Prep New Wood for Defy Stains

Using Defy stain (semi-transparent) Butternut for new Kiln dried cedar pickets.

(1) should I apply 2 coats wet on wet or 1 coat now and 1 coat in a year? I tested a picket and it seems to accept 2 coats well without beading up, but I don’t want to make a mistake. When I called 1-800-860-6327, they said 2 coats wet on wet is preferred, but the can says 1 coat on new wood.

(2) Also, can the stain be applied in full sun?

I am building a deck …the frame is complete…PT but the posts are 6 x 6 douglas fir. The deck floor and rails/fence will be cumaru/garapa(most likely)…I plan to let weather..but how about the douglas fir posts…can i stain them now or let them weather also.

I have a cedar deck that is now 2 years old. I did allow the new deck to dry from Mar to July before staining. The cedar felt too slick to stain so I used a deck prep that supposedly took off the mill glazing (used a pressure washer to rinse the prep off and it actually removed wood strands even though I was not agressive with the pressure washer). After a good week of drying (deck gets good sun exposure 10-6) I stained using Defy Extreme. Attached are pictures of deck after only 1 winter ( about 9 months, August to April). I want to believe Defy is a good stain but this makes me think I should use something else. What steps should I take so this doesn’t happen again?

I’ve already pressure washed my patio furniture today that I built 5 years ago with pressure treated lumber. After it’s thoroughly dry, I’m going over it with 60 grit sandpaper before staining. Can I just apply the Defy Extreme stain over it or do I have to apply the Brightener?

Think I’m reading that I should only apply 1 coat of stain — my deck is 1 year old pressure treated and has never been stained — it appears I should clean and brighten an only apply one coat now and then recoat in 12-18 mths as required?

So am I understanding this right, that I need to pressure wash the new wood that is cured, BEFORE applying the Defy Stain cleaner and brightener???? If this is the case, after pressure washing the new cured wood first, how soon can I apply the the Defy Stain cleaner and brightener?? Then when do I apply the Defy Extreme stain?

After application of defy extreme how long before rain safe

Hi, I just want to clarify the procedure for staining new, seasoned and prepped wood. I saw a video (not on this site) on how to apply Defy stain. He used what he called a back to back method, applying one coat, waiting 20 minutes, then applying a second coat of stain. This seems to be what you say here is wet on wet. He said this method would be considered one coat of stain, not two coats.

How do you define one coat. It seems from what I am reading here, a wet on wet method would be considered 2 coats and should not be used on new wood. The only thing we would do is literally put on one coat.

Thanks

Do you need to pressure wash new wood that is cured if using the DefyStain cleaner and brightener applications?

Hi, I’m a wife putting together a new Backyard Discovery Skyfort II playset for my kid (hubs is not happy that I purchased the set). A few questions: I’m interested in the Butternut Defy Extreme stain.

Would you recommend that I
1) stain the new Chinese White Cedar boards BEFORE putting together or after?
2) do they need to be “seasoned” (3-6 month + wait time) ?
3) Since it’s new wood, do I really need to clean it?
4) Is there another, lighter stain that would complement the darker Butternut color?

Right now the wood is a kind of ghastly, fake cedar orange. Can’t wait to make it darker! But as you can imagine, darling daughter is impatient for her set.

Advice?

I have an older deck that had a solid stain applied 3 years ago. I had new boards installed last December in one section. Is it okay to use the stain stripper on the old and new wood? Do I put one coat on the new boards and 2 on the old boards?

I know I have seen this somewhere, but cannot find the answer now that I’m ready to stain our deck. We have a five-year-old deck (stained twice with Flood stain) and have replaced some of the boards recently. The new boards are only about a month old. What is the procedure to try to get the new staining as even as possible? I have purchased cleaner, brightener and stain already, and this next week will be cool enough to work in central Texas.

VERNE here again with more images.

I am installing railings to an existing deck. Since they will have metal balusters, I would like to stain the wood prior to building the railings so I don’t have to stain around the metal. Would it be okay to go ahead and do this without letting the wood age for several months? I assume I would use cleaning and brightener first as usual.

I am in the Chicago area with a new pressure treated pine deck. The deck is 1 month old. Sounds like the ideal is to wait 3-6 months before staining. Given our climate that leaves me with the choice of stain early as in now or late as in May which would make it 8 months. Do I stain now or wait until spring?

After I apply the wood brightener you recommend waiting 48 hours before applying the sealer/stain. What is the longest period I should wait before applying the sealer/stain?

I have a new deck on the lake house in northern Iowa that is directly underneath several large oak trees. Acorns are already dropping (Aug 28). One tier was built in June 2018. The other tier was competed November 2019 before the snow. Neither tier has been treated, yet. I wanted to get it done before this winter, but now with the trees and temps dropping – would it be best (ok?) to wait until spring even though the deck is still bare? Also, I have existing steps that have dark solid stain or paint in them. What is the best way to prep them? I want to put the walnut semi on the deck and then a coordinating solid color on the steps (assuming I won’t get them stripped down enough for a semi). Thanks!

I have a new redwood deck. It has aged for 3 months. Do I have to scrub the deck cleaner into the deck. Or let it sit for 5 to 15 minutes and then use a pressure sealer to rinse it off? Then rinse.

I have a pressure treated deck it’s 4 years old never been stained what product do you recommend I live in Ontario Canada

Just completed a cedar deck in western Washington. The info on this web site indicates that we should wait 3 to 6 months before sealing this new deck with Defy stain. Is that correct? After waiting the 3 to 6 month period, then we need to follow the proper process to clean and brighten the new deck before staining the deck. Again, is my thinking correct? Thanks for your help.

I just built a pressure treated pine deck. It is in full sun. Which Defy stain is best for UV protection?

How should the deck cleaner be applied? Is it ok to us in a pressure washer?

Today i used defy cleaner , scrubbedm and then used brightener on My pressure treated deck. There are still some stubborn green stains that wont come out despite 2-3 passes with the cleaner and scrub brush, is this normal? Can i still stain it with those green stains?

Hello. We are building a new cabin. The wood is northern spruce, being shipped from the Baltic region, and is not pressure treated. Therefore, we are concerned about leaving the wood untreated for any amount of time.
Time from manufacture to receiving shipment is about 3-4 months. WOULD THIS BE ENOUGH WAIT TIME?
WOULD I STILL NEED TO CLEAN AND PREP THE WOOD?

I applied applied Defy on a new deck after allowing a year for seasoning. I followed all manufacturer directions. After just one year, the stain was lifting from the wood, and fading the horizontal surfaces were fading badly. Note that the wood displayed “silvery” patterns. I contacted Defy customer service to explain all this, and they sent me a gratis 5 gallon can of Defy stain, suggesting that I use Defy Brightener, and then wash the deck surfaces with water. I did this.

This year, the vertical surfaces all look fine, but all horizontal surfaces are again fading badly, and still showing the “silvery” streaks. I am considering sanding the horizontal surfaces with 80 grit paper, washing with brightener, and then a final power wash rinse with water, before applying Defy stain.

I am getting a bit frustrated. Are there alternative suggestions?

I have upper and lower wrap around porches to prep and stain on new wood that has weathered for two years. I had planned to stain last year but weather would not permit. Now I’m afraid I will be in same place almost impossible to get four days in a row of no rain in Missouri. Can I bleach and brighten and then wait with rain in between before I begin staining? If so how long do I allow to dry after rain before I can stain? If not do you have any suggestions. Thanks

Last fall I applied one coat of natural pine to new wood (built earlier in the spring) I have quite a lot of leaf stains and other marks that have build up on the deck boards over the last year. Was planning to clean, brighten and apply more stain now, is that wise? If so, do I apply just one coat or the usual two coats, wet on wet approach? Also, if cleaning and brightening in phases, should I clean and brighten together or, can I clean the whole area over a couple days and then come back and brighten?

On the defy.com website it says for new wood to apply 2 coats of Defy Wood Stain but your site says to apply just one coat. So I am unsure of what to do. Please advise! Thanks!

I have a new western red cedar deck, a month old now. Worried about it greying and weathering over winter if left untreated. Would you suggest still waiting until spring to stain? or do it just before bad weather kicks in?

I have a new pressured treated pine deck that is two months old located in Northeastern Illinois. How long should I wait before staining? Is it better to do before winter or wait until next year?

I have 4 cabins that are 264 sq ft. How much product should I purchase?

Why do I need to wait 48 hours between cleaning and staining?

I have a 16×16 ft pine wolmanized deck put up in August 2017 . I treated it with Thompsons water proofing in June 2018 and would like to retreat in October 2018 with the Defy clear pine stain. Would I need to remove the Thompsons water seal prior to applying the Defy clear stain? And if yes, with what solution do I remove it with?

If I want to do a light sanding on new unstai ned wood (6 months old), do I do it before cleaning?

I currently have one coat of Natural Pine on a 2 year old Cedar deck. I would like to change the color to Light Walnut. Do I need to strip off the Natural Pine first?

I’m getting ready to build a cedar pergola and the lumber company is telling me the cedar will have been kiln dried. From what I read, US standards are around 6-8% MC for kiln dried lumber. I’m in Reno, NV which has pretty low humidity. Will I still need to wait a few months before applying your stain or can I stain before building?

Thanks.

Hello. I cleaned my new 9 month old redwood deck with the defy cleaner. I did not use the Brightener, but now the deck has dried for 48 hours and I was planning to stain it. Should I go back and brighten now or is it too late?
Thank you!