caustic stripper

[Riley Harth]

When using caustic soda stripper what kind of ratios will do the job. still new to using caustic and havent used on wood yet? should i just get some f18

[Pete Marentay]

Using caustic soda beads without a surfactant simply won't work. You need soap. Adding typical dish washing liquid can work, but you will be rinsing for hours to get the soap out of the wood. If you can find a low-foaming surfactant you will be much better off.

When considering the concentration, you can go pretty strong with a caustic. The guys who do this are trying to save money, but they often don't.

For one example, one super-strong caustic stripper made for decks I know of costs between $2.50/gallon and $3.18 /gallon (depending on quantity purchased). When complete and proven products cost you that little (and come with support from the supply house) it seems like an easy "solution" (I couldn't stop myself from making that pun.)

If you want to use cleaners designed for wood, there are many to choose from. My suggestion is to try several reputable products and stick with the one that works best for you. If you want the strongest products, you can determine the sodium hydroxide content just by looking at the MSDS. That won't tell you anything about the surfactants, but it will sure help you compare relative power. I put our MSDS right on the web store so you won't have any problem finding it. Other supply houses may make you ask for theirs. Go ahead and ask, and then you can compare pretty easily.

BTW, no one may want to answer your original question because you are edging into home-brew chemistry and you are going to use it on a home-owner's property. The potential for a bad ending is pretty high.

[Riley Harth]

thanks for the insight Pete. I checked out some of your products im diggin it. Im thinking ill leave the beads for concrete and buy some product thats been proven to work. thanks again