Rejuvenate Your Wood Deck With Oxygen Bleach

Cleaning your wood deck with chlorine bleach is great for killing germs, but it can ruin your deck and destroy that classic natural wood color.

Instead, combine bleach with oxygen. This concoction will blast through the stains on your deck while leaving the natural wood color alone.

What Is Oxygen Bleach?

Oxygen bleach is a powder that you add water to so that the oxygenation power is released. It is available in three formulations:

• hydrogen peroxide
• sodium percarbonate
• sodium perborate

You’re likely familiar with hydrogen peroxide because you probably have it in your medicine cabinet. It’s that clear liquid in the brown bottle you pour on your scraped knee and watch bubble away bacteria.

The second one, sodium percarbonate, is often used in the laundry to break down soda ash and make your detergents work better. Lastly, sodium perborate is an ingredient in teeth whitener, laundry detergent, and eye drops!

All three amp up cleaning as they release oxygen. So, will any of the three rejuvenate your wood deck? You bet!

How To Use An Oxygen Bleach Formula

All three oxygen bleaches can be bought in powder form or combined with other ingredients and sold as brands. However, to clean your wood deck, it is best to use them in their pure form, without additives.

The ratio to use is around a half cup per quart of warm to hot water for maximum cleaning. After mixing, the cleaner usually remains active for about 5 hours. You can stretch it to 6, but your solution will begin to lose strength.

You can use a sprayer hooked up to your lawn hose to spray your deck. Some people find it just as easy to use a mop or a push broom and a bucket. Either way, leave it on for no more than 30 minutes and rinse. Ten to 15 minutes usually suffices, however.

Old, stubborn deck stains may need some extra elbow grease or another treatment. Any leftover solution can simply be poured down the drain or into your yard as these natural solutions do not harm vegetation.

If You’ve Questions About Using Oxygen Bleach

Wood decks can vary, so it’s natural to have questions when looking at your specific decking. If you are unsure whether to use an oxygen bleach solution, check with your builder or the manufacturer for peace of mind.

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