Using Sodium Percarbonate

[SuperNewbie]

I am looking for advice on using Sodium Percarbonate and Citric Acid. I would like to know if anyone has any suggestions on how to mix it in a 2.5 gallon pump up sprayer? I have no clue on how to downstream yet.

I can get both chems from a supplier, but I was wondering if they need to be "cut" first. Can they be mixed straight from the bag? Should the house be pre-wet first? Apply to dry wood, or pre-wet? How much chem per batch? I tried the search function, but didn't find anything.

Thanks

[FLORIN]

Why are you wanting to mix those two? What are you cleaning? Never heard of those two chems mixed in a enclosed container such as a pump up so make sure you know they are compatible so you dont blow yourself up.

[SuperNewbie]

Sorry for the confusion. I don't want to mix them together. I would like to mix them seperately. I would use one pump-up for SP, another for Citric Acid to neutralize. I want to use it to clean and neutralize wooden decks and fences.

[FLORIN]

I have been doing this for 5 years and still have not gotten a mix as good as if you would just buy a premade deck cleaning mix. The chems that the vendors on here sell work awesome and leaves the guess game out. You really dont save much more money by mixing your own stuff after you think about the added time it takes to clean due to the chem not working as efficiently.

[PressurePros]

+1 to what Florin said. Unless you know surfactant chemistry (which, in my opinion, you need a surfactant with both of those chems) you can shoot yourself in the foot.

To answer your question directly, in a five gallon bucket and applied directly:

40 oz to 50 oz of sodium percarbonate.
15 oz to 25 oz of citric acid is plenty.

[SuperNewbie]

Thanks guys.

[kuhlbreeze]

By itself sodium percarbonate makes a poor deck cleaner. The first thing you need to

use something to help raise the alkalinity of the cleaning solution. This is commonly

done by combining the percarbonate with a material like soda ash. Even better is to

use a combination of soda ash and sodium metasilicate. (Commonly called TSP

substitute and can be purchased in any hardware store.) You also need is to add a

little surfactant to the cleaning solution to help it wet out the deck surface being

cleaned. This can easily be accomplished by adding a little dish liquid (like Dawn)

to the cleaning solution before use. If you rinse the surface well after cleaning it is

debatable if you really need

to also rinse with citric acid. I have never really recommended it except on occasion

with new redwood. This can easily be accomplished by adding a little dish liquid (like

Dawn) to the cleaning solution before use. Lastly, do not make any oxygen bleach

blends with less than 75% sodium percarbonate. If you do you may be disappointed.

Natural Choices manufactures an oxygen bleach based product called Exterior ProX

Deck and Patio Cleaner (80% or more sodium percarbonate) that does an excellent job

on exterior surfaces like siding, decks, roofs, fences and masonry. It contains all of

the ingredient cited previously in their proper proportions. We also do proprietary

formulations if a more robust product is needed. As the chemist who has been

formulating oxygen bleach products for over 15 years I can assure Natural Choices has

the best quality and performance available for oxygen bleach

based products.

Dr. Marion Mack Myers
Technical Director
Pacific Sands/Natural Choices
262-898-3117
technical@oxyboost.com

[terryfish1968]

I use Sodium Percarbonate to do roof with ... It works great ... I dont do many decks ... But I was wondering could I add TSP to my roof cleaner & would there be any beneffits to it ... I am always looking for ways to improve on my work ...

[mobilewashpros]

no, stop messing around with S Precarb and learn to use chlorine properly to clean roofs. Much easier and faster.

[Innovativewash]

How about a torch? I dont do decks sorry.