Step 1 – Prep the Wood
Prepping Tip 1: Choose a Wood and Deck Cleaner if gray, dirty, reapplying the same stain, etc.
Prepping Tip 2: Choose a Stain Stripper if you have a failed stain that has peeled or worn unevenly.
Prepping Tip 3: Choose a Wood Brightener to neutralize the wood cleaner or stain stripper.
Prepping Tip 4: You do not need both a deck cleaner and a stain stripper. Just choose one. If you are unsure what to use, we encourage you to ask here: Questions On Products
Step 2 – Stain the Wood
Staining Tip 1: Choosing a stain with a “color” will prolong the graying. The darker the color, the longer it will last.
Staining Tip 2: Choose a semi-transparent or semi-solid deck stain that penetrates into the wood grain will make future reapplication easier.
Staining Tip 3: Our most popular deck stains are the Defy Extreme, Armstrong Clark, and the TWP Stains.
If you are unsure of what stain is best for you then ask here: Deck Staining Questions
Need some more Help? Please Ask any Questions Below in Comments.
Thanks for the prompt response. My next 5 gallon pail of 1520 is suppose to arrive from you on Tuesday, just enough time to get the prep done.
Photos as requested
RAD Cleaner and Brightener will work for the prep here.
My dock deck was over topped by the recent hurricane (fresh water). I used a medium pressure rotating brush device to loosen the accumulated sediment. The deck was last treated 2 years ago with TWP 1520 and looked to be good for at least another season prior to the flood. Today some portions look weak and readily absorb water while other sections (shaded) still bead up. Will the RAD cleaner and brightener prep be adequate to achieve good coverage or will need to do something else? Also, what is the useful life of RAD stripper (with additive) once mixed?
Post some pics in the comments.
I am adding a section to an older mahogany deck, stained with armstrong Clark for years. What do you recommend for sealing the freshly cut planks that I am adding prior to fastening them down?
Hi, you cannot prestain new wood or even right after isntall. It has to be installed, weathered for 3-4 months, prepped, and then stain. Best to do all wood at the same time.
I would like your advice. I have used Restore-A-Deck products for years and have bought Armstrong Clark mahogany stain from you guys after stripping. I now have a situation where I can’t seem to correct the results of the stripping and brightening. I have attached a picture for you to see and hopefully recommend my next steps. I used stripper and brightener on these spots twice with the same result.
It looks like you “over” stripped and possibly did not brighten evenly. The darkening is from the pH raised by the stripper, which is normal, and then you have wood furring. See here:
https://www.deckstainhelp.com/wood-fuzzies-furring-on-deck/
We suggest renting a floor buffer, sanding off all the wood furring, and then brightening it evenly when you’re done.
Hi, I have a three year old deck, about 20′ x 10′, made from pressure treated wood. I live on the prairies in Canada, so we have extremely cold winters, and hot summers. I stained my back, small deck in perfect conditions, following the directions perfectly with a very dark stain (a Behr product) and had it fail horribly in under a year. I would like to stain the front deck, but fear a similar result. What might you recommend? I would like to keep it as close to the natural colour as possible, perhaps because if it does fail it will not look quite as horrible as my back, peeling dark mess of a deck.
You want a penetrating stain that will not peel and can be cleaned and recoated as needed. Use the Armstrong Clark stain:
https://www.opwdecks.com/armstrong-clark-stain.htm
Five years ago, I used Restore-A-Deck Package 300 and Armstrong Clark Semi-
Trans Driftwood Gray Stain. I want to re-stain the deck now. What products should I be using to prepare the deck for the stain
Same prep as last time.
is Armstrong-Clark wood stain available in Canada
You can order it from our website and have it shipped to Canada.
I have a mahogany deck which I clean and oil every year, but it has been 2 years this time since it was done. I Have always used Panofin Oil. I am not happy with the colr. I want the Mahogany red color. What do you suggest?
Armstrong Clark Hardwood Stain in Mahogany Color: https://www.opwdecks.com/ipe-stain-1-gallon.htm
Much better than Penofin.
Stained deck with you product last fall. What is best for general cleaning?
Warm water and a little dish soap.
I purchased a hemlock board and batten shed. How long should it dry for. What’s the best product to put on it. I’m not too concerned about color as much as durability. Live in New York. Thanks.
New wood should weather for 3 or more months. Clean and brighten for prep with Restore A Deck kits. Stain with Armstrong Clark Stains. Or TWP 1500.
can this be used to stain a cedar shingle roof?
Which product are you asking about?
The best product for shingle roofs by far is this: https://www.opwdecks.com/twp-200-series.htm
Looking for a long lasting deck stain. Have a cedar deck and porch. Definately don’t need to strip anything. But the wood is gray – I want to restore the natural beauty. What do you recommend?
Armstrong Clark: https://www.opwdecks.com/armstrong-clark-stain.htm
Have IPE deck went completely gray would like to restore to original color, which products provide the best result?
Also have IPE siding on the house (different source) same question except siding isn’t grey just needs to be refreshed?
We are in NJ.
Use this kit for prep: https://www.opwdecks.com/rad-300.htm
Stain with this: https://www.opwdecks.com/ipe-stain-5-gallon.htm
I have used the armstrong mahogany stain every couple of years on my mahogany deck. My wife would prefer to see the deck a bit lighter, so I ordered the amber sample. If we like this color, do I need to strip the deck or can I use my deck cleaner and brightener? (I love the fact that this can be applied in direct sun here in New England)
Strip and brighten for prep.
I bought the restore a deck stripper and brightener for my, covered IPE wood, porch.There are still some black spots on the deck after stripping it.Should I use the brightener first and go from there or should I try the stripper again with the booster additive I just ordered ?We are planning on only oiling it in the future.The stain was put on about 5 yrs ago and I don’t know what the guy used.
Post a picture or two in the comment area.
Picture to above post
Brighten it. When you use the stripper it darkens the wood by raising the pH balance. The brightener will restore this and lower the pH balance.
Hi,
We purchased a home in Cape Coral, FL. It’s boat dock has been partially repaired, re-stained (see attached picture – you’ll see the “multi-color problem”). The wood seems fine. But what stain would you recommend here ? We like the lighter colors (cedar). I assume we will need to use a semi-solid stain, or maybe even a solid stain, to get uniform color across the whole deck. We’d like to avoid “solid” but it seems that might be difficult to do.
The only way to get a uniform look would be a solid stain and we do not offer any solid stains on our website.
So we are ready to stain. We received your shipment, but we don’t have a drill mixing attachment yet (ordered it 4 days ago from Lowe’s and it hasn’t made it into shipping yet). We would like to get started. Any suggestions about how to effectively get the solids in the stain mixed well without the drill mixing attachment? I am concerned that if we just stir the 5-gallon bucket with a stick that we’ll only move the solids around on the bottom of the bucket and not effectively get them moved up to the top of the bucket. Should we just wait for the drill mixing attachment (we only have 3 weeks left before we leave for the winter, so time is an issue and we have to do the deck in 2 stages – 2 coats on one side, let dry 48-72 hours, move all furniture to newly stained side, then do the other side, then let that dry 48-72 hours, then move all the furniture back where we secure it for the winter.). Thank you.
Wait for the mixer or go pick one up locally at a Lowes, HD or SW store.
I purchased & just recieved your Armstrong Clark Cedar Semi-transparant stain for my new pine dock which I aged for 3 for months. Problem is FL is in the rainey season. Rains almost everyday, unpredictable, mornings, afternoons, & nights. Using weather radar can only count on a few hour window of drying time. Should I wait until Oct, as FL rainey season ends around then or is a few hours of drying time enough?
It needs 6-12 hours of drying time.
I have mahogany decking floor in a 4 season covered sunroom. What should I use to protect the wood as we do have a door leading to the outside. I don’t want to use anything that might cause the floor to be slippy once applied.
Use the Defy Hardwood Stain: https://www.opwdecks.com/defyhardwood.htm
Hello – Our deck is concrete but our railing and roof supports are wood. The wood has darkened over the years in spite of using only transparent stain. We’d prefer to have the external wood close to the same tone as our inside, untreated wood. Is there any way to do that? Thank you!!
The only way to do this would be to power sand the posts to remove the current coatings. Then use a light color penetrating stain like TWP Honeytone: https://www.opwdecks.com/twpwoodsealers.htm
Ok thank you. Sanding everything down is going to have to wait until after I retire, whenever that is haha! I ordered a sample of your clear sealant today. Hopefully it won’t darken the wood further as a ‘natural’ color product from a competitor did the last time we treated everything. Thanks again for your prompt response.
A few days ago I cleaned, brightened and put down a maintenance coat of TWP on my deck. I have a couple of spots where it is still tacky. Will it eventually dry out or do I need to fix it? Weather has been cool but headed to 90 tomorrow.
It will dry, just leave it as is until it does.
I have a deck that I prepped using your 2-step cleaner & brighter. Unfortunately, that was several weeks ago. It has rained quite a bit since then, and I’ve been waiting for it to dry out. The deck faces north. Will I still be able to apply the Woodrich stain once it is dry enough?
If more than 2 weeks lightly wash the deck again.
Will I need to use the cleaner & brighter again? I have noticed some moss/green growth in spots?
No, just water should be okay. Light pressure wash.
I just bought a cedar shake house (1800sqft) it was built in ‘93 and has been “resealed” once since then. It could use it again. I live in a rainforest in Alaska if that matters. Any suggestions on what I should use?
I am planning on pressure washing then re-sealing the shake. I will also be adding kick out flashing to the lower roof.
I am sorry but we do ship products to Alaska.
Our 1000 sq ft treated lumber deck is about 3.5 yrs old, though 100 sq ft is about 30 yrs old. We last treated it with Pittsburgh Ultra Advanced Acrylic-oil clear sealer 2 yrs ago. The deck surface is in pretty good shape, though mildew is growing on the shaded, exposed areas. What would you recommend for 1) cleaning the deck, killing the mildew and 2) re-treating the deck? Thanks in advance.
You will need to remove the current stain as you cannot apply anything over the product you have. Please pot some pictures so we can offer advice on how best to do this.
Here are 5 photos of parts of the deck.
Looked two of them did not post…
For the prep, use the Restore A Deck Stripper and Brightener Kits while pressure washing: https://www.opwdecks.com/restore-a-deck-stain-stripper.htm
You will most likely need two of each for the prep. The mildew and alage will come off as well. When done, stain with Armstrong Clark. https://www.opwdecks.com/armstrong-clark-stain.htm
I’m looking for a Black Semi Transparent Stain with good reviews. I’ve used TWP in the past and been happy with it but they don’t appear to have black. Ill be using it on new T1-11 barn doors and want the grain to show but no wood tone (the look of Shou Sugi Ban)! Any suggestions?
Nobody makes a black semi-transparent color. The closest you will get is a very very dark brown. TWP 1500 has a Black Walnut this is about as dark as you can get: https://www.opwdecks.com/twp-1500-series.htm
What products are best for composite deck cleaning and sealing?
https://www.opwdecks.com/defy-composite-deck-products.htm
Do you have any product (pre-stain/stain) for wood(interior) stair treads (Red Oak) that I can use.
Any suggestions is greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
daniel
Sorry, but we do not carry products for inside.
Thank you for the response.
Is there any difference in performance between TWP 100 and 1500 stains? I have a south facing fence.
They perform is about the same. The difference is mainly VOC laws.
What is the difference between TWP 100 and 1500? I am in Virginia if that matters. Thanks.
VOC compliance for certain areas of the US. For Northern VA you must use the TWP 1500.
I just posted a question about cleaning and brightening my 16×12′ pt deck. The deck and top rail boards were installed new about a month ago. Will it be ok to stain the deck with the Woodrich timber oil as soon as I clean it or do I need to wait longer?
Yes, just one coat.
I applied a semi- transparent stain to a new deck(Cabot brand). It looks like a paint instead of stain and there is absolutely nothing semi- trans about it. Is there anything I can do to make it look more like a stain? Would I have to strip the entire deck? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
You will have to remove and stripping most likely will not remove this. Power sanding.
Im going to apply Armstrong-Clark Wood Stain to my 18 year old deck. Previously i have applied Thompson water seal which is still doing some good. I there something I should do to prepare the wood before I stain it?
Thanks
Strip and brighten for prep: https://www.opwdecks.com/restore-a-deck-stain-stripper.htm
I’ve been staining my mahogany deck with AC mahogany color for years and love the product. I have about 2 gallons of my 5 gallon can left over from last summer, is there a problem with buying a couple of gallons and mixing in? Also, I’ve noticed scratches from the family dogs that I think are superficial (their nails are clipped)- will the cleaning/brightening products remove these?
If you opened stain is still good, then you can mix in some new gallons. Make sure it has not thickened, clumped, or skinned on the surface. That means it has gone bad.
Not sure if the prep will remove the scratches. Depends on how deep they are.
Thank you very much for offering the service of asking these questions is wonderful!!! Is there a certain brand or type of cleaner brightener to use with TWP stains
https://www.opwdecks.com/best-selling-cleaner.htm
I followed your advice and applied 1 coat of TWP stain last summer to my brand new pressure treated premium grade pine deck.
How do I proceed now to apply the 2nd coat to get it ready for summer? Will hosing it off be enough cleaning?
No. Light scrubbing or pressure washing. Use some soapy water.
We live in Toronto Canada and have a cottage in Muskoka.
We need to restore our neglected decks at both locations which will entail replacing some bad deck boards, cleaning and restoring the remainder as some are slimy and slippery when wet and then staining the deck and railings.
The decks are Cottage 1) 1220 sq ft 2) 375 sq ft and Home 600 sq ft.
Which cleaner/brightener should I use and how much should I order?
Which stain is best, semi-transparent or solid? My wife is thinking of Armstrong Sequoia, Oxford Brown or Rustic Brown or TWP200 Butternut or Slate Grey. She does not like a reddish tone to the stain. Which would you recommend and how much should I order?
How long will it take for me to receive the order and how do you ship to me in toronto, Canada and what is the shipping cost?
Thanks
Ron
3 RAD Cleaner/Brightener Kits:
https://www.opwdecks.com/rad-300.htm
Look at the AC in Rustic Brown. 3-4 of the 5-gallon Pails:
https://www.opwdecks.com/armstrong-clark-stain-5-gallon.htm
Please add all to cart and enter the shipping info there to see all charges that include shipping. Takes about 2-3 days to arrive to Toronto
80 degrees today. Down to 49 degrees tonight. 80s again tomorrow. Is it ok for me to stain my deck today with TWP?
Yes, you are good to apply the TWP!
Thank you. I did it and it looks wonderful. I love the TWP stain.