Pro's and Con's on using a PW for decks

bhenson

bhenson

Moderator
Hey Everyone,

Hope your Sunday is going good. I recieved this email today for a potential client and was wondering what the pro's and con's were on using a PW on decks. I searched but couldnt find anything. Just want to make sure I have all the right info when I talk to him tomorrow.

Thanks in advance for all who reply,
Bryan

"Hi Bryan,

This is Gregory again. I would like to ask you if you are interested in discussing this project with me again. I already hired somebody to make all the repairs, but I'm not sure at this point if they will be able to prep the deck for restaining it the way it has to be done.

First of all, I heard that pressure washing necessary to strip the old paint may cause the damage of the wood and I would like to know what you think about it.

Second, is it possible to try pressure wash some area on the deck down to bare wood, as you suggested, just for the test purpuses ?

And third, if you are interested, can you give me 2 different bids: 1. on stripping and prepping the deck only without repairs and stain.

2. stripping, prepping and painting with MY Stain (which does not require a seal) but, again, without repairs."
 
bhenson said:
Hey Everyone,

Hope your Sunday is going good. I recieved this email today for a potential client and was wondering what the pro's and con's were on using a PW on decks. I searched but couldnt find anything. Just want to make sure I have all the right info when I talk to him tomorrow.

Thanks in advance for all who reply,
Bryan

"Hi Bryan,

This is Gregory again. I would like to ask you if you are interested in discussing this project with me again. I already hired somebody to make all the repairs, but I'm not sure at this point if they will be able to prep the deck for restaining it the way it has to be done.

First of all, I heard that pressure washing necessary to strip the old paint may cause the damage of the wood and I would like to know what you think about it.

Second, is it possible to try pressure wash some area on the deck down to bare wood, as you suggested, just for the test purpuses ?

And third, if you are interested, can you give me 2 different bids: 1. on stripping and prepping the deck only without repairs and stain.

2. stripping, prepping and painting with MY Stain (which does not require a seal) but, again, without repairs."
Click to expand...


I hope Pete replies here, this is a great question for him.
 
You have a potential customer that is going to pick you to damn death with silly questions. Clearly he has watched Tim the Fix-it man or something to even suggest that pressure washing may be bad and further ask if you can do a test. To add insult to that, he wants to know about his "stain" that doesn't need a seal. Really?

Bryan - this is the perfect opportunity to provide quite the education to this homeowner!

Pete will do quite a wonderful job responding, but in the meantime, you might just want to search some of his other posts for basic wood information.

Celeste
 
Thanks Celeste for the reply. I have given this client a qoute last month but he said I was out of his budget and opt to go with someone cheaper. I told him that if they cvan do it for the price then let them do it, but call me in the event that they cant stand behind their price. And he did. I just want to be more educated as well, in the event that this question ever comes up again in the future.
 
Pete is out of the office today...but here is a part of one of his articles he sends out:

"High-pressure washing of wood decks is not necessary or advisable. Instead, use the proper-strength chemical cleaners to do all the work. Then you simply RINSE using your pressure-washer. Doing it the right way means using your pressure washer to agitate slightly with MODERATE pressure and HIGH water volume. Use the pressure washer responsibly. Too much pressure on the surface of the wood will cause furring damage."

http://sunbrite.stores.yahoo.net/deckcleantips.html
 
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