Deck

Terry S
by Terry S
safe way to clean a wood deck . not wanting to ruin plantings around it
  3 answers
  • KMS Woodworks KMS Woodworks on Sep 02, 2013
    I just cleaned a deck last week using Penofin's Cleaner and then the Brightener. The cleaner is percarbonate based. When mixed with water is yields hydrogen peroxide and soda ash...both are quite tame. I have used both a power washer or just a garden hose. A good deck brush works wonders. After the cleaning step I follow up with the brightener. The brightener is oxalic acid based so you will need to be a little more careful around the plants ( pre-wetting them will help a lot). Check out this article I wrote http://www.networx.com/article/the-right-way-to-clean-a-deck The Brightener removes tannin haze and discoloration, giving wood a restored and natural look.
    • Terry S Terry S on Sep 02, 2013
      @KMS Woodworks did you have to scrub it or did you use a pressure washer or hose to rinse it?thank you
  • KMS Woodworks KMS Woodworks on Sep 03, 2013
    In the pic above I applied the cleaner and brightener with my deck brush, a garden sprayer can also be used if the cleaners are fully dissolved. The above pic shows the brightener's action with just the deck brush. In the above deck project I used a power washer merely to "pre-wet" and rinse following the cleanings. In one corner a bit of algae required a little more work with the washer. The trick is not to get too close as the power wash can erode the wood.
  • Terry S Terry S on Sep 03, 2013
    that's what I was afraid of (the pressure washer I have is not very powerful but may do the trick)I was trying dawn with bleachwith a scrub brush and it didn't work very well.it isn't very big but it is pretty dirty.thanks for the help , much appreciated :)