Hey guys,
I am in need of your infinite wisdom and experience.
I am about to finish sanding my deck. I am going to stain it a semi transparent brownish color. As you can see there is still some blue left in the wood and its in the deeper parts and cant really be sanded out. Will the stain adhere and cover it up?
Secondly, I need some ideas for the front of my house. I have an overhanging something held up by 2 columns (sorry I dont know what to call it). The wood is looking old, the paint peeling and the overhead contraption looking like its sagging a bit. What can I do besides sanding it and filling the wood with filler and repainting? I would like an idea of what it would take to replace the whole thing. Are the columns fastened to the concrete floor? Can I just knock the whole thing down, and build it up with some trusses, plywood, 2 columns and shingle it to match my roof?
Many thanks in advance
Replies
That deck is going to look like Section 8 if you try to stain over the blue. Many will say iut's a terrible idea, but I would rent a good pressure washer to blast the remaining stain out. Then let it dry a week, sand off the rough spots, then stain. Either that or replace the boards. or paint.
Inside the square columns you will probably find steel pipe columns holding up hte porch roof. The columns are ther to make it look better than a 3" pipe.
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The deck wants some more sanding
The overhead something needs a trip to the dump. i have seen uglier somethings before but I really can't remember when. The entry to a house should be weloming instead of forboding, and a decoration to the facade instead of imitating a tumourus growth.
Design something nice to replace it that compliments the house
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Thanks for the replies...I have spent a lot of time sanding, but previous to that I used 2 bottles of deck stain remover(sodium hydroxide) and didnt get anything out so I decided to sand.I guess there is no harm in trying the pressure washer again, but I found if enough pressure was used to remove the stain, it damaged the wood.Im not looking to make a piece of art out of 20 year old overstained(or painted) wood, just to get it usable for a couple more years. I have other more pressing projects that need to be done in the house before that.As for the front of the house, I am in the planning stages and hope to get it done before the winter. Does anyone know what this external piece of architecture is called?
adroga... i guess it's PT Southern Yellow Pine , right ?
there is no way you are going to get all of the blue out.... you will have to remove too much wood... all the way to the bottom of the splits & checks
AND, if you are using a solid color deck stain , it will cover
the problem is that SYP is not a good material for horizontal applications in the weather... it will split and check and splinter.. and two years from now you will have to restain
i wouldn't worry about the blue
i would think about changing the decking versus restaining every two-three yearsMike Hussein Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Thanks Mike. I realize that it needs to be replaced, but I am doing the roof this summer and the deck wont be in the budget. This is just a temporary extension of the decks lifespan for 2 more years at most.Is the front entry I am asking about called a portico?
It's an entry porch, a portico, larger and it would be a porte cochere`.pressure washing will damage the wood on the deck.How are you sanding, by hand? Ge an orbital or rent a floor sander
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I bought a 5" random orbital sander and a 3"x18" belt sander.I do a first pass with the belt sander, then go over it with the random one. I tried renting a larger floor sander from a couple of rental places and they wouldnt rent it when I told them what it was for. They said the nails on the deck would damage the machine. I decided the risk wasnt worth it and would take my time doing it by hand. I really dont feel like replacing a 5000$ sander.I will finish the sanding as I have been doing and will give it a quick pass with the pressure washer.Maybe a more opaque stain will cover the blotchiness?
Haven't looked at the pictures yet, but will comment on the blue stain--easiest way to take care of it would be to get some orange wood dye or even paint or stain and dab that into those spots. The orange should conteract the blue (complementary colors) to make brown. It may be a darker brown than the rest, but will look better than blue.
Ed: Okay, looked at the photos--lots of blue--I would get wood dye in about as bright an orange as I could get (problem with wood dye is that it may eventually bleach out in the sun), or transparent or semi-transparent stain (or even diluted oil-based orange paint) and probably go over the whole thing (I would test it in inconspicuous spot or a spare (scap) board first). That will kill the blue and change it to brown. Then go from there with more stain, probably a reddish brown or more ochre color to further reduce the blue tone.
That porch and roof looks pretty rocky--does the roof leak? If not, I would still probably try to repair--especially the column bases which may be compromised structurally by rot. Use jacks or "A" frames of 2x's to support during repair.
Edited 7/22/2008 10:58 am ET by Danno
Porch roof really doesn't go with style of the house.
I did notice that it appears to be a built in slope.
Remove the rotted parts and see what you have. You might be able to build a gabled roof over what is left.
Hmmm... thats something I had not thought about.Could work and save me some trouble.
If the patio is really just a short term solution. I'd restain it blue for now. Otherwise you will have a lot of effort into a solution that isn't. The blue is dark enough it will probably show through any other translucent stain.
As to the entry: It is leaking, as evidenced by the water damage showing on the ceiling. So first thing is to figure out how to seal it up, if you are going to keep it. Wet wood rots, and you can't begin to solve the rest of the issues until you address the water. You say you are reroofing so now is the time to solve that problem. Don't know where you are, so I don't know how important having a covered entry is to you. But it was obviously important enough to some one in the past to put a roof over it.
covered entry would be nice as our winters are pretty harsh.I just wonder how much of the structure is salvageable...
quick question..Whats the best way to sand the tight areas between the vertical rails? I cant find my sander in there and wonder if I should use a sanding block or is there a better way?thanks again!
That front porch roof...does it also cover a foyer behind the entry door? Is the foyer open to the rest of the house?
It looks to me like the original entry in the main front wall was opened up and pushed out onto the concrete porch, then roofed over. Could be several more problems awaiting. The concrete porch is looking a bit infirm as well.
If you fill out your profile, it'll help us to advise you. You might even find someone here who lives in your area.
The front porch roof only extends from the outside of the house, not exactly sure what youre describing but the porch roof structure doesnt extend behind the front door.i am located in montreal quebec... not sure where my profile is to update?
OK. The brick facade gives the impression that there may be more depth to the entry than there is.
In that case, I'd be inclined to tear the old roof off without spending any time on it. If a gable roof of the same pitch as the main roof will fit above the entry door, I'd build a simple framework to support that, then make up some trusses which will extend outward enough to cover one or two feet on either side of the concrete porch.
Edited 7/23/2008 2:37 pm by Hudson Valley Carpenter
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