Is This A Deck I Should Pass Up?

[FLORIN]

Went out to see this deck today. It is aprox 1500sf counting all the rails and posts and steps. It has badly peeling PAINT on it. Im thinking its a latex or acrylic or something. The chips are not briddle, its kinda rubbery.

Can all of this junk come up with a strong strip or does it all need a hard sand to remove all so i could put a wood stain on it. He wanted me to just strip and repaint with same stuff but i got a feelin it will do the same thing in couple years. Or is there a paint that can be applied succesfully to a deck.

Its a gorgeous home with a great view in a great neighborhood and am pretty sure customer wont be too cheap. But I am wondering if its just a lost cause and will be more headaches than its worth.

How would you guys tackle tghis one?

[Jarrod]

Run!!

[James]

Try Stripper cream from Eaco chem- 5 to 6 thousand for the job

[Scott Paul]

Originally Posted by Jarrod

Run!!

Jarrod I bet you wouldn't have even got out of the car for this one! You probably would have saw it from a block away and just turned around.

[Beth n Rod]

I'm with Jim. It can be done, it is expensive, but they need to know there will be residual pigment left. If they can't stand that thought they need to be ready for a solid stain.

Beth

[Jarrod]

Originally Posted by Scott Paul

Jarrod I bet you wouldn't have even got out of the car for this one! You probably would have saw it from a block away and just turned around.

You guessed it.

[FLORIN]

the customer is ok with a solid. When he called me he was exppecting me to just strip it and repaint it with the same stuff. The guy that did his deck 2 years ago sold him on that its better to apply an exterior paint rather than a wood stain. He can't get ahold of the "contractor" for some reason. Go figure.Ill give him the bid and explain the right way it should be done by using the correct line of strippers and stains. The sad part is though is he is probably gonna call a painter that will just tell him "sure we will repaint it for you" and then he is gonna be in the same predicament in two years. Gonna try. will see what happens.

[YVPW]

I won't run from any strip job. I love a challenge. That's why there calling a wood restoration professional. With that said there are many paint strippers that are non-methylene chloride that you can apply with an airless sprayer. Eacochem has them and most log home supply stores carry them. I think Sunbrite also sells them. Once it's stripped and you can tell how much pigment is in the cracks then you can decide what type of finish will be needed. Possibly Armstrong Clark Semi-Solid. That would be a very expensive job like Jim said. A lot of work. But if there willing to pay I would sure do it.

[FLORIN]

thanks all. ill do a little more research on strippers available for this and cost and ill give him a bid on monday. we will see.... if he goes for it it will be one hell of a nice deck.

[NewYorkBoraPL]

No less than 3.50 per square foot. The amount of time and effort you will put into this deck will haunt you forever. The wood underneath that paint also looks in very poor condition. I would not be surprised if there was rotting and hence replacement boards needed.

[Jarrod]

Like I said, Run!

[RPetry]

Originally Posted by Jarrod

Like I said, Run!

Jarrod,

Why? Some of us do true restorations, not just easy jobs. They can pay well, but you certainly earn it.

Florin may get 7 to 8K for the job. Meanwhile saving the customer 2 or 3 times as much as knocking it down and rebuilding.

[YVPW]

I know not everyone likes to do stuff like this. I truly enjoy it. Florin you're looking at about $1500 in stripper for that job, maybe more. You won't have to neutralize with acid, unless you want to brighten the wood more. I don't know what type of tools you have. You will definitely need the usual buffers with osborns. Also need an airless sprayer. I would do it for what Jim quoted, that's around $3.50 to $4 a square.

[Beth n Rod]

We would not pass it up either.
Beth

[RPetry]

Originally Posted by Beth n Rod

We would not pass it up either.
Beth

Beth,

Anyone that "passes it up" is not into wood. Look at the last picture. Gap between the early and late wood is huge. Florin is in Washington state. Might this be good redwood? I think it is.

You cannot buy this wood. At least, not on the East coast. You may not be able to grow the tree that made this wood in your lifetime. You cannot restore it in a day or an hour. But you can do something that not many care or want to do, restore it.

But it must be the right customer and a contractor with a passion for good wood. This ain't PT. Hah!