Bleach spilled on my brand new wood deck. How can I keep it from leaving bleach spots?

Question

I just built a new deck 2 weeks ago and have not sealed or stained it yet. My neighbor had someone come and pressure wash his townhouse. They came onto my deck to clean the side of his house. They were using bleach and water and it splashed all over my deck and they didn't spray it off afterward. The bleachy water sat on my deck in the sun all day until it dried. I went out and tried to scrub the wood with water and a brush when I got home and saw it and it did nothing. Now half of my deck is considerably lighter than the rest of the deck.
I have 2 questions:
1) Is there anyway to get the bleach spots up before I stain the deck and restore it back to that natural wood look?

2) If The bleach spots don't come up, when I stain the deck will the bleach spots still show through? or will the stain cover up the bleach spots?

Thank you for all your help.
I spent too much money on a new deck to have half of it stained for life.

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

Do not try to fix your deck on your own. Take pictures of the whole deck and close ups of any bleach spots.

When you tried to scrub the wood with water and a brush, you actually spread the bleach further down into the wood.

Do not try to stain your deck either. The bleach spots won't take the stain and they could cause a reaction bectween the bleach itself and the ingredients in the stain (all chemicals).

I would ask your neighbor the name of the company and phone number he used to pressure wash his house. I would then call the company and ask the owner to come out and look at what happened to your deck from his employees. This way you have a record. Ask the owner to either offer a solution to cleaning up your deck or to replace it completely. It was his company's responsibility and should be held accountable.

Source(s):

15 yrs retail home improvement (paint specialist)
16 yrs real estate