# Painting over Thompson Water seal?



## Gymschu (Dec 12, 2010)

Thompson's is absolute garbage. Pressure washing will take off what little of the coating that is still present. Then apply a real product.......Cabot, Sikkens, SW Deckscapes, etc. DO NOT APPLY PAINT TO A DECK!

More advice and help here:
www.deckstainhelp.com


----------



## JPCheslock78 (Jul 2, 2017)

Do I have to totally remove the stain by pressure washing? The whole deck is stained still....


----------



## ToolSeeker (Sep 19, 2012)

Paint won't hold up on it.


----------



## XC Painter (Jun 10, 2017)

You should apply a cleaner and pressure wash it getting the angles and gaps, etc. 
Rinse. Let dry. Sand surface with 80 grit paper on an orbital sander, hooked up to a shopvac or dust extractor. For the deck surface I would get it sanded 90% clean or better. Handsand pickets or use a $30 skil "octo" sander to reach all that stuff.

Most important, do you want solid color or transparent stained look?

For solid color, find and buy Proluxe Rubbol Solid color stain, and use a 6" stainer brush to apply and brush out 2 coats. This solid opaque color will have a low sheen to it.
For transparent there are a few good brands and products.


----------



## mark sr (Jun 13, 2017)

Does the TWS still bead water? That is the true test as to how well it will accept a new stain. I agree there are a lot better stains available! Paint might initially last longer than a deck stain but adds too much prep work when it comes time to repaint.

I normally just use a bleach solution and a pressure washer to get a deck [or siding] ready for restaining but with your deck I'd add TSP to the cleaning solution.


----------



## woodco (Jun 11, 2017)

XC Painter said:


> You should apply a cleaner and pressure wash it getting the angles and gaps, etc.
> Rinse. Let dry. Sand surface with 80 grit paper on an orbital sander, hooked up to a shopvac or dust extractor. For the deck surface I would get it sanded 90% clean or better. Handsand pickets or use a $30 skil "octo" sander to reach all that stuff.
> 
> Most important, do you want solid color or transparent stained look?
> ...


Hey man, nothing against sanding decks down or anything, but you're acting like its a necessary step, when its not, especially if they might be doing a solid color stain. 

Im sure it looks a little better if you do sand everything down, but this is a DIY forum, and people here are most likely to not want to spend all that extra time and money just to make it look a little better. With a good pressure wash, and maybe some wood brightner, most decks will look pretty close to new after a fresh stain. 

The general rule is, if they want a lighter color stain, strip it, if its the same color or darker, dont. Just make that clear to people when you give advice, cuz they might end up thinking that if they dont sand it, the stain wont stick or something. 

Im sure your decks come out looking a little better than mine, but Im okay with it looking 95% new if it saves me two days worth of work, and the client
a thousand or so bucks. I would at least give people an option.


----------



## klaatu (Mar 9, 2015)

So the real question here is.....do you need to remove all of that paraffin wax before you re-finish your deck? Yes you do. Unfortunately there is no way to do that other than let that weather off. Nothing sticks to paraffin wax. Other than more paraffin wax. Good luck.


----------



## XC Painter (Jun 10, 2017)

woodco said:


> Hey man, nothing against sanding decks down or anything, but you're acting like its a necessary step, when its not, especially if they might be doing a solid color stain.
> 
> Im sure it looks a little better if you do sand everything down, but this is a DIY forum, and people here are most likely to not want to spend all that extra time and money just to make it look a little better. With a good pressure wash, and maybe some wood brightner, most decks will look pretty close to new after a fresh stain.
> 
> ...


Sanding is a necessary step and the most basic fundamnental step in applying deck coatings. Read into the deck preparation section on Benjamin Moore web site, or look into that on most any deck product sites. 

It's not only about the look, but more-so the product performance, no? Diyer or not.

No offense to you either.. Some stains may work okay over non-sanded wood, if they can soak in and they are just pigmented alkyd stains. 
But how many thousand of times do we hear of decks failing year after year no matter what product people try or do. I ask people in that situation, did you sand it? "Well no". Was it sanded when the wood was new? "Well, no"
If I was using a quality product, even a solid stain , I would be more likely to sand it somewhat, to avoid failure of an otherwise quality product, and avoid wasting that time, labor and money. This pressure treated decking is prone to peeling and it has never been sanded before so I opt for the proper steps of preparation.


----------



## Jmayspaint (May 4, 2013)

klaatu said:


> So the real question here is.....do you need to remove all of that paraffin wax before you re-finish your deck? Yes you do. Unfortunately there is no way to do that other than let that weather off. Nothing sticks to paraffin wax. Other than more paraffin wax. Good luck.




This is important. Thompsons is rather unique in that it does contain wax. That's why it beads water so well for a short period. 

I usually tell people once they have started with Thompsons, might as well keep using it every year or so, or let it weather off as much as possible then sand back to new wood. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## mark sr (Jun 13, 2017)

You can add me to the list of those who don't routinely sand decks. I do believe in proper prep but normally between the weathering and cleaning the old finish is in recoatable shape. About the only time I sand a deck is when someone got overly aggressive with a pressure washer and roughed up the wood. While a bleach/water solution is my go to cleaner, I'll add TSP if I think there might be any adhesion issues.

I've never had any issues staining over well weathered TWS although depending on the job I might use an oil base stain or add Flood's EmulsaBond to a waterborne or latex stain. I'd refuse [or postpone] to do a job over TWS that was in decent shape.


----------



## woodco (Jun 11, 2017)

I dont see anything in the BM or any other exterior stain deck preparation about sanding the wood, and I've never seen or even heard of a stain failure. Pressure treated is iffy if its new, obviously, but I dont see how sanding would help that issue, as it would be cutting into more (and better) pressure treating. 

But hey, if you can get your clients to pay for a total sand, more power to ya.


----------



## XC Painter (Jun 10, 2017)

woodco said:


> I dont see anything in the BM or any other exterior stain deck preparation about sanding the wood, and I've never seen or even heard of a stain failure. Pressure treated is iffy if its new, obviously, but I dont see how sanding would help that issue, as it would be cutting into more (and better) pressure treating.
> 
> But hey, if you can get your clients to pay for a total sand, more power to ya.


Can't find anything about sanding from Benjamin Moore sites, or other deck related information sources. And never heard of a deck stain failure? Twilight zone stuff there. 
I find that quite odd. I did sone quick searching, of course found videos on prepping decks. The BM site has a section for contractors that I looked in but didn't stumble upon specific deck prep. 
Though, if you look at decayed or "weathered " wood with a magnifying scope, it looks like shag carpet. (Not a sound surface) A sanded deck looks flat, cut down evenly taking away all the frayed fibers. 
Anyways it's no secret or mystery that cutting decayed wood surfaces back to a clean, fresh substrate is good, and needed. 
I have this info on hand and the BM product pamphlets that have deck prep stuff too.


----------



## XC Painter (Jun 10, 2017)

Which products should we find prep info from? Its everywhere online, but heres what I have now.


----------

