Restore-A-Deck Semi-Transparent Wood Stain 1 Gallon

I used Armstrong Clark stain 2 years ago after the cleaner and brightener.  Do I have to strip and brighten if switching to rad stain or can I just use cleaner?

What would be the best color in Semi-transperent stain to get the effect similar to the photo?

I used 30 Second Outdoor Cleaner on my patio. I'm not sure if the patio was ever stained or sealed by previous tenants but it doesn't look like it to me. Am I good to stain with RAD?

I want to purchase five gallons of semi-transparent light walnut but don't see anything but one gallon. Is it available in five?

Hi there.......We are looking to use the Cottage Gray semi trans stain.
Individual Gallon prices are on sale....does that price carry over to the 5 Gallon combo Cleaner/Brightener/5-Gallon Stain package?
If yes, would that price be $235.00 for the complete 5 Gallon kit  in cottage Gray?
Thank you.

1) Using all RAD product. Doing my 2 yr old fence with Stripper and Brightener. Will then do Wet-on-Wet application of Semi-Transparent stain. When would I need to stain again?
When I do will I just clean/brighten or do I have to strip/brighten.
How many coats for the future semi-transparent staining, same as wet-on-wet?

2) Doing a new wood application of Semi-Transparent on my deck.
I understand to do the one coat now and maintenance in 12-18 months.
When I do the maintenance in 12-18 months do I do a clean/brighten/stain or strip/brighten/stain process? How many coats? Wet-on-wet?
Then 2-3 yrs after the maintenance do I do a clean/brighten/stain or strip/brighten/stain?
Would that application in 2-3 yrs be a wet-on-wet type application?
Thank you.

For your Semi-Transparent product, how close with the coverage be between new wood and and old wood that has been cleaned and brightened?  I'm not looking for a perfect match but would like to know if it would be relatively close?  (Light Walnut) Thanks.   

Can it be applied by sprayer?

I have RAD Semi Transparent on a deck around my pool that was coated last year. I need to recoat the areas where pool traffic was the heaviest. Do I need to strip and clean or just light pressure wash before recoating?

On mahogany wood do you recommend natural or cedar color? 

I stained my deck last year using the Light Walnut.  It’s too cool now here to re-stain but want to know if I can use the cleaner to remove some mildew and then follow the entire process to prep and stain next spring.Thanks 

1) I bought your products (cleaner, brightener, stain) in July 2020 and they were in a detached garage last winter in Chicago. Likely they froze unless the freezing point is super low. With the products still be effective?
2) What is the minimum temperature range for applying any of those three products?

Looking to darken new garapa decking. Ordered Restore A Deck Samples and after light sanding to remove the mill glaze, wiped dust, applied stain, all newly stained sample pieces are still quite light with little shade difference between them (Natural, Cedar, Light Walnut and Dark Walnut). Is that to be expected? The darkest color, Dark Walnut was not dark or even medium toned at all. ~Thank you~

I'm planning on using the Semi-Transparent Dark Walnut stain on a recently prepped deck. I may have completed a few steps in the wrong order and wanted clarification before staining.
I stripped and brightened the deck Sept 24-25. I noticed there were several areas that needed some sanding after the deck completely dried out. I ended up completely the sanding process Oct. 1-2. Am I ok to go ahead and apply the stain, or should I use the brightener again directly before applying the stain? Or do I need to use the cleaner and then brightener and then stain?
Second question, when applying the stain I believe I read you guys recommend a deck staining brush for the decking and pads for the railing. Is using a stain brush (paint brush style) ok for this? I don't believe a pad will hold up for very long while staining the rails. 
Thank you!

I had used your cleaner and then the brightener.., and then started sanding. The fibers of the treated yellow pine were coming out. (The boards were put in last year but not dried out in time before the cold weather came to stain so the wood had weathered over the year) And it appears I didn’t rinse long enough to get the brightener washed out as I see areas that appear a little bleached out. Though When the wood is wet you don’t see it those areas at all.But my question is I had first sanded with a 120 Grit as it was what I had but realize I need to use 60 or 80 Grit. Once I re-sand… do I need to use the cleaner and brightener again or just rinse off with water to clean it up and then stain? *One note is I’m not getting my stain until next week… (I was going to use another stain product I had but changed my mind and ordered yours). Thanks!

1. It will take me a week to stain my entire deck.  We're finishing sanding today. Can I clean and brighten the deck all at once, then stain in sections?  If there is a few days of rain and I need to stop staining could I just pick up where I left off? I'm using the RAD semi-transparent.   
2. Also, I have a fence that got it's first coat of stain last year and will need a new coat this year. I read somewhere else I can wash and stain without using the brightener?

Can left over semi-transparent natural stain be used 6 months to a year later?

I used your stain for my deck and it looks great. However, I have a few spots that dripped over the sides and dried like in the photo and doesn’t look good. Is there anything I can use to wipe it and blend it a bit so it’s not as noticeable?

I have stripped and brightened the first deck.  I appears that the two sections were added at different times. I used the booster additive, but the two sections are not yielding similar colors.  I opted for the natural stain, but wondering if I should order a darker shade to allow the sections to match, or used different shades on each section to try and get the colors closer. I've not used the product yet, so I don't know how much it actually darkens.

another photo.. 

Looking for guidance on cleaner vs stripper for my deck. (photos attached) The spindles & railings still have stain on them but the horizontal boards don't. The stain left on the spindles is TWP. I am planning to use RAD semi-transparent. Do I use stripper on all of it? The last time I went a little rogue with the pressure washer and I would like to sand some of the furry areas I left behind on spindles. What is the recommended order that I do things as far as sanding? Also, I have an opened bag of brightener from 2-3 years ago that isn't mixed up. Is that still any good? Thank you! - Jessi 

Given that this is a semi-transparent stain, what percentage of UV protection should I expect? Very little, some, or? The product description says it protects from UV oxidation and graying, however this is a semi-transparent stain, and they typically provide very little if any UV protection at all. 

My deck is about 300 sqft with a 10'x10' section that steps down to a 14'x14' section. There are also 3 steps that are 4' wide in addition to the two sections. I am only going to be using this on the deck floor for the surfaces mentioned. It is new pressure treated yellow pine that I installed in April so following what I've read, I should only need 1 coat of the stain after doing the prep. Will 3 gallons of dark walnut be enough? Also, do the cleaner and brightener have to be applied using a sprayer or is there another method that also works?

I applied the semi-transparent light walnut stain to a large cedar deck (over 600 SQ"). The deck is approximately 11-months old and the prep (cleaner/brightener) was done 3-weeks prior. 
Unfortunately, weather forecast has been challenging and I finally had a small window to apply the stain with a period of 24 hours of no forecasted rain. I knew I was pushing the prep-to-stain timeline so I decided to go with the staining with temperatures around 85 degrees F and the day turned out to be full sun to overcast during the last hour of the application.  
I applied the stain with a low pressure garden sprayer and a high quality pole mounted 12" stain pad that I kept wet using a large roller pan. I maintained wet-on-wet and typically did 2-boards at-a-time with the grain, the entire length (about 60'). The stain pad worked well allowing pressure against the wood and the ability to back brush leaving the surface consistent with no pooling. I was very cautions to not over-apply and have any pooling.
The color and consistency of the deck looks awesome but the next day, I have some concerns that I might have made the mistake to not have pre-misted the deck surface with water. One reason that I did not pre-mist was the overall size, knowing that by the time I was halfway through, the surface would be long dry and with the caution to pick a day with no subsequent rain, I certainly didn't want to mist boards with spray getting on adjacent stained boards. 
24-hours after the application, the surface is not tacky to the touch but it is slightly tacky when walking on it. I have read other posts and realize this will go away as the stain cures. I am wondering if the fact that the surface is slightly tacky 24-hours later, if this is a good sign that I did not experience flash-drying from the heat and sun? I did find that if I dripped some product on an adjacent unstained board that waiting as little as a few minutes to coat over would not always hide the splatter. Also, very surprising to me 24-hours later in the last section of deck that I did, there is a very distinct shadow through about 20-boards (perpendicular) that resembles the shadow of the top 2x6 railing, perfectly straight down the deck about 6" wide. The area is lighter in color and appears to have perhaps absorbed the stain into the wood more. Thinking back, we do not remember the sun providing a shadow at the time of application and actually believe it was cloudy at that point. I am wondering if the sun had just heated up the deck at this point with the exception of where the top railing was shading the wood? Can you help me with an explanation as this pattern certainly was not showing during the application and obviously is not from the stain being applied differently in this area.
And if I have experienced differences in the penetration of the stain due to temperature, am I destined for problems such as future peeling? Again, I was careful to not overapply and there was no pooling and I have a slightly tacky surface 24-hours after applying.
Lastly, I am assuming with this cedar deck (11-months seasoned), that I do not need to apply a second coat of semi-transparent stain as might be needed with a solid stain.
Thank you for your thoughts on this.
-Joe

Is there a measurement for how much square footage is recommended per gallon?I have a pretty small deck (177.5 sq ft) and want to make sure 1 gallon of stain is enough

What is the self life of the semi-transparent dark walnut?   I think an unopened 5 gallon can has been in my garage for 3 years.  

Can different colors be mixed? I'd like something between the cottage grey and cedar.

I would like to stain a pressure-treated pine covered-porch floor that is about 10 years old and has never had any stain or paint. It has only been weathered by blown-in rain and snow, and hosed off on rare occasions. Would it be considered to be weathered from that after 10 years, or still pretty-much new wood? What should we do to prepare it, and how many coats of the semi-transparent stain should we apply?

after first coat seems to be some tacky spots will this go way with the summer sun and hot weather?

For a an old deck pressure treated deck (30+ years), do you suggest brushing or spraying as the way to achieve best results?