Trex - horrible to paint

[Higgs Boson]

Since I was painting the (wood) back porch, thought I'd paint the (Trex) si de steps to match. (Yes, the Trex is several years old, so that wasn't a pr oblem).

Terrible idea!

After scrubbing and rinsing the steps and letting them dry, I applied BM ac rylic. Or rather TRIED to apply. Never saw such a miserable surface. Str eaks and iffy coverage. Used a lot of time and a lot of expensive paint. Second coat helped only a little. Still streaks, etc.

After the fact, went on-line. Trex only approves 2 coverage, both stains. But other sites don't specifically say don't use paint.

Wish I'd left the Trex alone; it was an unobtrusive pinkish beige-ish color

Was this a unique experience? What, if anything, did I do wrong?

TIA

HB

[Ed Pawlowski]

What you did wrong was painting the Trex. As you found out, only 2 stains are approved for it. No paint is. Only the Trex site is what matter, not the fact that other sites don't say to paint. Trex is a man made product with additives in it so it stays good looking for years with little maintenance. Those same ingredients also make it impossible to paint.

The only reason I'd use Trex is to avoid painting and staining. Now replace it with real hardwood and oil it to keep it looking beautiful. I used Tigerwood and enjoy the beauty every time I step on the deck.

You (finally) went to the proper source for information and still doubt them. Why?

[AMoore]

I have used BM latex stain with no problems at all. 1 coat on a deck which they wanted a redwood look. Still looks good 3 years later. That's what the customer wanted.

[clare]

Depends what Trex you have - the raw or the coated. The coated stuff can NOT be stained - and most paint won't stick.

[nestork]

Trex is a wood composite material that doesn't need paint to protect it from the Sun or from absorbing rain water.

If you painted with a latex paint, then that paint is too soft to provide good service on a working surface such as a step. Just use the steps normally, and the paint should wear off on it's own. (It'll likely get very dirty looking because dirt will become embedded in it underfoot. If you get fed up with it, I expect that any paint stripper would take latex paint off of Trex without harming the Trex, but test in an inconspicuous area first.

Rejoice, Higgs. What you did was acquire "experience". Now, if anyone ever asks you if they should paint their Trex decking, you have all the experience needed to answer their question with both confidence and authority, having done that once yourself.

If you get tired of the way that paint looks, take it off with a paint stripper. Just check that the paint stripper doesn't affect the Trex by testing it in an inconspicuous area.

[Higgs Boson]

I guess it's not coated; the paint more or less "sticks" after 2 ooats.

Damn, damn, damn. The original color of the Tres was quite satisfactory...!

HB

[Norminn]

The Trex on my dock was a combination of wood and recycled plastic; main purpose of big $ for Trex is never having to paint it....I would be reluctant to try stripper on it. If anything, sanding and scraping. Might even work to use hot water, soap and a stiff brush to get paint off....and do it before finishing the other paint.

[Frank]

From what I read, Trex is a PVC wood composite. Most common solvents will attack PVC. Color in Trex is throughout and should be recoverable by buffing it up as with other colored plastics. Trex website gives details on its care.

[nestork]

It probably is PVC. PVC is commonly used for plastics that will be spending their lives outdoors because of it's inherently good resistance to UV light.

But, I clean my PVC roller windows with acetone all the time and it doesn't hurt the windows.

So, I'd kinda doubt that PVC would dissolve in acetone.

acetone will dissolve latex paints very aggressively.

[Frank]

Right, I see acetone is a near solvent:

I'd still be careful with it as solvents can sometimes cause stress cracking.

I followed thread because I wondered what Trex was made of. Concerned it might be PE which is not as weather-able.

[gregz]

From what I read, polyethylene is a major ingredient which is naturally hard to paint. Seems like most waste at trash sites is polyethylene or polypropylene. Might be some PVC. They have different products too.

Greg

[been sorry for 17 years]

side steps to match. (Yes, the Trex is several years old, so that wasn't a problem).

acrylic. Or rather TRIED to apply. Never saw such a miserable surface. S treaks and iffy coverage. Used a lot of time and a lot of expensive paint. Second coat helped only a little. Still streaks, etc.

[clare]

What you did wrong was try to paint an unpaintable surface. The uncoated Trex can be coloured using a penetrating transparent or semitransparent stain - not too much in the world of "paint" that will stick to the stuff.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Laughable (old) post. He says he went on line after the fact and says Trex only approves 2 coatings and then asks what he did wrong. Duh, RTFM

[Frank]

Think it was Oren that posted op's name and I noted it and can't find any Trex above ground level but saw comical car repair with duct tape.

[Tekkie®]

Oren posted for all of us...

If she's in the food groups she would be ripe for eating. Sara Lee?

[jstoneview]

side steps to match. (Yes, the Trex is several years old, so that wasn't a problem).

acrylic. Or rather TRIED to apply. Never saw such a miserable surface. S treaks and iffy coverage. Used a lot of time and a lot of expensive paint. Second coat helped only a little. Still streaks, etc.

Hello,

Thanks for your post. I too made a small error with 'cleaning' my Trex. I did the first cleansing with zero soap in the pressure washer 2000 psi. I t looked great, black dirt was gone, sable brown again. Then 5 days later, after finishing the back patio, steps, etc. I was back on the front deck, and had added 'Purple Power' (vs Simple Green) b/c I had 2 bottles at home . I began soaping, and white suds was coming out, stopped immediately, and check my soap bin, had run low on water, so added up to full to dilute the purple I had added to minimal water. Then diluted the already sprayed deck with lots of water to reduce the strength.---After 3 hours, found that the PP does take off paint - yikes, so my sable brown is now somewhat deep be ige, a lot lighter color than the original dirt black, but now I am praying to get out of the trouble I caused by not using Simple Green. Had I just used water and not soap as I did on the first portion, I would be much happ ier today :(

[clare]

Paint doesn't stick to plastic grocery bags worth a hoot - and that is what Trex is made from - Low density Polyethelene and wood. Stain apparently works pretty good (the right stain) - but the beauty of the stuff is it doesn't NEED stain (or paint) I think I was smart - I used the Trex Transcend. It costs a bit more, but it cleans with a mop or broom, is virtually stain proof, and looks GREAT. I used it for my front porch, replacing the cedar I originally built it with. The rear deck is still PT SYP, installed 21 years ago and starting to show it's age.

[mlundy73]

Our Trex deck is 5 years old and is sable brown. We have boards that are tu rning white and other boards turning black. What the heck can be done to ge t my color back. I have washed it as recommended and in a few hours it is b ack. I'm lost as what to do. I've even used the stain recommended and it co mes back right away. Any suggestions? Very frustrated and tired!

[Ed Pawlowski]

Replace it. Check your local lumber yard or

Thank you for reinforcing my decision NOT to use Trex.