Yet another, Deck Staining thread
 

Live in the North East on a lake had a cedar deck built 3 years ago and I cant get it right.

• Six weeks ago i had my cedar deck oiled with PENOFIN Red Label Ultra clear. This was the second time in ten months that we had the deck stained. Power sprayer and back brished application. Hired a "pro"
• 2 weeks ago the deck was attacked by what looked like mold.
• PENOFIN corporate office said it was from tannins and possible oil that was on the surface and was not wiped off.
• Cleaned the deck with BEHR, mistake number 1, deck cleaner.
• Then used a bleach solution on top of the BEHR deck cleaner.
• Deck looks worse then before I touched it.

Now what do I do?


Questions:

• Is PENOFIN that right product? Would any other product allowed the wood to turn in such a short amount of time? Six weeks, UGH!
• Can I let this go to the spring. Assuming the deck is going to need a tune up after a long winter.
• What should be my expectation using PENOFIN in the North East? Do I need to apply the oil every 10 months or so and use a deck cleaner to maintane the deck.
• What is the best deck cleaner out there for cedar?
• Do I power wash the deck?

Thank you for any advice. This has been an expensive frustrating process.

You really need to determine what was on the deck but it may be too late. BTW, all bets are off with drying times and curing times with paint and stain when you live on the water or right near a lake. We did a house last summer across the street from a lake and 2 days after patching with easysand 20 it was still wet. If you are getting mold on your deck I am suspecting it is not properly drying after a rain or heavy dew. Does the deck get any sunlight during the day?

The deck gets plenty of sunlight
Can mold grow after 4 weeks of being oil and in the sun?
We have PENOFIN on the deck now.

First mistake, you used Penefin. Looks like crap when it fails. Number two, what would happen if you wore clear sunglasses? No UV PROTECTION!!! If you want to use a transparent stain, A GOOD PRODUCT like Cabot's Austrailian Timber Oil would have to be applied every year in worst case scenario. And be sure to get their high 550 voc product. One coat every year. OR, you could go with their semi solid stain and it could last two years, BUT you would see less of the grain of the wood. And the last thing you must do, is to shovel the snow off your deck in the winter with a plastic headed shovel. Helps protect your deck longer.