Deck refinishing steps - need to do them all?

Hello,

We have a four year old merbau deck that desperately needs refinishing. I don't remember what we used on it when it was new, but it has faded so the boards are somewhat gray with reddish speckles remaining from the tint in the decking oil.

My first question is, since we will definitely need to sand, can we skip power washing the deck?

My second question is regarding the colour. Since the wood has faded and we are not very good at keeping up with caring for stuff, I would like to let it just go natural silver. If we use a good untinted product after sanding, like Sikkens Deck in Natural (assuming that doesn't have any tint - not sure about that), will the wood suffer from lack of UV protection?

Thanks for any advice you can offer.

Cheers, Dorothy

I think better you strip your old finish and start to refinish it.
Use a chemical stripper to do it.

You may apply clear coat on your old finish, but it will give you uneven color since your color is already fade in some part.
You can use the finishing material that is designed for outdoor purpose. There are some type you can use such as : spar varnish, or outdoor polyurethane, outdoor water based, etc.
I think the sikken deck is also okay, but you better ask your finishing supplier to get the right material. Just to make sure that the material is designed for outdoor uses.

EDIT: Link removed by moderator.

Good luck

wisno

Thanks for your advice Wisno. I bit the bullet and did it by the book. Power washed, sanded, 1 coat of Sikkens Cetol HLS in Teak and 2 coats of Deck in Natural - all by brush. My hands and back are never going to be the same! :C

Just be sure to do the recoats as per Sikkens or you will have real problems in the future. Sikkens is great stuff but requires more maintenance than other products. Not sure if you have original formula as in the USA they were EPA required to reformulate.

CaptRandy, what kinds of problems are you referring to? Do you mean do the recoats as advised time-wise, technique-wise, both?

Did the reformulation for the US make the product better or less effective?

Just looking for some details on all you've alluded to in your post.

Thanks, D

Recoat as recommended or sooner. Like 9 months between coatings. Our formula is much worse than it was because of EPA regulations on volatile oils. The formula we had available back in 1990's held up about 18 months but the new stuff fails after 12 months.
We use a new product here called Ready Seal or Wood Tux.

Thanks Randy. I'll see if I can find out if the formula was changed for Australia. When I spoke to the distributor about which products to use and how, the guy said I should be able to go up to 2 years before recoating. I don't think I'll take that chance though after all the hard work I've invested. I'll keep an eye on it and hope I can manage with a recoat once a year.