the routine work that is needed to care for exterior wood so why not make it as simple as possible without sacrificing quality. A light cleaning followed by a maintenance coat every two years keeps things on a level that they can handle.

We have so many partial cans of product in the shop that we were just not satisfaied with be it the appearance, application, or longevity. We have used Olympic Natural Look and while application wasn't bad the color was not appealing to me. It tends to leave too much pigment on the surface in my opinion.

Bottom line is everybody has something that works for them... guess thats all that matters. We use Ready Seal and will continue to use it..... 60 gallons are going to a log home this coming week. I'll post pics.

Greg