We have an Ipe porch, 40' x 10'. This is our 3rd year of using Ipe oil to protect it.  This year however, the oil didn't get absorbed as well and we are left with a sticky porch.  What can we use to get the stickiness off?

I have  two cedar docks on a lake that the natural cedar stain I use scapes off over the summer with pets running over the docks. Also the stain doesn't seem to soak into the wood. When I pressure wash in the spring it all comes off clean - I want something I can apply that lasts more than 1/2 a season 
In the North  East - high sun 

I have an Ipe deck. I'm in North Carolina, so the sun is fairly intense, although only for a few hours a day because of the location, which is in the shade for long periods. I have not stained the deck for several years. I am now trying to choose the best product to use and have read up on a few but am still not much the wiser :). I would like the deck to retain its color for as long as possible. What would be my best choice?

I have a large mahogany deck--going on 20 years old and still in decent shape, with a few boards replaced over the years.  I used Cabot's Australian Timber Oil for many years but my painting contractor told me two years ago that the product was no longer the same quality based on environmental regulations that forced a formula change for Connecticut.  We used Penofin instead two years ago--clear penetrating oil--but I'm told that formula has also been modified and that it's not as effective/long-lasting in its new formulation.  Contractor is powerwashing the deck this week in preparation for treatment.  What would you recommend--for decking and mahogany railing tops?

Building a tigerwood deck and looking for recommendations for sealer. Seen various recs for ipe oil, messners, and similar. In idaho, weather is generally dry but can be damp in winter/spring. Cold winters, hot summers. Deck gets afternoon sun and tons of debris from mature trees above. 

We are repurposing cedar.  It has been planed and is ready to use.  My husband wands to saint the boards before he lays them down. What do. you think of that?

I heard on the radio that you have new excellent deck stain that can be tinted to any desired color with superior coverage.  What do I order or shop for?

I am ready to stain the deck. It is redwood, and will be exposed to snow / cold in the winter and a lot of hot sun in the summer, as the house faces W/SW. We also have a large dog who runs up and down stairs a lot. We have stripped and sanded down to bare wood. Got deck cleaner. Finding a LOT of confusing and contradictory information on line (oil vs water-based, product ratings etc). Thinking semi-transparent to minimize variations but show my nice grain. What is easiest for a novice to apply? What will give a nice satiny finish? What will last best? Do you make product recommendations? 

I would like to stain a one year old deck. It has some small gray spots in a 2x2 ft area and a large dark spot from a fire pit. Which cleaner would remove these spots and do I need a wood brightener? The wood is otherwise very clean.

I stained old lake pine dock with Defy Marine Seal. Put two coats on it about 2-3 weeks ago.  Looks good, but wondering if I could apply a third coat for more protection now.  Didn't apply a third coat originally as we were trying to stretch the amount of stain we bought, so only did two coats at the time. Please advise if we can, and if so, any special prep besides sweeping dock clean before stain application. 

Hi! our IEP wood deck is 30 years old, we live is Southeast NC on the Coast so it has survived many Hurricanes but it has aged to a dull flat gray- tried basic deck stain but was BEAUTIFUL for 3 days before it faded back to dull within one month!! What can I do?

Hello -- in southern/central ontario. Mish mash of docking that needs some TLC. Some is still the brown pressure-treated, some is greying and some in between. None of it has even been stained or painted.  We have about 450 sq' of surface to cover. What do you recommend, and do I have to use water based products? Also, are the products brushed or rolled on? Thank you!

We live in Québec Canada and have harsh weather.We have a wood deck with some older planks and some brand new ones both in treated deck wood.  We are planning to have the older planks sanded and to have the whole deck stained with an oil based product with a grey color.  Can you please recommend what process should be followed in order to have this work done and for it to last for many years.  The deck is in full sun but half of it will be protected by a hard top gazebo.  Thank you very much in advancePS I see you ship to Canada, hope we do not have to pay duty and how much would shipping be for either 4 individual gallons or a 5 gallon pail?  Again many thanks

We live in MI and have been using Timberoil on our 20 plus yr old cedar deck for many years because of a previous issue with peeling after using a DEFY water based stain. Timberoil is something that OPW recommended and applied after removing the water based stain. Could you compare the advantages / disadvantages of Timberoil/ TWP 100 series and TWP 1500 series moving forward? Thank you!

My 8 year old wooden dock has been painted with Behr Solid Stain several times. Have had issues with peeling before, but is peeling badly now after a summer of hurricanes that caused my dock to go underwater several times, sometimes for multiple days at a time. I used a Diamabrush on my angle grinder to remove all the old finish down to the bare wood. My plan is to use Defy Marine Cleaner, then Defy Brightener to prep for a new stain. I won't be going back with any solid stain. I liked the look of the light gray solid stain I had, but didn't like the peeling problem. I'm sure my dock will go underwater again in the future as it has many times in the past 8 years, so I'm wondering which of your products you would recommend, if any. Also, most of my dock boards appear to be dry, but a few still appear to be wet. How long should I wait after the wet boards appear dry before applying a penetrating stain?

I live in South GA. It's hot and my deck is not shaded at all. We just had it built 6 months ago and I want to stain it. I bought a cleaner and brightener in one. Is this a bad idea? Also, I saw on this site that oil based stains were easiest to apply. I'm really scared of messing this up since it's so new and pretty. Also, if I use oil based semi-transparent, do I have to put sealer on it? Any advice or product recommendation would be appreciated! Thanks!

We have a number of 6x6 timber posts around the full-sun, southern-exposure back porch of our Tennessee home. After 4 years I'm needing to refinish all of them due to flaking and graying. The builder used Minwax wood stain top-coated/sealed with Minwax Helmsman Spar Urethane for a semi-gloss finish which we loved. I want to now use a semi-transparent deck stain, hoping for better weathering, but I also would like to achieve that same semi/glossy finish. Do you have a clear sealer product that can be applied over the semi-transparent stain to give me a glossier finish ... and most importantly, not flake off in a few years??? Help! Thanks, Roger

I'm considering installing and IPE decking on several exterior locations and one interior location in a large scale home gut renovation. We were hoping to stain the wood to give it a bit of a grey look. Is that possible with IPE? Furthermore, we are in south Florida. Are there any other recommended treatments for our harsh conditions?

Living in a temperate rain forest, dodging the rain to get the staining done is a challenge. I understand that the deck needs 48-72 hours after a rain to fully dry out before staining. But I have a question about how long AFTER the second coat of stain, until it is safe to have it rain on the stained area. We don't want to do all that work and then have it be harmed in any way, by rain coming too soon after staining. How long after staining until it is safe to have it rain on the deck? Thank you - the pecan TWP looks beautiful in the bucket and we're looking forward to getting it on the deck!

Thank you for the 4 samples of deck stain. We picked Pecan, and tracking says it will be Friday, so thank you, first of all for all your help with that. We have a hurricane coming and though we are up in Western NC, away from the coast, we will get rain. We are trying to figure out how long we need to wait after the rain for the deck to dry out enough to stain. We are in a temperate rain forest area, so we get a lot of rain, so the humidity can stay high a lot of the time, and drying is slow. But we want to be sure the wood is dry enough to soak up the stain/oil and not be repelled by water in the wood. How can we test or know when it is dried out enough?


Second question: We have deck furniture that also needs to be sealed periodically with a water-based sealer. The furniture came with a 16 oz. bottle of 'Amazonia Teak and Eucalyptus Sealer', but it is almost gone. We want to continue to use a water-based teak/eucalyptus sealer for this hardwood furniture, not something like an IPE Oil. The chairs are Teak and the table is Eucalyptus, we think, but may also be Teak. Do you sell a water-based sealer that is for Teak and/or Eucalyptus? If not, can you suggest a product, or type of product, we may look for elsewhere?

Thank you on both questions! We are looking forward to staining our 12 year old virgin wood deck Pecan once it dries out from whichever hurricane is in the Gulf this week!