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Last Updated on January 30, 2023 by TWP Help
We are here to help you with your TWP exterior deck or wood restoration project for 2024!
TWP is an advanced wood preservative/protectant registered by the EPA. Performance and longevity can vary though depending on the wood type, how the wood is prepped, the age of wood, and how the TWP is applied. We want everyone who has decided to use TWP 100, 1500, or 200 Series to have the best possible results.
TWP Stain Tips and Help
When asking questions please give us some information about your wood restoration project:
- What structure is your wood? Examples would be: Deck, Wood Siding, Fence, etc
- What species is the wood? Examples: Treated Pine, Cedar, Redwood, Ipe, etc
- Is the wood new or older than 1 year?
- Has the wood been stained previously with a different brand? Please specify brand name and type of stain used: Examples: Solid stain, Semi-Transparent Stain, etc.
- Any additional info that would be useful
Once you supply us with the information, we will able to give you advice as to how to prep your wood and any needed instructions for the TWP application.
Please ask your questions in the comment area.
Thanks
We recently re-stained our deck a few weeks ago using TWP 1500. We used RAD Stain Stripper and then Wood Brightener before applying TWP 1500. There’s some blotting and shiny spots, though we have decided to go with another, lighter TWP 1500 stain.
Can you please tell me the proper steps to apply a new stain of TWP 1500?
I’m not seeing a place to search, I’m on an IPad so maybe that’s the issue…anyway. I stained our lower deck on Friday and today Sunday it is still not dry. I’ve got a fan running but that doesn’t seem to be helping. I applied with a foam roller and back rolled once. After several hours I back rolled again thinking it layer down too much the first time, still wet. Any idea what has gone wrong? I’ve used TWP for years and this has never happened.
I recently purchase a property with a small log cabin in Wisconsin. The logs have mortar chinking and have the bark on them. The cabin was built in the mid-1940s. The logs have never been stained/sealed. I believe they are red pine. They are rough sawn on top/bottom/back and appear to be half logs. I am planning on removing the bark and sanding, etc. Can you tell me which stain you recommend? Twp100 series? Also what chinking do you recommend as compatible with your product since I will be removing most of the old mortar? Also what color stain do you recommend for these logs to minimize blotchy results? We are interested in something like Cedartone but maybe it won’t look consistent? The logs are about 5-6 inches and somewhat irregular so the chinking joints will vary in width. Thanks
We stained our 15 year old deck with the dark oak last summer but have found it to be extremely hot. What is the the best way to remove it so we can stain it a lighter color?
I have recently restored my older deck with TWP 100 and after remarkable results on rails and spindles I decided the old flooring just wouldn’t do. I replaced it and will wait for it to weather, but if I order the Gemini kit and use it next spring will it harm the restoration and staining work I have done this year on the rails and spindles? I would really rather not redo all that work again!
I recently stripped an older pressure treated pine deck in southern NY, allowed it to dry a few days, and applied one coat of TWP 1500 series stain. The homeowner would like a second coat of stain applied now six weeks later, but pointed out these white blotches that have developed in several areas of the deck. Can you please evaluate what is causing this and how to rectify this problem?
I own a cedar log home that was previously stained with TWP Cedartone (not sure which number but would guess 100) and would like to consider a change in color. Of the 4 other lighter colors which 2 would be the closest in color but not quite so orange? I’d like to order some samples but would prefer to consider 2 samples rather than 4 if it is easy to recommend 2.
I was told that i could stain my new deck right away because it is constructed of red cedar. Could someone please let me know the proper wait time before cleaning and application twp 100?
Prior to staining, do I need to wait for a period of time and/or prep in some fashion a new cedar pergola?
Will RAD or TWP 100 have any affect on vinyl lattice attached to my wood deck?
What can I use to remove sap that is oozing out of my KDAT yellow pine deck in several places. I plan to strip and brighten before applying the TWP 100 series. I’m concerned about adversely affecting TWP absorption in these areas. Thank you.
I am building a woodshed and just stained the sides which are rough cut pine so no issues. I would like to do the back as well which is 2×6 new lumber. I read the article on staining new wood but I am wondering if I were to sand of the mill glaze with a coarse grit if I would I then be good to go (I am thinking it would be similar to rough cut at that point and is actually the finish I am looking for vs. smooth). Thanks.
WE HAVE JUST FINISHED CLEANING AND STAINING AN OLD DECK WITH A CABOT DARK STAIN. IT SOAKED UP THE STAIN BUT NEEDS A FINISH SEALER AND ONE THAT HAS A SEMI GLOSS TO IT AS THE DECK LOOKS DRY. WHAT DO YHOU RECOMMEND?
I’m building a woodshed and will be siding with Pine, rough 1 side (the outside). I was hoping to stain the entire thing as soon as it goes up. Would I be OK staining the smooth side as well (without waiting)? Not really concerned with appearance of the inside, just want to protect the wood.
Deck prep for 2 yr old grayed unfinished deck.
I have an approximately two year old deck (I just bought the place this past November), unstained. It has a few very mild cracks and splinter like splits. The deck floor and railing top has grayed. Should I sand? Powerwash? Putty the few splinter splits and cracks? When do I wash it in that sequence? I ordered two 5 gallon kits with the brightener/cleaner (big deck) in Rustic.
Hi,
It’s been 1 year since I first prepped and stained my new deck with TWP. I had waited 1 year for it to weather after installation. What’s next?
Also, I notice areas that are showing the cedar wood (grayed) exposed particularly on the steps. and in front of the front door.
What structure is your wood?I have a treated pine Deck that is 10+ years old.
The wood has been stained previously with a Semi-Transparent Stain 5 years ago and more recently a solid stain- 3 years ago. I plan to strip the stain with a power washer and then restain. Do you have recommendation for type of TWP stain to use?
I’ve got a 1 year old unstained pressure treated deck in Milwaukee. I think I’ve got everything down as to what I need to do to stain this in the coming weeks but I’m wondering what the shelf life of the 100 stain is. I’m planning on 1 coat which will require 3 gallons and then a maintenance coat at the end of next summer. If I get 5 gallon bucket of 100, will approx 2 gallons that I do not use now last 12-15 months?
I recently used TWP 1520 to stain a large Cyprus table for my “Big Green Egg” grill. It looks great but I am having difficulty with the finish drying and it’s starting collect some trash as it’s been 24 hours. Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Thanks,
John
I have two decks. One deck is 4 years old and never been stained and the other deck is 20 years old and stained with behr stain about 8 years ago. Both deck have mildew. I live in Wisconsin. What do I need to do to restore both decks.
sorry I forgot to ask about estimated coverage for the siding.
I have a single floor cedar sided home that I will be staining. it hasn’t been cwf’d in years. wondering which 1500 I should use so as not to change the color too much, the natural or cedar.Does the addition of uv inhibitors help a lot?
We have 12 year old pressure treated deck. We have initially used Thomson Water Seal, semi transparent. Later, Olympic Maximum penetrating oil. Last year, Behr wood finish penetrating oil. This one did not last 6 months. After finding your site, we would like your recommendations on steps and which TWP products.
We let our cedar deck weather over the winter and just cleaned it with the Restore A Deck kit about 2 weeks ago. Since then, it has rained every other day. How long can we wait before we have to re-clean the deck prior to staining? Can we power wash it, or do we have to use the Restore A Deck kit again?
OK, so the chance for rain today was only 10% and it was a bright and sunny morning. The guy who is staining my deck said “it won’t rain today” . . . . . 4 hours later its now pouring down. He only did 2 wet on wet applications on about 1/4 of the deck, so what is this going to do to the finish?
Hi
I had just stained my deck with TWP 1500. I brushed around the the edges and the cracks then rolled the deck.The stain is thicker where brushed like it was two coats and thinner where rolled. I have let it dry 24hrs already hoping it will blend in but its not hapening.Would I want to do a second coat to even it out or should I just wait till next year?
I have a cedar deck which I have used twp 101 the last two times. I just stripped it all with safe-strip. Do I need to use a brightener or something or can I just stain it? Local dealer says just to stain it.
How long does it take TWP 1500 to dry? What temperature is required?
We have a Cypress Cedar fence that was stained 10 years ago with Behr Semi transparent stain. I am assuming I need to strip the old product off. Can you suggest which of your products to use? I need suggestions for stripping and applying new product.
Thanks!
Mike
Milwaukee, WI
We just had our deck stained w/ the 1500 product Thursday night and later that night a large rain shower came in and rained all over the deck before it had the 12 hours to dry. Now it has many shiny spots and many other spots the stain took very lightly. Obviously it’s a huge mess now and we aren’t sure how to fix it? Looks like the water got underneath the stain and is causing the shiny spots? Any ideas how to fix this? I don’t trust the painters or their solutions so I want to get it from you. Thank you!
Can TWP 1500 series be used on PVC decking, i.e., Trex, Aeratis, etc., or just on wood? Thanks.
After applying a maintenance coat of twp 1515 to my deck, how long should I wait before walking on it and replacing furniture?
Is there a stain that is water based we
I applied TWP 1500 to two parts of my deck at different times. The main part of the deck is somewhat shiny, the stain didn’t soak right in and water beads up on it. The other part of the deck the stain is dull, the stain soaked right in and water does not bead up on it. The wood is the same age, and preparation was identical. The only difference is the part of the deck where the stain is shinier gets a lot of sun, and the other part does not.
Which is the proper way for the stain to look, should water bead up or not ?
I purchased a 25 year old shingled home. Smooth shingles are grey and blackspotted mildew spots. Typical of NW Oregon. But after bleaching, (HDX Outdoor Bleach Cleaner) scrubbing and light powerwashing, they came out great. Only one side cleaned. It may have had an oil treatment on it at one time, but I really see no evidence left that it was ever treated. Running out of season to treat it now, so I may wait till spring to finish cleaning the rest. Would you recommend continuing the cleaning now or wait for dry season? Which TWP would you recommend? ( I will probably have to to apply next summer) I intend to spray and back-roll your product.
What product recommendations for protecting 1-year old treated wood on boat dock deck and stairs in eastern, NC. Both must remain over the water? How often will I have to repeat treatment and will that require stripping? I want to use environmentally friendly products that last a long time.
I applied 2 wet coats of TWP 100 Clear on some black locust. I did not know that it allows the wood to weather to a gray appearance until after I applied the coats. I DO NOT want to stain the wood to another color. What are my options now to preserve the natural appearance of the black locust. Can I sand and apply varnish? If yes, how much do I need to sand the surface since the TWP is a penetrating product? Other options?
I have a 24 foot bridge over a stream in a wooded area that is almost constantly covered with leaves and slightly damp. The decking boards are treated 2 x6, the hand rails and balusters are untreated white cedar. Which stain would work best on the decking?
Sealed my decks and it rained an hour after I finished, you can see where it rained. What do I do know?
Janette
Problem – difference in deck surfaces with two coats compared to areas with single coat.
We had great success refinishing our 12 year old cedar deck after significant stripping sanding cleaning and brightening, with TWP 100 Cedar tone. I applied a second coat to the deck surface area, wet on wet within 2 hours using a pad. Problem is that I did not apply a second coat to the deck surface outside the rail – rationalizing that area did not have traffic and thus would not need the second coat. While I could not see a difference when the stain was wet, when dry the difference in colour is marked (see photo).
Can I do anything to touch up this small outside area at this point? Could I add a second coat to the outside area or would that addition be noticable or not adhere? The stain is one week old. And the weather is cool and wet here in Ann Arbor MI this weekend.
Thanks!
I applied one coat of TWP natural color to my deck. I have waited over 24 hours before applying a second coat (recommendation was to re-apply after a brief time). Can I re-apply a second coat without problems?
Thanks
I have a ~20 year old pressure treated pine deck which has been previously stained twice with Olympic Caramel semi-transparent oil-based stain. Olympic switched to water-based stains so I am switching to TWP. I have stripped & brightened the deck with your products per your instructions and it looks pretty good so far. I have a few questions related to the staining. We live in MD so I have to use the 1500. It is ‘condensation season’ which means horizontal services are damp for the entire morning and into the afternoon (the deck really only gets morning sun). I assume I should wait as long as possible to stain horizontal surfaces ? If the wood is damp at all is staining not a good idea ? Should I wait for Spring to avoid condensation ? The brightener instructions said I should stain within 2 weeks. How important is that ? Will it start to dull or gray after 2 weeks ? Regarding colors, I am leaning towards redwood/rustic but my wife thinks those might be too dark so we will get a variety of samples. Do the lighter colors have less protection since there is less pigmentation ? I would assume so. Will sample staining strip off just like the old stain did ? Regarding coats, I will use 2 for horizontal surfaces. Is 1 coat sufficient for vertical surfaces ?
How many years should I expect out of this staining job assuming I do it correctly ? When it is time to reapply (assuming same color), do I just wash and stain ? I’m hoping to avoid the strip & brighten process again since it is a lot of work for a big deck.
Sorry for all these questions but I’d rather not do this twice. Thanks for your help.
Well, I stained my deck this past Sunday with TWP 100 (Cedartone). Monday morning it unexpectedly rained about 12 hours after I’d finished the job. It rained again briefly Monday night and off and on yesterday. The deck still looked good at that point, but never had a chance to completely dry out — the water just beaded up and stayed on the surface. Then Tuesday night we got heavier and more sustained rain, and today there are spots and blotches all over the deck where the stain is noticeably lighter. Will I be able to get rid of those spots with a cleaning and recoating next year? I really don’t want to strip it all off again!
Deck 4 months old. Used Part 1 to remove mill glaze. Do I have to wait for deck to dry before I use Part 2, the whitener?
I used 1500 redwood on a 6 month old redwood deck. I did not let the stain puddle. It’s been 6 days now. Large areas are still wet looking. Looks terrible. Help
We just completed stripping our cedar deck. From power washing, some areas of wood show minor “flaking” and feel rough. Can I lightly sand?
Hi, I bought two 5-gallon buckets of TWP 100 for my decks. I’ve read conflicting reviews and the description on the bucket that this product does not contain UV protection and that the wood (pine in this case) will grey naturally. If this is true can you recommend a UV protectant additive? MRC
Hi- I used your cleaner/brightener on my deck (which worked great), but I must not have rinsed the house well enough because it left spots on the windows that I have not been able to remove. Is there some product or method you can recommend to remove these spots? Thanks
Deck is 10 years old. Pressure Treated Pine. In eastern Virginia in full sunlight most of the day. It has never been stained or sealed. Cleaned it once about five years ago. Just cleaned it again two weeks ago. Had to pressure wash after chemical treatment to remove all the greying and dirt. Should I do any more prep and what TWP application should I use?
I have a pressure treated
deck. Half the deck was done last summer and stained at that time. The rest of
the deck was done this summer – no stain yet. Problem is that last years PT
wood was a different brand (Elite Decking) with a redish color and this years
brand (Outdoor Wood) in more orange. Several questions:
1. I’m sure I need to strip the old stain
(planning on using RAD Injectable Stripper), should I strip
everything even the non-stained wood PT wood? 2. Will a brightener even out the
color somewhat (planning on using Citralic Wood Brightener)? 3. What TWP stain
should I use for Western Oregon in the woods – wet, damp, shady.