Is It Ok To Use Tsp To Clean A Deck Before Staining

Cleaning and sealing your wood deck is a rewarding but backbreaking job. In our experience, we've seen customers and contractors try to make clean their deck past using loftier pressure washing and zilch else. It's a fault that cannot exist undone and could damage your deck to the bespeak of replacement. In the following video we demonstrate the departure between using a high quality deck stripper and brightener and non using whatever cleaners at all. These are the methods we use when providing deck cleaning services in Minneapolis and St Paul, MN.

Why is cleaning and sealing your wood necessary?

Reasons for forest deck cleaning

Contaminants demand to be removed before applying deck stain. Contaminants include expressionless wood, old or failing sealer, mold, mildew and clay. When contaminants are removed new sealers/stain tin can form a potent bond to the wood fibers and increase the life of the new sealer.
Mold and mildew grow spores in the wood fibers and practise non allow the wood on your deck to dry out, increasing the chance of rot. This mold growth and rot is most often seen at the butt ends of the deck boards. Over fourth dimension, this rot will cause your deck boards to become brittle and loosely attached to the floor joists.

Reasons for wood deck sealing

Keeps out moisture – Moisture volition eventually crusade rot but before it does water will launder away natural resins and color in your wood.
Protects UV impairment – In our opinion this is ane of the biggest reasons for staining your deck. Prolonged UV harm will break down prison cell structure causing wavy ridged surfaces, often times leading to large cracks and splinters.
Inhibits mold growth – Nobody wants a moldy deck. It'due south slick, dangerous and your deck tin't breathe so it tin can't dry. Deck stains contain mildewcides, aiding in the prevention of mold growth.
Appearance – A clean and stained deck is much more welcoming than a neglected one.

Damage acquired from high force per unit area washing

Wood is comprised of ridged lignin fibers and soft cellulose fibers. The lignin is the strength and gum that holds the wood together. When high force per unit area washing is used, the cellulose fibers are stripped away from the lignin leaving wavy splintered surfaces.

Wood cleaning chemicals

In that location is no one solution or chemical that is correct for every chore. Knowledge of forest species, sealers and chemical reactions are all factors in determining the best course of action for wood restoration. For wood restoration its best to go with the dominion of conservation which means using the mildest treatment that gives adequate results.

Sodium Hydroxide – This chemical is primarily used to emulsify previous coatings of stain, dead forest and dirt. Nosotros ofttimes use very diluted amounts to clean blank forest. When you purchase a pre-formulated stripping solution, surfactants, buffers and other misc. chemicals are added to work in synergy with NaOH. Sodium Hydroxide is extremely caustic and will irritate eyes, skin and respiratory arrangement. Follow the manufacturers guidelines for personal protective equipment (PPE). Pure Sodium Hydroxide(basic) ranges between 12 and fourteen on the pH scale. Application methods listed below. To neutralize nosotros utilize citric/oxalic acid and rinse.
Bleach – You lot can mix 4 gallons water, 1 gallon bleach (12.v%) and ane loving cup TSP (Tri-Sodium Phosphate) for simple deck and wood cleaning. While a solution like this tin be very effective at killing mold and prepping blank wood it has its pitfalls besides. These include; browning of vegetation (TSP helps to reduce this), loss of natural wood color and respiratory distress. Bleach's counter part in wood cleaning, sodium per-carbonate, takes longer dwell times to accomplish similar results but is easier to control awarding. Considering bleach (sodium hypochlorite) is reactive in nature it is more sensitive to dwell time, sun exposure, concentration and surface temp of wood. So, while bleach may be an effective household chemical for wood cleaning, information technology takes a seasoned professional to know how and when to utilize it. Typically, we utilise a bleach mixture for maintenance cleaning on wood decks which have already been sealed. Bleach past itself is basic with a pH around 12.half dozen. Application methods listed below. To neutralize this mixture we thoroughly rinse with water.
Sodium Per-carbonate – Advantages to sodium per-carbonate wood cleaners include; ease of employ, emulsifies clay, safe for vegetation, wood color retentiveness and does non cause respiratory distress. The emulsification of clay allows for easier low pressure cleaning. Disadvantages to sodium per-carbonate over household bleach is a slightly college toll of materials and requires a longer dwell time to effectively kill mold. In some extreme cases it may not be able to eradicate mold completely. Sodium per-carbonate by itself is an Alkaline(basic) with a pH effectually ten.5. Application instructions below. To neutralize we apply citric/oxalic acid based brighteners and rinse.
Citric Acid – Citric acid is used to neutralize a base or anything above a neutral PH of 7. If forest is likewise basic prior to sealing, the new sealer's curing process will exist altered, resulting in premature failure. If wood is too acidic, it may cause blotchiness and foreclose proper penetration of your sealer. Woods with a lot of yellowish, red or brownish in them including; redwood, cedar and red oak will tend to have a lot of tannic acrid. Tannic acid combined with iron rich water forms tannin stains. Oxalic and citric acids reduce the iron compounds helping to suppress the germination of tannin staining. In summary, acids such as citric or oxalic will brighten, neutralize and remove tannin stains from forest species containing tannic acid. Application methods listed below. Pure citric acid has a pH around 2.5.
Oxalic Acid – Oxalic acid is faster interim and more than aggressive than citric but it'due south as well toxic. Citric acid takes a longer time to brighten and reach pH rest. Oxalic acrid and citric acid can be combined into a wood brightening/neutralizing solution. A brightening mix with both citric and oxalic acid is how we typically neutralize after applying a base such as Sodium Hydroxide. Oxalic acid works very well at removing rust stains in wood and physical. Oxalic acid by itself has a pH of 1.5. Application methods listed below.

Definitions:
pH: A measurement of how basic or acidic a substance is. A pH to a higher place 7 is considered bones while a pH lower than 7 is considered an acid.
Caustic : A substance that is corrosive to living tissue. Caustics refer to stiff bases, particularly Alkalis.
Alkalis : A water soluble base of operations. The describing word Alkaline is normally refered to as a soluble base of operations.
Base : A substance with a pH college than vii. In forest restoration, Alkaline metal's are used to emulsify clay, dead forest, stain and mold.
Acrid : A substance with a pH lower than seven. In wood cleaning, acids are brighteners and neutralizers.
Neutralization : A reaction between an acid and a base. Neutral is a seven on the PH scale. Water is very shut to a vii on the pH calibration.

How to utilise deck cleaners

We either utilize a method called down streaming or we apply the chemicals directly with a custom built battery powered pump. The application method depends on the toughness of the job. For more difficult to remove sealers we apply our custom pump because it allows a higher concentration of stripper or cleaner. For transparent and some semi-transparent stains nosotros will downstream the chemicals through our pressure washer. Downstreaming works by drawing chemical through an attachment at the high pressure supply line. Most downstream attachments will depict at a ratio of ten-1 to 20-1 (20 gal water to 1 gallon cleaning solution). Specific pressure level washer tips need to exist used and so the pressure is lowered, assuasive the injector to create suction. Instead of using a bombardment powered pump to utilise cleaners at high concentrations you can use a standard garden pump sprayer or a mop and saucepan.

Prophylactic Precautions

Most deck cleaning strippers are harmful if swallowed or come in contact with your skin. Protect yourself with gloves, eye protection, skin protection and a respirator. Read the manufactures instructions and condom warnings earlier starting your deck restoration project.

If you lot would like to see before and after pictures of completed deck staining projects please visit our deck staining in Minnesota page.