How to remove/hide scratches and dents on composite decking (Trex)

[CJ7VFR]

I need suggestions on how to remove, or at least hide, scratches and other marks from the surface of my Trex decking.

We had some people over this past weekend and now my Trex deck looks like hell. Some of the women wore high heel shoes that had heels that were no more than a quarter of an inch in diameter and there are thousands of small dents all over the surface of the decking.

That, and people were too damn lazy when getting up or sitting down and they were just scooting their chairs in and out and caused some pretty good sized scratches in the decking.

I searched youtube and other sites and saw some videos of people using a heat gun or a propane torch to help hide and conceal the scratches and dents. I have tried this with very limited success. That and the fact that the damage is pretty much over the entire deck surface and using the heat gun or a torch will take days if not weeks to fix/hide the thousands of dents and all the scratches.

Does anyone know of any other ways to help at least hide all this damage? I know from experience that over time (years) these marks will fade to the point they are hardly noticeable, but I want to try to do something now since the nice weather is just starting and I want to enjoy my deck without being pissed off every time I see this damage.

I posted a few pictures of some of the damage.

Jim

 

[PCustoms]

Not to self, do not throw bachelor party on deck, strippers likely to leave evidence....

How old is the trex? Looks possibly faded, I would start with a good wash with a deck cleaner and brush. I've also heard that you can stain over it, but I don't know anyone who has actually done that

 

[jar944]

Looks like the top layer is turning to chalk.

 

[CJ7VFR]

Not to self, do not throw bachelor party on deck, strippers likely to leave evidence....

How old is the trex? Looks possibly faded, I would start with a good wash with a deck cleaner and brush. I've also heard that you can stain over it, but I don't know anyone who has actually done that

The Trex is about 16 years old. It is faded a bit when I compare it to some scrap pieces I have left over but not that bad as the deck is mostly in the shade all day long.

I had just pressure washed the deck two days before this party so it is clean (except for a few spots of bird **** on it). I tried cleaning a few of the spots with deck cleaner and a brush that does nothing to the scratches and dents.

Ever since the decking was new what seems to happen is anything heavy on it will crush down the embedded grain pattern in the decking and cause the spots to look lighter in color than the surrounding areas. I have tried to raise up the grain pattern using a stiff steel bristle brush, and that works a bit, but it will hide the scratches but cause the surface to look lighter in color in a large area instead of just where the scratches were.

Jim

 

[PCustoms]

The Trex is about 16 years old. It is faded a bit when I compare it to some scrap pieces I have left over but not that bad as the deck is mostly in the shade all day long.

I had just pressure washed the deck two days before this party so it is clean (except for a few spots of bird **** on it). I tried cleaning a few of the spots with deck cleaner and a brush that does nothing to the scratches and dents.

Ever since the decking was new what seems to happen is anything heavy on it will crush down the embedded grain pattern in the decking and cause the spots to look lighter in color than the surrounding areas. I have tried to raise up the grain pattern using a stiff steel bristle brush, and that works a bit, but it will hide the scratches but cause the surface to look lighter in color in a large area instead of just where the scratches were.

Jim

After I posted I was trying to figure out when some friends did their deck, it's about the same age.

I think unfortunately that's the life span.

They've looked into using oil stain but haven't tried it yet

 

[CJ7VFR]

Looks like the top layer is turning to chalk.

I thought that too, but this Trex is a solid consistent color all the way thru it. What happens is that anything heavy will crush the embedded grain pattern down and make that spot look lighter in color than the surrounding area.

I pressure wash the deck every year (sometimes twice) and I can usually get those flattened out areas to come back a bit in color to match the surrounding areas better.

I noticed this happening when we first put the deck in and I moved the grill a bit to be able to pressure wash where it was located. When I moved the grill back the wheels on the bottom of the grill made thin tracks in the decking where the weight of grill pushing down on the wheels made the wheels crush down the grain pattern.

I was pissed back then about it, but over time those marks faded away. I know these current marks will fade away as well, but I just hate seeing so many of them all over. We never had this many people here before and they really did a number on the surface of the deck!

Jim

 

[CJ7VFR]

After I posted I was trying to figure out when some friends did their deck, it's about the same age.

I think unfortunately that's the life span.

They've looked into using oil stain but haven't tried it yet

I did see a few videos of people re-surfacing older composite decking with stain like products that are pretty thick and add a good layer of protection over the top.

But I don't really want to do that. I tried the heat gun and a steel bristle brush and that removed the scratches but made the color of the Trex a lot lighter. The info from Trex when we bought it and had it installed even says if you clean the decking with a brush the color will turn lighter but will eventually fade in to match the rest of it.

I could use the heat gun and steel bristle brush on the entire deck but that will take weeks. I am looking for a faster way to just hide the marks so they are not that noticeable.

Jim

 

[tarmy]

Sand it.

I had first generation Trex on a deck years ago. Worked great for about 15 years. To spruce it up I gave sanding a try….worked great. As you noted OP…the old stuff is solid colored material. Try it in a smal inconspicuous area and see.

By the way…when women at a party wear spikes…there are no rules…that is a feature, not a problem.

 

[aka Larry]

Nothing wrong with being **** over your deck, but I'm surprised you have exposed fasteners if these marks bother you that much. The fasteners are hidden on mine.

 

[larry_g]

Look at the other side of the coin. We had a great party, bit rough on the deck, but Sally had on those heels that really accentuated her feminine features. The deck took a hit but the memories will last a long time. They are features of a life well lived. It's like how I think about those here who complain about marks/paint on the shop floor. To me the paint on the floor is a memory of building stuff with the grandkids, or the wedding arch that my children were married under. Life is good, go with it, as none of us are getting out alive or taking things with us.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[Viper98912]

Sandblast it to even it all out.

Good luck shoveling the sand out from your yard though.

 

[69CHARGERMD]

We had the Trex Transcend and no issues with scratching. Looks like you have the Enhance or Select level which has modest scratch resistance. Trex does offer repair kits for dent and scratch repair. Good luck.

 

[jim]

Stain it??? Isn't that the reason you have that type of decking in the first place, so you don't have to do that anymore?

 

[CJ7VFR]

Nothing wrong with being **** over your deck, but I'm surprised you have exposed fasteners if these marks bother you that much. The fasteners are hidden on mine.

The exposed fasteners don't bother me because they are Trex fasteners and are color matched to the decking. And since they are all in straight lines going into the floor joists under them I can live with that. Back when this deck was installed the hidden fastener system was not available yet, and would not be for a few years. If I get new decking I will use the hidden fasteners for sure.

It is all the recent random little dents, scratches and scuffs that detract the eye because they are all lighter in color than the decking and really stand out.

Jim

 

[CJ7VFR]

Sandblast it to even it all out.

Good luck shoveling the sand out from your yard though.

I sort of do that now in a way only using water instead of sand.

When it is time to clean the deck and I see a few scuffs or scratches on the decking is I put a 15 degree nozzle on my pressure washer and I put it really close to the surface of the decking and move the wand really slow past the marks. This usually raises up the outer surface of the grain of the Trex to kind of blend the marks in.

That works great when I only have a few of them to deal with. This is literally thousands of marks all over the surface of the decking. If I use the pressure washer method it will work but it will take weeks to deal with all these marks.

I was looking for something faster for the time being.

Jim

 

[cgrutt]

I might try one of those plastic rejuvenator products they sell in the auto parts stores to see if it evens out the color. Hot day in the sun may pop some dents.

 

[Viper98912]

I sort of do that now in a way only using water instead of sand.

When it is time to clean the deck and I see a few scuffs or scratches on the decking is I put a 15 degree nozzle on my pressure washer and I put it really close to the surface of the decking and move the wand really slow past the marks. This usually raises up the outer surface of the grain of the Trex to kind of blend the marks in.

That works great when I only have a few of them to deal with. This is literally thousands of marks all over the surface of the decking. If I use the pressure washer method it will work but it will take weeks to deal with all these marks.

I was looking for something faster for the time being.

Jim

It's summertime, local neighborhood kid at 10 bucks an hour