Bleaching Weathered Wood
If you remember last summer we built this pretty table and benches!
Well a year of being out in the weather has been rough on it!
I actually saw on Tik Tok someone using pool chemicals to bleach their Woodfence! First of all please… for the love of God do not use pool chemicals!!!!!!! If you’re not a pool owner then you may not know, but we definitely have a shortage of chemicals.
So I decided to try bleach! I used a 1:1 mixture. I started by spraying the bleach all over the table and benches and letting them sit in the sun. The benches only took 1 coat each but the table took 3-4. The next day I applied two additional coats a few hours apart. The table top was a bit challenging.
We actually had to lightly sand a few areas on the top and then apply an additional coat. It was as simple as spraying it on using a spray bottle. Some sites recommend washing the bleach off. I did spray it off a few times during the process. But, I always left the bleach on for at least four hours prior to spraying it.
I also sprayed our cedar planters and wow what a big difference!
Now I need y’all’s help… What is the best outdoor wood sealer?
Here’s a short video of the process.
Thanks so much for stopping by and for taking the time to read this post. Be sure to like and drop a comment so I know you stopped by. Please give me a follow here, on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Home Talk, and Tik Tok !
❤️Danya
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also bleach and dawn dish detergent best cleaner for vinyl siding and gutters . a garden pump sprayer is much easier . If you wat for rain to come it is even better . I wet my house or wait for light rain to start and dop it and then whe the heavier rain starts it washes it off and does not really harm plants as much , but more delcate plantsneed protected . 1 cup of bleach to 2 gallons and a quarter cup of dawn dish detergent
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Near the beginning of your post, you said: "I actually saw on Tik Tok someone using pool chemicals to bleach their Woodfence! First of all please… for the love of God do not use pool chemicals!!!!!!! If you’re not a pool owner then you may not know, but we definitely have a shortage of chemicals."
Chlorine is at least one of the primary ingredients, if not THE primary ingredient in both pool chemicals, and household, or laundry bleach..
The main reason for the shortage is that there was a large fire in one of the largest chlorine production plants in America. Pool supplies are considered a luxury, because you don't NEED a pool, hence, they may be higher, but the common denominator is the same.
Sandpaper is better, more effective, more environmentally safe, and much , much cheaper.
What you seem to be doing, is bleaching away the sun bleach!? Please know that both the sun and chlorine bleach, (as well as sandpaper) permanently remove a layer of wood.
Rinse well after the last bleaching, and as soon as it is dry enough, apply a layer of good sealer. Repeat at least yearly...Or embrace the weathered look. Or paint.
And that is my rant for today.
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Did you start it after it was built? I'd love to do this to my picnic table but I sealed it with marine spar. Which is a good outdoor sealer btw
Wonderful idea! You did a great job.👍 This idea is 20yrs. too late. Our table could have been saved, had I known of this. Your planters are wonderful! So much nicer then the large boxes that look like coffins. When you said, 1.1bleach. Do you mean 1part bleach, 1 part water? Thanks 😉
I don't use bleach because it irritates my eyes. I just use a pressure washer and it gets rid of all the muck without using any chemicals. Sometimes I will use Dawn in a gallon of water for really tough spots. Have you tried a pressure washer?