One of the biggest projects for Wedding Prepapoolza was pressure washing the deck. That beast was nah-ah-sty.
The steps were the grossest. They had more slime than Bob Harper’s current hairdo. Go ahead and google that photo. Point – Katie.
Thankfully when we visited True Value, they had plenty of pressure washing options waiting for us Blog Squad members (ok ok – they were for all customers but I like to make myself feel special).
And when my dad offered to come over and start up pressure washing, I was all like – sureandwillyouwatchthetoddlertoo?!
That answer was ‘fat chance’…but he did get a good start on the deck.
It didn’t take that much longer. I finished it up a few days after my Pops started…mostly because I had been procrastinating but finally the wedding pressure (i got pressure coming at me at all angles) got to me and I knew it had to get wrapped up.
On a tool note – a pressure washer is probably one of the best things you can get for our home if you buy a house that has been neglected. It not only makes things LOOK better but it actually prevents things from becoming worse. And it preps your house for other things – like paint or stain. Or it can help remove paint that has been oversprayed onto brick or even help ya wash your car. Badaboombadabing.
I love pressure washing. I love the spray of the water and the dirt flinging up and the instant gratification of the slime and age and grunge disintegrate before my eyes. However – you really shouldn’t wear flipflops. I accidentally sprayed my toe for a split second and that bad boy is still tingling. Don’t worry – the nail will grow back 🙂
I did learn something new from the last time I pressure washed : going back and forth with the length of the board can give you lines where you start and end and overlap. SOO if you take the wand and go perpendicular to the board, it eliminates the over-sprayed areas leaving a perfect finish.
And now for the grand reveal –
It’s not perfect – but it’s BETTER. And our longterm plan of flipping some of the bad boards (or completely replacing them) is still in the books. I think we also want to seal it or stain it or something.
And as much as we LOVE our newly cleaned deck, I must say that the real meat and potatoes of this post is Will’s pressure-washing outfit.
Yes, my little boo-bear is SWANKY.
The boots bring all the girls to the yard.
Oh those bare knees. He’s so scandalous.
Oh la la.
He’s such a little helper…and trouble. Don’t let the “human version of Paddington Bear” look fool you.
“I was one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program as well as my writing about my experience. I have also been compensated for the materials needed for my DIY project. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.”
p.s. special thanks to Destiny – Will loves his jacket! And I literally pray for rain here all the time so he can wear it 🙂
Will is adorable in his little rain coat and boots!
The deck looks 100% (maybe even 1,000% better). Do you guys have plans to stain it or are you going to leave it au natural?
That deck looks a lot better. Those pressure washers are crazy. Really useful.
The deck looks so much nicer now!! And Will is super cute in his coat and boots, sans pants. Love it 🙂 We did our deck this year too- pressure washed and then stained it: (http://davenportdiy.blogspot.com/2011/09/operation-stain-deck-complete.html). Staining took FOREVER…way longer than we thought, and I think our deck is maybe half (or less?) the size of your deck. Love all the work that you’ve been doing to your house- it’s definitely starting to look like a home!!!
Ahhh, he actually looks like Paddington Bear! Love it.
The deck looks much better!
We really need to pressure wash our deck. The previous owner enlarged the deck, but didn’t bother to match stains, so half the deck is an ugly orange and the other is more cherry. Yeck. The hubs got a super-mega-professional power washer as a wedding present, but we haven’t broken it out yet. It’s probably time…
Oh, and I love power washing! Seeing things magically come clean is like — peeling the clingy plastic off new mirrors — strangely satisfying.
Oh my goodness, he is a-d-o-r(I’m tired of typing dashes now)able!
I need to pressure wash my house sooooo bad. Thanks for the reminder. 🙂
Oh, and I love the new look of the blog, too!
Will is just toooo stinkin cute! I love the raincoat, boots, no pants look!
Deck looks so much better!!
I literally laughed out loud when I saw that picture of Will, and then I scrolled down farther and saw he wasn’t wearing any pants! Hilarious!!!! And those rain boots! Love them. He will love you for those pictures one day!
Dining room is looking great. Love that calm color on the walls! I was laughing so hard at the “boots bring the girls to the yard”!!! Hilarious? Their little legs are the absolute best. I do love me a good naked cheek, or full of food belly too!
Yeeeah, flip flops = bad idea! My mom actually cut a chunk off the top of her foot (to the bone) with a pressure washed once. She has a gift for weird accidents. Glad your foot is only tingling!
The deck looks much better!
are your flip flops too big
Major difference in the deck before and after. Looks great, but I cannot get over how cute Will looks in his little rain outfit! It’s definately a rite of passage, a child getting their own raincoat and rain boots!
“The boots bring all the girls to the yard.” Hysterical! =) Give that kid a milkshake.
And Will is absoutley adorable.
Deck looks awesome, but I really just wanted to tell you I really like the new banner on the header!
Katie!
Will is precious is his rain gear…I’m off to do a little online shopping for my little boy right now! He and Will are the same age (March 31st) and I’ve been praying that you and Jeremy are expecting another one soon…we hope to also! Good job on that deck!
We just power-washed our deck recently! I highly recommend using SuperDeck to seal it. We used a semi-transparent stain… I would go in-store to see samples of wood so you know exactly what the color will look like. There are also transparent stains if you want to keep the original color of the wood.
stefanie-i thought the same thing about the flip flops. heehee.
The deck looks so much better! My parents bought a power washer a few years ago, so we borrow that all the time. It’s amazing what it can do to dirty/stained concrete, too!
On a gross power-washing note, I used to work at a summer camp, and once a week, we’d pull in one of the rafts from the lake to power wash all the crap (literally, bird poop) off of it that had accumulated that week. Well, one time while we were doing this on the beach, a woman asked if we would spray her feet to remove her calluses. We thought she was joking, but no she was serious – it was sick!
OMG I think I just died. That last photo is so stinkin’ cute. I am going out today to find a cute raincoat and boots for my little one 🙂
FYI: Do not wash your car with a pressure washer, it ruins the clear coat.
Love Will’s outfit!
We don’t have a deck to deal with, but I can confirm that pressure washers are great for getting brick cleaned.
Will is totally adorable! I know he’s already betrothed to Clara, but if he’s ever looking for an older lady, tell him my little girl is available. 🙂
Wow what a difference! Awesome job 🙂
Love Will’s boots – too cute!
OMG! Those pics of Will are adorable!
Deck looks great – you are brave to pressure wash in flip flops. I’ve seen many a pressure washing injury 😉
Where is Will’s raincoat from?!? It is ridiculously adorable. I have to find a raincoat for my little guy and this would fit the bill perfectly!!
It was a gift from a special photography client…and I think it’s from old navy 🙂
xo – kb
Yeah probably should have clarified that one…do not spray your car with high pressurized water! We use our pressure washer on very low for our tires and wheels…but otherwise it can damage your car!
xo – kb
Looks great! You probably should have busted out some galoshes too! 🙂
Well done, KB! It looks amazing!
EEEWWW!
(and kinda awesome!)
xo – kb
haha! Those are Jeremy’s!
xo – kb
Wow it looks so much better! Could Will get any cuter?? He totally reminded me of Christopher Robin from Winnie the Pooh!
LOVE Will’s raincoat and boots!! 🙂
hooboy. I laughed out loud at your photo of Will.
I’ve been reading for a while, but this is my first note. DELURKED.
Will’s outfit is ADORABLE!! and did you see Clara’s outfit over YHL today? Such cute kids! 🙂
KB:
Since my “little” boy, as you know, is now grown (Boo!) it thrilled my boy loving, baby squeezin, heart to see Will in his raincoat, sans pants. He’s such a cutie and you’re such a good mommy! ox