These are random musings of my life journey, the people, animals, places, and events which have woven, and continue to weave, a tapestry that is me. We all know there is no real destination, only the ongoing experiences which blend together, creating the trail. Each step gives a glimpse of what is to come, without allowing me to see the end result. It is exciting. I have a home base that is mine, that gives me a place to rest. This is it. This is where my heart is, no matter where I journey...................

Friday, July 17, 2009

The Deck

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I've begun a next step in a home improvement project. Now I'm at a crossroads, and I need to research and ask advisers about some things before I proceed. I've already put in a couple calls. Now to research and wait.

My deck needs to be refinished. When the previous owner wanted to sell this, he "purtied it up." He painted the whole deck (over 800 sq. ft.), steps and ramp in a strange color of green. Not a color I like, but it didn't look too bad when I moved in as it was all uniform and looked neat, at least. The color was one issue, but to make it worse, he also used a latex paint. Not just latex, but an indoor latex. Dang fool. The paint began peeling within the first few months. By the end of a year, I knew I had to start working on it.

My plan is to remove paint from any walking surface, because any paint I put down will walk off, necessitating repainting in order to look good. I want to finish the walking surfaces with a natural sealer, no color. The other parts, hand rails, upright posts, etc., will be painted with a rich adobe, not a flat color, but with enough red to glow and be inviting.

I bought a power washer, and last summer I began using it to remove as much of the paint as possible. A lot of it came off, but after a while, I was damaging the wood, so I quit. I was able to remove almost all of it from the ramp which is exposed to sun and rain and was in the greatest need for help. It has been treated and looks decent, even after almost a year.

Since then I've worked on it whenever weather is conducive with the water hose. This method floats the paint off without eating at the wood underneath, but it is slower. And I've done about as much as I can with this. I need to move to the next method to remove the remainder of the green paint. I know I can't get on my hands and knees to scrape or sand it off. My body just won't take that, even with my hand-held power sander. I could rent a power sander, but I'm not certain I could handle it. I'm considering using a stripper, but I'm checking on this now.


This center board looks almost like it did originally. You can see the areas around it have worn badly.











This is an area I've worked on quite a bit.











Another area that has had a lot of attention.










This shows where I have used water without scraping or smoothing of any kind.











The ramp looks decent. I need to treat it again, but it isn't in bad shape and doesn't show the traffic wear.






I hope I can get this done by winter. I actually don't have much choice, I have to protect the wood from another year of weathering. It will be a much greater task to replace boards that have rotten with neglect!

Gee, don't you wish you had the fun of living at my house??? I know you're jealous! LOL!
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6 comments:

  1. Big job ahead of you, but I KNOW you will get it done to perfection (or close enough). Good luck! As for your previous post...omg when it comes to snakes...drinking is allowed any time of day LOL

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  2. Please let me know when all your home improvement projects are done and then I will plan my trip to see you. :) Just kidding...you know I would help you if you needed it. I do like seeing all the things you are doing and I can't wait to see how the house looks in person since the last time I was there you had just moved in.

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  3. LOL! Ruth, I love the "or close enough" statement! I like things perfect, but I've long ago learned that "close enough" is close enough! And thanks! I'll go get that drink NOW!! hee hee!

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  4. Caroline, you're not the first one to threaten to stay away till I'm done! LOL! And don't worry .... I don't work while company is here. :)

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  5. Bless you. We took the easy way out, sold our house in Texas and moved to Oregon into an apartment where I just pick up the phone and say what's wrong and they come right away and fix it. I never liked being a homeowner even though we did it for 30 years. Once the kids were gone I decided to go mobile.

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  6. Linda, I considered renting, and I wouldn't mind an apartment if it had enough room. But I decided that I didn't want to be as close as I would be in an apartment with the noise of others, or to take a risk of a landlord who wasn't conscientious. I decided the angst of homeowner's tasks outweighed that for me. Sometimes I wonder ..... :)

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If you have something to say about it, just stick out your thumb, and I'll slow down so you can hop aboard! But hang on, 'cause I'm movin' on down the road!!! No time to waste!!!