Stain on Cedar Siding Peeling

Bill C.

New member
My in-laws have a cedar shingle house that is stained with Sikkens Siding Finish. The house siding was stained four years ago. The stain is supposed to last longer than four years. I was told my brother in law used outdoor bleach then power washed it before it was stained. It was not stained previous to the stain they applied. I attached pictures of the problem.

Can I wire brush the peeling stain and re-stain it or do I have to strip it and start new? If I strip it what do you recommend for cedar siding.

siding.jpgsiding 2.jpgpaint can.jpgsiding 3.jpg
 
Thanks Connor. I have zero experience stripping so I would rather use some elbow grease and restain. My concern is if I reapply stain over the problem will it just start peeling even sooner since the first coat may not have been applied correctly. My mother in law says the painter who applied the stain said Sikkens should last at least 7 years. It doesn't look like the stain was absorbed into the cedar. In your experience, is there an underlying problem I should be concerned with?
 
I concur, you are not stripping that with a PW. We do a couple of these a year. Wash off the lose flaking stain, let dry, spinner with 36 grit (we call them spinners - a Makita high RPM disk sander), feather out your swirls with 100 grit sandpaper (the better you get at grinding the easier this step is), Oil Prime all bare cedar, top coat with a quality stain (we use SW Woodscapes or Ben Moore siding stain - I've never used Sikkens, IDK how that is). Note, is very important to Oil Prime very soon after prep. because you don't want moisture to get under the freshly (thin) exposed coating. It tends to peel again. We stop prep at about 2:00 so that we can prime all that we exposed that day. We like to use SW A100 oil primer or better yet, the Benjamin Moore "long dry" oil primer. Both of those in current conditions will take days to dry - that is what you want the oil to penetrate deep into the wood to get a good bite.

This work sucks, make sure you get paid well - your hands get all chewed up, eyes get all blood shot from the dust, your arms hurt from fighting that little grinder all day.....charge accordingly, its not fun.
 
I would attempt to three step it in a test spot. You'll need sodium hydroxide to emulsify the Sikkens, and you may have to do it two or more times. Make sure that you neutralize, or the next stain will likely fail like the Sikkens did. The ph was likely the culprit. What a chore that's going to be either way.....
 
I would attempt to three step it in a test spot. You'll need sodium hydroxide to emulsify the Sikkens, and you may have to do it two or more times. Make sure that you neutralize, or the next stain will likely fail like the Sikkens did. The ph was likely the culprit. What a chore that's going to be either way.....

What would you guys out there neutralize with, oxalic? Is there something better floating around?
 
Not sure about this job, but... Sikkens is NOT a stain, but a finish, very similar to a varnish. I should know... built an all redwood house back in the 80's, complete with 1,500 sf redwood deck, and 441 stiles for the railing around it.... The "Thompson's" recommended by every painting contractor I talked to and every paint store, failed within 6 months of completion (each and every board was coated prior to installation... two front coats, and one back coat)... Thus, the move to the Sikkens. While the Sikkens has worked well (oil based, 3 coats initially) on the all clear redwood lap siding, it started peeling up off the deck after the first Ozarks winter. And, Sikkens is designed to be recoated every 3 years, which, it was not. Yes, had to completely sand, back to bare wood, the entire 5,300 sf house, (along with the 1,500 sf deck, and, remove and sand all 441 stiles (I remember each and every one of them) and the deck railing. I'd recommend the Oil based Sikkens for a homeowner who will dilignently maintain the siding every 3 years... but... never again for a deck... Nothing but oil based semi-transparent stain from now on...
 
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