# So how do we fix this mess!!! BEHR Stain peeling



## hennyh (Nov 14, 2006)

Was it oil based or acrylic?

What was the previous surface? (oil, acrylic or bare wood)

What was the prep? If the prep involved washing, what was the moisture content of the wood before staining? Or how much elapsed dry time?

You'll probably need to use a deck stripper and the sooner you do it the better.

As much as I hate Behr, I doubt it was failure of the product.


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## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

hennyh said:


> Was it oil based or acrylic?
> 
> What was the previous surface? (oil, acrylic or bare wood)
> 
> ...


I would reluctantly agree, but it is still one of the absolute worse stain products on the market today.:yes:


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## poppameth (Oct 2, 2008)

I think it probably is a product failure. I've heard several complaints on Behr stain just like yours. I'm not sure if they've changed the formulation or if it's still what it's always been, but all the people who have brought a bucket to me to ask about it have had a silicone/acrylic based product. It's a monster to strip completely clean, and you have to get it clean because the silicone in it prevents other coatings from sticking correctly.


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## Rcon (Nov 20, 2009)

I had a Behr rep tell me himself he didn't like their own stains - what does that tell you?

You'll have to strip the deck and redo it with a good product.


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## ipedeckguide (Jun 14, 2010)

Usually when a finish is peeling it has to be stripped. You can either sand it or use a chemical stripper and power washer to remove the failed finish.


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## mazzonetv (Feb 25, 2009)

If you have a ben moore store near you look for a product called "remove", as the prevous post stated you could use that chemical with a pressure washer to remove the failed finish. You might also want to look into their Arborcoat deck stain. Good luck..

PS - To the previous poster Ipedeckguide - that was an awesome ipe deck that you posted in that other thread!! Very nice!


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## kencasey (Sep 25, 2011)

We had a similar problem with Behr Premium Semi-Transparent Deck Stain. I built our deck out of the old pressure-treated pine in 1994. I've only used Behr products. I waited over 3 months, as recommended at the time, to stain the decking. I believe the first product was oil-based. The finish lasted about 5-years. I powerwashed and stripped for each subsequent stain application. Results: 2nd application lasted 3-years, 3rd lasted 2-years...Areas of traffic failed first.

This last time, I used Behr's stripper with two seperate applications, to ensure I got ALL of the finish. The pressure-treated decking looked like new; so, the old finish offered some protection. But, it's color covering was lacking. Weather was around 80 degrees, low humidity, September 2, 2011 in southern New Jersey, wood was dry--all seemed well. I asked two different Home Depot Paint reps about weather, coverage, etc. They both assured me that it was perfect conditions to apply stain.

Confident, I applied first coat with paint pad on broom stick, as recommended to push stain better into wood. Color coverage looked good. I applied 2nd coat about 2-hours after first. It looked good. We had rain about 72-hours after. During storm, top stain layer peeled and splattered.

About 7-days after, during dry conditions, I scraped a test area to re-stain. It covered okay, and seems to be holding up. However, I had to cover whole board to not risk further stain coverage failure. I really didn't like the repair. I'm considering stripping it all off, and trying Cabot oil-based deck stain. Cabot is holding up after 1.5 years on the play fort I built for my grandson, who lives up the street.

Behr just doesn't seem to the quality it used to be about 15 years ago, I think. Even with imperfect prep, the stain still should have performed better, in my opinion. It's not worth the $36. per gallon.


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## 95025 (Nov 14, 2010)

Very interesting resurrection of a year old thread, "kencasey." What's your other username? :whistling2:


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## kencasey (Sep 25, 2011)

Hi. A Google search led me here to folks with similar Behr experiences. Just thought I'd add mine.


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## jsheridan (Jan 30, 2011)

Quite suspect, aren't we Dr?


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## jsheridan (Jan 30, 2011)

You know, in reading this old thread, I think OP applied their stain over too wet a surface. If you apply a latex stain over damp wood, it would seem commonsense that the stain will not cure properly with such moisture underneath, nor would it properly bond to wet wood. The heavy rain will basically power wash the deck, and for it to peel tells me that the stain was not properly dried, nor bonded, and the rain just shredded the floating, non bonded layer of stain to bits. The single largest cause of deck failure is lack of proper prep and not adhering to moisture content levels.


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## 95025 (Nov 14, 2010)

jsheridan said:


> Quite suspect, aren't we Dr?


Yep, pretty suspicious. Actually, it's more of a simple observation. A no-brainer.


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## MikeKy55 (Nov 4, 2009)

Admin can look him up by his ISP address.


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## kencasey (Sep 25, 2011)

*First coat bonded well enough*

I applied two coats. The first coat seemed properly bonded, and held up. The second coat, applied less than 2 hours (per directions) after, did fail.

Btw, I do believe I'm new here.


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## jsheridan (Jan 30, 2011)

Ken, are you, or have you ever been, a member of any underground, subversive groups? :laughing: I had to play on your "suspicious" background.:laughing:
Seriously now. You weren't the OP I was referring to, but the originator of this thread. I re-read your post carefully and I'm at a loss to explain why your second coat failed. The only questions I would ask is a)was a second coat specified b)was 72 hours beyond the watch period for rain, and c)was it a latex product? The implication of your words is that you followed the instructions carefully, but what you describe sounds like applying a second coat over a one coat product, it didn't penetrate and cure properly. Firstly, no products are what they were 15 years ago, IMO, they're worse. The government is forcing VOC based reformulations and it's having a negative impact. I really don't think the paint companies know what their products will do or how they will perform. Secondly, since Behr has worked well for you generally, I would stick with it. You've had a satisfactory 16 year experience with it. Regardless of all that's said with regard to Behr, the fact that it is working for you in your case is all that matters. I would contact Behr at their hotline and ask them what they think happened and what to do to correct. They may have an answer for you. Before you call, get the batch numbers off the can/lid. They may ask, and if they don't, ask them if they've had notice of any bad batches. Welcome to the everyday world of the paint contractor. Good Luck.


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