I have a cedar/redwood deck that needs to be sanded down and restained.  I'm using my Rotrex FEQ 150 and it seems to work ok but this may take some time.  The deck gets the full brunt of weather, snow-100 degree summer.  The guys who refinished it about 6 years ago used a Bear stain process from HD which lasted 1 year and started fading and literally turned to a powder substance.  There was a slight tint to the stain and they etched it again with another HD Bear process and then restained it and it lasted two years and then faded again. I'm wondering what some of you have used with decks that can withstand those conditions.  I like a lighter stain not a dark one.  Thanks for any help.

You might also want t9 check out the Sikkens line.  Pay attention to your conditions while searching out information.  Their products have been spec'd on multi-million dollar yachts for decades, so there is credibility.

Peter

http://www.timberprocoatings.com/

best finish for cedar and redwood. Great product and green also.

Bruce

Ive had great results with the RO150 followed by Sikkens Dek Finish. I know my paint supplier sells a ton of the stuff in CT. Try one pass with a real low grit and a second pass to clean up the scratch marks. Dont over sand or the product wont stick, Eric

Kevin, i think i thought i was supposed to use Dek bc of the name and the guys at the paint store sent me home with SRD. I just do as im told over there. Are those sanders hard to handle over deckboards? Eric

We sand decks on a pretty regular basis in my company's maintenance program.

From a sanding standpoint, decks are nothing like floors. They are not flat, they always have cupping. Best results are to sand one course at a time. With upright sanders spanning 2-3 courses, there is alot of skippage due to the irregularity of the surface, which leads to working over areas and creating variation. Its actually easier to have a sander that is sized to the courses. Just wear kneepads. It goes pretty quick with Granat. Believe me, we have run out of Granat on jobs and subbed brilliant or rubin and it is not nearly as effective on general grime and weathered gunk removal.

WOW Scott.  I showed my wife the picture of the deck you finished and that's exactly what she wants.  I use one of those roll around mechanics stools from Griot's garage so I don't have much strain on my back and the wheels are big enough that they don't cause marks. 
When the deck dries is there still that sheen on the wood (or is that picture of a dry deck)?  How often would I need to reinstall the Penofin and would it need resanding down to bare wood each time? Where would a guy get the Granat pads?  Thanks for the pics, it really helped.

Thanks so much for the info Scott.  Would you use the Marine Grade or is there a better choice of the different Penofin products?

I agree that finishing up with a orbital is a good way to go, but starting with a pad sander will save a lot of hours.  It will not leave as many orbital swirls  as a Rotex at low grit, so you can go over everything lightly with 120 and be ready for stain.  Softwood decks need at least 120 to give a good appearance.  10 hours on 700 sqft is optimistic in my estimation.  Anyways the railing will most likely take twice that long so you will have plenty of time on the knees.  Having spent weeks of my life refinishing decks I am all about finding ways to make it easier.  

Scott, you are talking about DEK when referring to Sikkens right?  DEK is not recommended by Sikkens for refinishing as boards need to be encapsulated (finished 6 sides) before installation, and is not recommended for deck floors anyways by most due to its slipperiness. Sikkens SRD is a penetrating oil similar to Penofin or Messmers, but higher in solids.  It is harder to apply, but gives a longer lasting coating and does not need to be stripped.  It's all about prep in my experience.

Sikkens DEK on Cedar handrails is hard to beat short of an Epoxy coating.  As long as it is maintained and was properly installed it will look like new for years.  Here in Colorado at 8k feet the sun is the biggest enemy, so you need to protect thin wood from drying or it splinters and splits.  DEK does that amazingly well, where penetrating oils on balusters will burn off and leave the surface hungry in a matter of months.

Eric

Thank you. Yes, VT is a tough place for coatings. We service the lake and mountain regions so we see all the worst exposures. This one is a year round home, but alot of our clients are second home owners.

Cedar and redwood won't look anything like Ipe.

You can have that look, if you pry your wallet open.



Ipe with Messmer's.

Scott,

How do you handle checks in PT decks? A poor man would like to know.

Most of my deck is redwood but the guys who refinished it 6 years ago replaced some of the redwood with cedar.  I noticed that there are some black marks and many of the boards look like they have spotsl that are just rotted wood.  I can literally flick the split/cracked spots out with my fingers.  The deck is 29 years old so it's been around for quite awhile.  As I sand it down I can get past the dark spots.  How long can I leave the sanded secteions bare before treating it?

Sorry about the blurry pictures, I had oil all over my phone.

Scott, is it "Marine Oil Finish" that you use on the deck? (Penofin)