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Two years ago I replaced 1500 sq. ft. of treated southern yellow pine decking with TREX. I thought I’d died and gone to heaven when it bleached to a lovely silver grey. No more problems I thought. WRONG!
After three months blotchy spots showed up all over the deck. Finally, I was advised by TREX to use Olympic Deck cleaner to remove these “mildew” spots. Fifteen gallons of cleaner did the job. But – the spots were back in six weeks. Now I hear from my dealer that TREX has a new “darker colored” material. so mildew spots don’t show. I’m not about to tear out the decking again.
Any suggestions? Should I paint it? and, if so, what material?
Jerry Frost – [email protected]
Replies
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Once you commit to paint be prepared to repaint every year or two with all the scraping and sanding that goes along with it . Paint doesent hold up well on exposed horizontal surfaces , and it's my understanding that Trex and simalar products expand and contract quite a bit which would shorten the life of paint . I always recommend stain for wood decks because when it needs recoating all you usually have to do is clean it and re apply , it's also easier to apply . I dont know how well Trex takes stain as I havnt used it . Good luck , Chuck
*Trex will take stain easily -- based on some pieces I experimented with. The disadvantage is that you will lose traction when it is wet, as you will with anything that decreases porosity. With paint, also be sure to account for traction and use one of the floor paints designed to be walked on. A solid stain might work well too, and I imagine latex could accomodate Trex's movement (which is less than regular wood's) better.I wouldn't give up on cleaning the deck just yet -- have you tried diluted bleach? Does the deck sit out wet often, that is does it have drainage problems or leaf litter on it a lot? 1500 sf is quite a big investment.That it took three months for the problem to appear, then half as much time to reappear, deserves explanation. I have some of the stuff out back to, so I'd love to hear more!
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Andrew - Thanks for your comments. First - I made a typo, not unusual. I meant 500 sq. ft. of deck.
The deck is exposed to full sun, when we have it in Michigan, half of each day. The board spacing is open, no water stands on the deck at any time. Trees are well away from the house, so no leaf litter.
The appearance of the surface is of "liver spots" (darker grey) all over the surface - except under the soffits, which extend 27" from the house. It really is very unattractive. I love the stuff, except it looks so bad.
I believe that household bleach (sodium hypochlorite) is not as strong as the same component in the Olypic deck cleaner, or in pool chlorine. Maybe I should try a repeat application the deck cleaner and really what I need is a "mildewcide" but I don't know where to get that stuuf.
Thanks for your comments.
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Hmmm... I was thinking mildew, which diluted bleach destroys like magic. But it must be a rainwater-related problem. Try a spot application of bleach. You might also try a different cleaner. At least the spots do clean off, suggesting a superficial problem rather than a reaction in the Trex itself. Dirty rain?
"I love the stuff, except it looks so bad." Very charitable! The color change rationale from Trex sounds fishy -- both of their "colors" fade pretty light and I don't think the lightest "natural" color has changed any time recent.
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I'd be calling the Trex distributor and see what they suggest. If they have made a product change, it is probably because they are aware of this problem, and if they're aware, then they have a responsibility to take care of their customers, just like in any other business.
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Two years ago I replaced 1500 sq. ft. of treated southern yellow pine decking with TREX. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven when it bleached to a lovely silver grey. No more problems I thought. WRONG!
After three months blotchy spots showed up all over the deck. Finally, I was advised by TREX to use Olympic Deck cleaner to remove these "mildew" spots. Fifteen gallons of cleaner did the job. But - the spots were back in six weeks. Now I hear from my dealer that TREX has a new "darker colored" material. so mildew spots don't show. I'm not about to tear out the decking again.
Any suggestions? Should I paint it? and, if so, what material?
Jerry Frost - [email protected]