Decking Cleaning Tips & Tricks

Mistakes To Avoid When Cleaning Your Composite Deck

This product was made to clean decks with a simple garden pump sprayer which can save you the cost of renting a pressure washer. Luckily for us all— advancements in deck building have made affording, installing and maintaining a deck easier than ever before! When applied to a mold stained deck, Sodium Hypochlorite immediately begins to activate, “Bleaching” the surface mold white and any other stains on the surface. Within a matter of minutes your deck has probably never looked better. Bleach has done its job giving you, the deck owner, a “Quick Fix”, the instantaneous illusion of cleanliness. Unfortunately, not only is the mold still growing inside your deck, but the Chlorine in the Bleach has begun to damage it. front deck in Canberra is cedar and I am so sick of scrubbing, brightening lightning, cleaning, oiling and sanding!

Taking Care Of Composite Decking Home Guides Sf Gate

Harsh chemicals, such as bleach, are NOT recommended on any composite surface! These chemicals can eat away at the composite structure and leave permanent discolorations and damage. While you won’t use your deck regularly during the winter season, you probably still want to clean pathways to your backyard and make it safe to walk. When power washing your deck, direct the spray to match the grain. This helps prevent accidentally scoring or marking the surface by going against the grain or by crossing over several boards. If a paper towel doesn’t clean the food or beverage stain from your deck, then the simple soap-and-water method from chapter 1 should remove it.

I’ve studied this very closely with a magnifying glass and believe it to be a manufacturing characteristic. It appears that the dark spots are areas where there is a higher concentration of the recycled colored plastic.

How To Power Wash Composite Decking

Bleach can alter the natural pH of wood; damaging its cellular structure. Wood is slightly acidic while bleach has a basic pH. So bleach applied to wood can break down wood fibers and prematurely age your deck. If you enjoy the look of your deck, you may not want to use bleach. Bleach can potentially lighten the color of stained, painted, or natural wood decks. Natural tropical woods used for decking come with interesting names like cumaru, red tauari, tigerwood, and massaranduba. These hard, durable deck materials are richly-grained and naturally resistant to wood-boring insects and rot. Here we’ll cover the most popular types of deck material, and how to easily clean decking with Wet & Forget Outdoor.

How Long Do Composite Decks Last?

• Although the surface looks solid, composite decking is actually quite porous.
• Therefore, it needs an oxygenated cleaner that can reach deep into the material and clean insidethe deck as well as the surface.
• When purchasing a cleaner, always check the label and NEVER use a Chlorine Bleach based “deck cleaner”.
• If the active ingredients read – Sodium Hypochlorite, it contains Bleach.

To prevent this, keep the surface of your deck as clean and dry as possible. Make sure your deck has effective drainage around its perimeter and between the deck planks. However, if the soap-and-water cleaning doesn’t remove a particular stain, don’t default to a chemical cleaner. Depending on the stain or cleaning issue you have, you may be tempted to apply a chemical cleaner to the stain to clean your deck. To avoid this damage, make sure you use a shovel with a plastic or rubber edge. This removes the snow safely without scraping or harming the deck’s surface.

Allowing metal items such as furniture or planters to remain wet for long periods of time on your deck will cause rust stains to occur. If the stains penetrate the decking too deeply, they may prove nearly impossible to remove. Due to it’s ionic structure, Chlorine Bleach can only sit ON a surface. Mold remediation requires the need to clean and remove the mold BELOW and INTO a porous surface. Use your hose or power wash to remove as much of the surface mold as possible.

We purchased this material thinking it would be maintenance-free and are very unhappy. Use a pressure washer to remove as much of the mold as possible. Spray the deck with a hose to remove surface dirt and debris. Clean the deck with a soft-bristle brush and warm, soapy water. (Trex doesn't specify a brand of soap, so a dish soap such as Dawn is a good choice.) The brush will ensure you'll get any dirt in the embossed pattern. Use only a fan tip and up to a 3100 psi power washer to remove dirt and debris.

Olympic's cleaner contains sodium hypochlorite, or bleach, and may lighten the color of your wood deck. Trex does not recommend the use of a pressure washer. The use of a pressure washer on deck surface could damage the decking surface and will void the warranty with respect to any condition caused by the pressure washing. Store decking on a flat level surface and always use proper supports , Do not store directly on the ground. If debris, such as pollen and dirt, is allowed to remain on the deck surface, mold can feed on the biofilm. Using a hose and warm, soapy water with a soft bristle brush is recommended to remove the food source and mold.