It had been at least five years since I last cleaned and refinished our deck so it was far overdue for some care. The weekend before my birthday, I rented a pressure washer and cleaned the deck very thoroughly. After my mother offered to help me finish the job while she was here, I took Wednesday and Thursday off last week and we did just that.

On Wednesday we cleaned the entire deck including the railings with deck detergent. I mixed the detergent into a high concentrate so I could use my Ortho Dial ‘N’ Spray to spread it on the deck. Pretty clever, eh? What was not clever was sticking my hand into the liquid with the brush when we were scrubbing it onto the wood. At that concentration, the detergent is evidently highly corrosive and I ended up with about six small but deep holes in the tips of my fingers. Ouch!

Thursday was refinishing day. I decided on the $40/gallon Brazilian rosewood oil (BRO) which blocks 99% of ultraviolet light. Presumably this means I won’t have to do this job as often so the extra cost was not really a factor. Of course, as I bought my sixth gallon Thursday afternoon, I was definitely questioning the sanity of my decision. We spent most of the morning applying the BRO to the railings with paint brushes and then I did the same to the floorboards of the deck using a nifty sponge-on-a-stick contraption. The instructions recommended two coats, but we decided the railings would only need one. I finished the last coat to the deck boards just as it was getting dark on Thursday.

Bike odometer: 209 miles
Current reading: I Am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe, The Prince by Machiavelli
Recent listening: Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, NPR Story of the Day, Science Friday, Coverville, DrugMusic
Recent viewing: World Series of Poker, Sportscenter, My Name Is Earl, The Office, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Recent playing: Zuma
Recently accomplished: Cleaned deck with finger-eating detergent, filled in cracks in sidewalk and driveway, refinished deck with rosewood oil, hammered in nails that were sticking out on the deck (most of them), treated blister on thumb from hammering, hair cut, paid bills, made new fender for bike, bought a gift of appreciation
Imperative To Do: Finish old blog entries, rake, install new hard drive for Thomas, clean garage, return stuff to hardware store
Cool Link: Jimmy Dean Chocolate Chip Pancakes and Sausage on a Stick: The ultimate breakfast on a stick