Failing Deck Stain
When it comes to restoring an older wood deck, it’s extremely important to prep the wood correctly. Not doing so can lead to premature failure of the new deck stain. No matter the brand or cost of a deck stain, it will not last as long as it should if it isn’t applied to a perfectly cleaned and prepped surface.
One of the biggest mistakes DIY homeowners make in cleaning and preparing a wood deck for stain, is not removing all remnants of old deck stain. Any failed deck stain that is left on the wood will block the new stain from penetrating the surface properly. The new deck stain will sit on top of the wood instead of diving into it. Deck stains do not adhere to each other well so this causes the newer deck stain to begin flaking and peeling off the deck normally in a year or less. Even if you can’t see any old deck stain but you know there was some on the wood at one time, it’s vitally important to remove it. Splash some water on the wood and see if it absorbs into the wood or if it beads up and sits on top. Beading up would indicate there is some type of old failed stain on the wood that needs to be removed.
To remove old deck stain from the wood you have to use a deck stripper. A quality deck stripper will break up and soften any old stain allowing it to be washed away. Most deck strippers will not remove solid stain or paints, if this is the case you may have to sand the old stain to get back down to bare wood again.
Once the deck has been washed with a deck stripper and the old deck stain is gone, it is necessary to brighten the wood using a wood brightener. The deck stripper will darken the wood and raise the pH level. To brighten the wood back to a natural state, and lower the pH to a more acidic level, will restore the appearance and give the new deck stain the best chance of lasting as long as possible.
A properly cleaned and brightened deck should be allowed to dry for several days before a quality deck stain is applied. Taking these measures and using a deck stripper and deck brightener before staining will give you much better and longer lasting results.
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304 Comments on "Deck Stripping – Removing an Old Deck Stain"
I have one layer of (2) deck that will not keep stain. It always bubbles and peels. I used Sherwin Williams latex solid color deck stain. Would going to their or any other oil based stain work better? 2nd question is there a stripper that will help in removing the existing stain?
You will need to sand it off to fix this. Adding on top will not fix the problem.
Are you saying sand it all, even the parts that are holding or just the peeled spots?
Yes all will need to be removed.
Good afternoon, while stripping the old stain off the deck some of the particles dried on the aluminum door and also on some the of the railing posts. what is the best way to remove those specks of stain without removing the paint. thanks
Not sure if anything will work to not harm the aluminum paint. Best to try a Goof Off remover but test spot to make sure there is not a reaction.
We messed up our transparent stain on brand new redwood deck. Will using a deck stripper this early damage the wood? Also, since we used a transparent stain, we don’t need to use a sander? Deck stripper and cleaning/brightening should be sufficient prep? Thank you!
What brand of stain did you use?
Behr Transparent in Cedar. We cleaned/brightened then applied stain less than 24 hours later.
Strippers will not damage the wood but your issue is that Behr is not an easy product to strip, especially when just applied. You may have to sand as well to remove all.
We are having a unbelievable wet summer. My deck was needing redone so we decided to start on and we have dang near ran out of time. My rails are cedar and we have sanded old stain off and was going to strip and brighten the rest. Would I be able to leave as is and start over with cleaning and brightening around May? I have also replaced several boards in the deck and they need to weather a little but there has not been one day in over three weeks we have not received some rain. We do not get snow in the winter so will my deck survive till May ?
Yes, it will be fine to leave as is until next Spring.
I replaced the flat portion of my deck with new cedar two months ago, but left the existing vertical hand rails and spindles, which have an old solid stain on them, and have some random dark stains(mold?). I would like to use solid stain on the vertical railings, and semi-transparent on the flat areas. To prep, do I need to strip the spindles, or just remove the dark spots? Does the new cedar need to be brightened, or can I just apply the semi-transparent stain?
The verticals should be pressure washed with a deck cleaner to remove dirt and mold. This will prep it for a new coating of solid stain.
See this about the new wood: https://www.deckstainhelp.com/staining-a-new-deck/
My contractor used a natural bristle brush in applying a stripper to my deck. As a result, the deck was not completely stripped. Is there any problem in going back over the deck a second time with a stripper?
No issues. Try a pump sprayer when applying the stripper this time. Make sure to brighten the wood after.
Hello and greetings from NW Iowa! We stained this deck 2 summers ago with Pittsburgh Ultra. Had a hail storm come through and insurance company is paying for a deck re-stain. We were totally disappointed with the Pittsburgh product. What do we do now? Thanks!
You will need to remove this and start over. Unfortunately, it does not look like it will be an easy strip as it almost looks like a solid stain on the wood in parts. Start by stripping and pressure washing off as much as you can. Most likley you will need to do some power sanding to remove what does not come off with the stripping. Once fully removed, you can apply a wood brightener.
Hi! I had my cedar deck built in the fall of 2014. I left it like that over the winter and put the stain on in the spring of 2015. The first picture was taken 2 years ago when I first put the stain on. I used the semi transparent cedar stain shown in the picture. It lasted 2 years and now look at my deck. I’m so discouraged. Can I restore the original cedar colour and just put a water sealer on there? Help!!!! I had asked HomeHardware what to put on my new cedar deck and they gave me that. I should have done my research a tad more because now I feel as though I have ruined the cedar wood
The picture in the middle is EXACTLY my deck! I have started to power wash it but it is so hard getting it all of. Does deck strippers harm vinyl siding? What is power sanding.
Start by removing this fully and that will take a stain stripper and pressure washing folllowed by power sanding. Once removed, use a wood brightener to neutralize and open the wood grain. A sealer will not give UV porotection. Use a semi-transparent stain like one of these: https://www.deckstainhelp.com/the-5-best-deck-stain-reviews-and-ratings/
I’m from Canada and this is not available here.
Hello,
Last year I replaced my old deck with a brand new cedar one. I waited 60 days after install and stained the deck with Armstrong Clark Amber Semi Transparent. It came out beautifully (see picture).
However, this summer I decided to clean the deck and I mistook the “agitate cleaner with hard bristle brush” part of the instructions for using some real elbow grease, and in the process of cleaning I ended up taking half the deck stain off. I am mad at myself and a little embarrassed lol.
Do I strip off the existing stain that is on the deck and stain, or can I stain over the whole thing after a good cleaning and brightening? (using the same stain I used last year). Thanks.
Probbaly would be best to remove all so the new coating goes on evenely and not blotchy.
Hello –
I have a cedar fence that was stained with Behr transparent redwood stain about 10 years ago. We want to restain with the same color, we have power washed the fence but aren’t sure if we need to strip ALL of the old color off or is this good enough and we can apply the new coat of stain?
Stripping it all off and then brightening would be the best thing to do.
Uugggh! I was hoping you wouldn’t say that 😉. What stripper would you recommend? Is the home Depot brand stripper good for the job?
Try the Restore A Deck Stripper.
So, I made the mistake of putting Restore on my deck a few years ago and now it is peeling and flaking off the deck and railings. What do I use to get rid of the Restore and resurrect my deck? Help please!!
I just saw a review on Wolman Deck Stripper that someone left on Home Depot site mentioning they used this stuff for the Restore and had success. Might want to give it a shot.
Only way to remove this product is to sand and scrape.
Here they are: Right pic is TWP (among others) on sample of new cedar siding. Leftt pic is same TWP on a sample of installed siding after it was brightened.
We have cedar siding on our house, about 5 years old. One side showed excessive bleedthrough–almost like tar. We removed that with Cabot Wood Brightener and a rinse, which worked well. But it took some stain with it. We wanted to restore that with a new coat of stain. What we’ve tried on cedar siding samples — PPG and TWP, both Cedar Tone — work well on new wood. We let the siding we’d treated dry for three days, and then tried them both on a sample of that. They go on nearly black — nothing like the cedar. What should we do?
Picture please.
Sorry. Pics sent in separate post.
I used behr transparent all in one wood finish. Must i strip prior to staining? If so please recommend a stripper
Yes, you should strip and brighten the wood. Restore A Deck Stain Stripper or HD80.
you dont think Defy stripper would work? I have never used a stripper before and am a bit hesitate on a very strong one..thanks for your input.
It would work but the other two are more cost effective as they are concentrates.
thank you!!
I have a small decking area 5ft by 20ft, I have small area’s to remove old dark stain which seems to be stuck fast! Can I tell me, what grade of sandpaper would I use?
60 – 80 grit paper.
What will take off all in one stain and sealer from a deck the color is way to orange we tried acetone but siaks in to quick Thank gid only 4 boards is all we did then realized didnt like
What brand is this stain and type?
What type of sander would you recommend to strip a deck with solid stain?
Belt sanders and palm sanders. Drum sanding will help with the flooring.
Why does my decks solid stain peel, just in high traffic area’s, every year?
Solid stains are filming stains which means they dry on top of the wood. Whenever you have this, you are prone to wearing and peeling, especially in exposed areas and in areas of high traffic.
My deck was not done correctly and I need to remove the Behr transparent stain and do it over. This is the photo of after it was stained. Looks really bad. What is the best way to remove this finish? A hand sander is not an option since the deck is large 20 x 22. Do I use the TWP stripper with a power washer?
This will not be an easy strip. Use the Stripper and pressure wash off as much as you can but you will most likely need to sand as well to remove all. Brightener after full removal.
Thank you. I ordered Restore A Deck Stripper/Brightener Kit and will do my best.
How did your stripping job go? I think i have same stain on my deck
I pploed a redwood solid stain on part of my deck. The colour was completely wrong. How can I remove so I can paint with a differnt deck stain?
You would have to sand this off.
Does sanding close the wood pores making the new stain less penetrable? If so, what is your remedy?
Yes. Final prep with a deck cleaner and a wood brightener.
Will deck cleaner help remove chipping stain? About 90% of my deck is free of stain, just covered with grime and dirt. The other 10% still has some remnants of stain from the previous owner. I bought deck cleaner before realizing this issue, will I also have to buy stain stripper just for the small spots of stain left over or will I be able to get by with the cleaner?
Cleaners will not remove chipping stains. As for stripper working, it depends on the type of stain you are trying to remove. Do you know?
How bad is it to let stains stripper dry? I am part way through staining my deck and the power washer has died. Can I leave it and come back tomorrow or the next day and rewet it? Or do I need to use the brightener to neutralize it and then redo the whole process?
At this point just leave it. Reapply tomorrow and finish.
Thanks! I just wanted to say how helpful this site has been. This was the first time I’ve posted anything, but I have used it a number of times.
Hi. Love your forum. I stained my deck with a red semi transparent from Behr 4 years ago. It has faded/blackened on majority of horizontal but the vertical spindles still have more than adequate color. I decided to start stripping/sanding the railings and it is a slow go. Using a hand sander and 40 grit I am getting about 70% of the railings done but there are flashes of red. Does it all have to be off or just a majority for it to adhere to new stain? I am using a dark brown from TWO. I have also tried stripping with the Behr stripper and it is slow. It doesn’t seem to remove a majority of stain after scrubbing and 2 applications. And I am getting exhausted after just an hour of this. Any help to get this off? Thx
95% or more removal when switching to a brand like the TWP. Apply the stripper and pressure wash off.
Some reason I can’t post a pic. Trying to see if this is considered 95%. 40 grit
Pretty close for the top rails. I think it is good if you get all of the deck to look like this.
Ok thx. I think when I get it all like that I will still apply stripper. Then clean. Then stain
how do I get the resurfacer stain off my deck it,s peeling I used a pressure washer but not all is coming off.julie
Deck Resurface types stain cannot be stripped or pressure washed off. Heavy sanding is your best option.
Have you ever heard of a deck stripper staining stucco siding?
No. Did it happen to you?
Do you have any suggestions for how to remove peeling Olympic Rescue It stain from our deck. It is an absolute mess!
The Olympic Rescue-it cannot be stripped. Sand it all off or replace the wood is your best option.
What is the best way to remove semi transparent stain?
Use a deck stain stripper and pressure washing. Try Restore A Deck:
Hi,
I purchases the Restore stripper and brighter. I plan on using this on my porch. I have plants around the porch. Will the run off kill the plants? How do I protect them?
When we use the products we will wet all the vegetation first, apply the stripper, and rinse again any over spray. Pressure wash the deck while watching any overspray again. Rinse the deck and then rinse again the plants. Basically, you want to alway rinse any overspray as soon as possible.
I have a 650 sq ft deck with solid acrylic stain. What’s the best and easiest way for remove the solid stain? It has 3-4 layers
Kyle, stain strippers will not remove this so best is to sand it all off.
What kind of sanding tool do you recommend?
Power sanding with a drum sander. Might want to consider a two-toned deck if you have railings: https://www.deckstainhelp.com/advantages-to-having-a-two-toned-deck/
Great forum – thanks! 10 year old Cedar deck. Semi stain on it and have used stripper and brightner. Still areas of old stain color showing up. 1) Should I just sand the rest off or redo stripping? 2) Want natural cedar look – what’s best stain to show it off? 3) How long for stain to dry before it rains? I want to finish and stain this weekend but afraid it’s going to rain Mon/Tues….Thanks for your help!!
Send a picture of the current condition.
Will do
I have purchased Behr #64 stain and finish remover for removing Thompson’s Weather Seal semi transparent stain. Do you believe it will be an adequate combination?
We have never used Behr’s stripper on Thompsons. Behr is an average stripper and we normally do not use it. Posts your results if you can.
Can I use deck stripper to do wooden pieces of furniture as well?
I have some wooden, stained, wind spinners and I see a different method online for removing stain from furniture.
Depends on what type of coating you are trying to remove from the furniture? Deck Stain Strippers will not remove varnishes or polyurethanes.
Do I need to cover painted siding and plants when using RAD stripper? Or can I just pre-wet them as long as I don’t spray solution directly on to them.
You should be okay with prewetting and rinsing any overspray.
let me make sure I got this . I have a solid stain on my deck . it needs to be redone . just clean and get any peelings off and reapply solid stain again?
Yes, if you want to go with another solid stain.
I keep getting mixed info about whether I need to remove ALL of the old solid stain or just the loose stuff. I’m willing to put down another solid color if it means I dont have to remove all the old stain. I have used a floor sander and paint strippers, and there’s still probably 30% of the paint left on the deck. The next step im considering is using a belt sander and going board by board. Any advice?
If you are reapplying another solid stain then you do not have to remove all of the current solid stain. Just what is loose.
if i use deck stripper, my deck is built on a roof will that ruin my roof
Most likely it will not but depends on the roof material.
How long can I wait to use a neutralizer after stripping or can I wait to neutralize sometime later before staining?
Brighten right away for best results.
Soon as you are done with the stripping and you have rinsed the deck from all the residue. While the wood is still wet.
Can you address starting over with a solid stain deck that is peeling? Also the spaces between the boards are tight so the cedar boards have cupped.
Thank you
Solid stains will have to be sanded off if you desire to go with a penetrating semi-transparent coating. Since the boards are cupping, you may want to consider repalcing the flooring and leaving proper spaces between the boards. this way you can skip the sanding and start over with fresh wood.
Any advice on how to remove sherwin williams superdeck elastomeric off a cedar deck??,thanks!
Sanding is probably the only way to remove.
Pretty sure from previous posts that I'm going to be using armstrong clark stain on my stripped brightened and sanded deck and rails. I'm not getting involved with the nearly 70 spindles this year maybe in the spring. It looks like the old spindles have a redish semi solid stain. Could I just go over them in a darker semi solid or solid stain without all the prep work I did on the deck and rails? I was thinking of black. Or could I just paint over them?
Look at doing a two-toned deck. See this article: https://www.deckstainhelp.com/advantages-to-having…
We just sustained a brand new beautiful cedar terrace fence with Behr Redwood stain – 2 coats – and what looked fine with the one coat test, now looks bright orange and garish. What products do you recommend we use to strip this and start over? It was absolutely beautiful unfinished and now looks almost painted and artificial. We would love to go back to something similar to what is was before or at the very least toned down and protected from the elements somewhat. Does Thompson’s Waterseal change the color significantly? And is this something we could use after stripping?
Thank you for your help.
I forgot to ask in my last post . . . After removing the old stain & using brightener, how long does the deck have to dry before restaining our deck & how long after should it not get rained on? Thanks!
Wait 48 hours after prep or rain before applying the stain.
We stained our deck last spring ('15) – (deck was built in '14) with Thompson's stain/sealer – semi transparent I believe. By fall the stain was coming off & wearing in multiple spots. It now looks absolutely awful!! Should we use a stripper & also what stain/product holds up the best/longest? We don't want to be doing this every other year!
Thanks for your help!
I am in the same boat. Thompson’s semi transparent looked very good when applied to new boards which were purchased from an indoor storage facility, they were dry and had stained all sides with 2 coats last September. now that winter has passed the stain has begun lifting out of the boards.
Yes you should strip and remove to start over. Brighten after. Try a penetrating stain that is not prone to peeling. TWP or Defy extreme.
I've painted. My decking and now tried to power wash it all paint off, it's very grubby looking and all chipped. We have tried to power wash it off with great difficulty and also been advised sanding decking will ruin it completely. We wanted to try decking remover but there is so many reviews about sanding decking, and decking remover we don't know what is best results…please help ?? we won't give up but nothing seems to be helping
The only way to remove paint off a deck is to sand. Strippers will not be very effective in removing.
Had my deck stained with Thompson's semi-transparent color 2 years ago. It's rubbed off the floorboards, railings, and steps but the spindles look fine. I want to restain the entire deck. A contractor told me the best way to go is to have him remove all the floorboards so he can sand them and to stain the deck a darker color. Can't I just power wash the floor to get the remaining stain off?
Power washing alone will not remove all. Try a stain stripper with the pressure washing.
Don't ever use Olympic deck cleaner. It dried out the wood on my deck so badly large splinters are peeling off
used a semi-solid stain, color rewood. turn out orange. how can i remove the semi-solid stain?
Stain strippers, pressure washing and sanding after to remove.
We are stripping our deck for the third time in 6 years. Previously used Behr semi transparent stain and it just never adhered properly. First time we used it, it was over unfinished cedar. It failed the first year. The second time, we used the same product because we thought we had maybe done something wrong in application. Again it just didn't seem to sink into the wood. Started peeling within about a year. We are getting ready to strip, and prep for stain AGAIN! I have just been reading comments and see that we should not use solid stain on horizontal. Bought it already! It is so hard to find knowledgeable staff in big box stores! If we switch to using semi transparent again, Any tips or tricks for us? Weather is looking pretty hot this coming week. Will that be a problem?
Shelley
If you do want to go solid stain, cobalt adhesive solid stain is the way to go (Works well on horizontal or vertical). You do not even have to strip your old stain completely, just cant have peeling. The goes on like high grade paint and adheres well. Will last 5 years more or less, depending on sun and shade this is in in illinois weather. I apply with 3/4 18" nap roller.
Use a penetrating semi-transparent. One that soaks into the wood instead of filming on top of the wood like the Behr does. This makes future receipts easier to do. Armstrong Clark will do this and also can be applied in hot weather and direct sunlight.
I can only order this on line. I have this week off only so I will need something I can buy locally. I'm just outside of Vancouver Canada
Hi Shelley, we are living your experience and live in Nanaimo. Could you please update us on what you ended up using and how it’s holding up after this past winter….greatly appreciated!
Sorry, but we have no idea what you can buy locally and that is of good quality.
I stained my deck last summer and don't like the color. I am not too experienced and feel like I caked it on. It looks like paint. I would like to remove it and re do it. Even if it is a darker color.
DO I powerwash first and then apply deck stripper?
Any feedback is appreciated.
If over applied and looks like a paint, then deck stain strippers probably will not work. You may need to sand it all to get it fully removed.
Have 2-3 yr old stain that I had to sand areas to get rid of a residue and high spots. I also sanded over everything lightly (all w/ 60 grit) to try to get it more uniform. I'm planning to strip it now but would rather not re-sand. 1) Do I need to sand after stripping? 2) Also, so I need to use a power washer to get all of the stripper off before brightening and staining? Likely using Jomax or Defy stripper (used defy prior but not sure I can get it on a holiday). 3) Do I need to mask off my wood siding house?
1. No but you should clean and brighten after the sanding.
2. Yes.
3. Yes.
Can you tell me what kind of sander to get. We've tried stripper to remove stain but It's not removing all of it. Everytime we go to rent the sander, someone different at Home Depot tells us a different type sander to get. We only want to do this once!!!
Drum sander.