peeling porch

[legalprofessionals]

hello everyone,

Our front porch floor is stained and then they put a layer of a clear gloss over it. That clear gloss layer is now peeling in certain areas and looks terrible. What is the best way to remove that layer of clear gloss. We will probably restain the porch as we do not like the color anyways. Can we just paint over the color or would we need to remove the stain first or prime?

Thanks

[HayZee518]

the stain I would bet was a solvent base. that is, mineral spirit base which has the pigment dissolved in it. the base or vehicletakes the stain and is absorbed by the porous wood, so it penetrates to a certain depth, then the vehicle or solvent evaporates leaving the stain. the clearcoat just sealed the surface. warming the clearcoat with an electric torch, you may be able to scrape it off. however I'm thinking the clearcoat may be a latex product. if water is left to sit on it - it may soften to which you can scrape it off. look on the web for a latex finish stripper.

[legalprofessionals]

what about power washing?

thanks for your reply - I will definetely try that. It is a clear top coat of some kind over the paint/stain. Would power washing the deck work at all to scrape off that top layer or would that just ruin it?

[HayZee518]

you could try but I can't guarantee results

[wvguy]

wow clear gloss

ok .. clear gloss topcoat. Not something i would advise since it can make your deck very slick with water. I am sure it would be a oil based product topcoat. Someone may have put say a interior/exterior varnish over the deck stain.
Two options. First you could sand, rent a floor sander and sand it all down. or use a stain stripper. Depending on how large the deck is would determine the method. The floor sander would be quicker on larger jobs but little more work.
After removing that top coat. and yes you will have to remove the top gloss coat or nothing will penetrate to the wood fibers.
See what it looks like after sanding or stripping then you can determine if you need a wood toner or a semi-transparent stain. Remember its always best to brush stain not spray.
Hope this helps.

[MichiganPowerWashing.com]

Hire power washing company. They will remove old stain and than you can do it with the deck/fence whatever you want.

I dont recommend to paint or stain over existing stain- especially when you don't know nothing about it. I'm almost possitive that you will have big problems with new stain sooner or later if you choose the easy way.

[paintboy]

Start over. There shouldn't have been a clear coat applied to an exterior surface, especially a wood deck. I'm not aware of any clear product recommended for a deck/porch. Even when exterior doors are stained and clear coated, when they are exposed to the sun and rain, they will degrade and need maintenance every 1-2 years. A deck/porch is an difficult surface to coat, it is exposed to the sun at an extreme angle and rain/snow also lays on the surface.

Once you remove the clear product and the stain, I would apply an acrylic deck stain product. I use Pittsburgh Paints Sunproof Deck and Siding Finish. If you use a semi-transparent product expect 1.5 - 2 years before re-applying. Solid color 3-5 years. Even though they are acrylic/water soluable products it does not mean they are inferior. There has been tremendous strides in the past 10 years to make these products superior to many alkyd/oil based products.

Visit a paint store and they will steer you in the right direction.

Good Luck