The Power Sprayer Myth

If you think you need a power sprayer, you probably don't. I made the mistake of assuming that since power sprayers have been popular for many years now, that they must be an effective means of cleaning stuff.

I bought a power sprayer.

I bought the gallon of cleaning gunk.

I power sprayed my deck.

It looks cleaner when I wash it with soap and water and a brush and rinse it with a garden hose.

The settings and attachments and knobs are all total crap. The thing randomly fluctuates pressure. It is impossible to use.

Anyone want to buy a power sprayer? I'll sell it cheap.

And for the informative part:

How to clean your Deck

Step 1: Sweep the deck to get off all the leaves and such.

Step 2: Rinse the entire deck with a garden hose.

Step 3: Fill a five gallon bucket with a little dish washing detergent and water. In the case of really wanting to get the deck super clean, substitute a cup of bleach for the dishwashing detergent.

Step 4: With all your safety gear (goggles, gloves, long pants, good boots, gloves, etc), scrub the deck down with a scrub brush on a long handle. Allow the cleaning mixture to soak a bit. Do only a section at a time. During this and future steps avoid getting the cleaning solution on or near landscaping or plants.

Step 5: Rinse and repeat on the other sections.

Step 6: Rinse the entire deck.

Tada... a clean deck. Then consider adding a coat of your favorite deck sealer, water proofer, or stain, as needed and desired.