When I moved in the deck looked like hell. I knocked all the loose paint off with a stiff brush and proceeded to paint with "porch and deck" paint. It was all peeling two years later and this spring it looks just as bad as it did when I moved in.
First off I need to do more than just scrub the deck with a brush to clean off the old paint. It needs to be sanded. Problem is the deck screws are gonna tear up sanding belts or drums. I ain't got time or patience to sit there for months with a sanding block. The deck screws aren't going anywhere. Tried to pound them in, tried to screw them in. They won't budge.
Underneath the deck is like new. On top the wood is badly weathered and rough from the previous owner's neglect (he was old, sick, and far from rich).
It would be great if I could just take one of those big rental drum floor sanders and go ape-$hit on the deck. Then I'd stain it with something that actually penetrates the wood and seal it.
Will one of those drum sanders deal with the screw heads, or will they just eat sanding drums?