Pressure wash deck / Staining question

[Sigarms]

Looking for advice from someone that has been there.

Have a 3 tier deck, rather large.

Spent the entire weekend pressure washing it/cleaning it.

House had been un-occupied for 3 years, been here three months, the decks really needed the cleaning (looks "almost" new now).

Picked up some Behr (sp?) deck sealant/stain to put on the deck.

Problem now is that the weather is "un-cooperative" (sp?) and it's been raining "off and on" since I pressure washed the deck.

Question I have is: how long can I let the deck go until I actually coat/stain it? If I wait a week or so, will I need to "re pressure wash it" (to "open" the wood again to the sealant?)

Never done it before, and for all the work I did cleaning it, I don't want to waste my time so to speak. Waiting for the weather to clear up for a good two days, and if need be, I'll take work off and do the work.

Any input would be of help.

Thanks in advance.

 

[beenthere]

Your plan sounds good.
Your question ""will I need to "re pressure wash it" (to "open" the wood again to the sealant?) "".
Answer "no".
The deck should dry some before applying a semi-transparent stain (no paint or stain coating should be applied). The washing will actually cause the wood to swell and the wood to "close up", and some surface drying is needed to get good stain penetration. You don't need to worry about doing it right away, and you should not have to do any more pressure washing. Actually, a deck cleaner scrubbed on and just hosed off is as good or better than pressure washing anyway. The high pressure often tears the surface layer of wood cells off. The 'cleaning' one sees is getting rid of the mold, which can be done with Clorox bleach mixed in water.

 

[Sigarms]

beenthere

Thanks for the response.

I'm not sure if I could of "gotten by" by not pressure washing that deck. Part of the deck had 4- 50' river burches (sp?) hanging over the deck, and without being cleaned "at all" for who knows how long, the deck was in "pretty sad" shape.

I was just hoping that I didn't have to coat/seal the deck right away with the weather not co-operating.

to be precise, I'm using Behr wood toned weather proofing wood sealer and finish.

Again, thanks

 

[_RaT_]

With the help of cleaning agents, I pressure wash decks. I have tried just about every deck protectant known and can say, some are better then others, none last very long in direct sun. As long as the wood is dry, you can stain it with oil based stains, water based are more forgiving. Out here (California), all we used was redwood but that has changed. I don't know what the dominate choice is today, but suffice it to say, the few decks I have built with man made materials last longer then those from pressure treated, cedar and redwood. This is not a one up on nature, but certainly what my experience has ascertained. I think the process you are doing is correct. I have even prematurely stained a moist deck with a petroleum product and frankly, it worked fine.