Why It’s Important To Remove Wood Fuzz After Media Blasting.

What is secondary prep? After you’ve gotten down to clean sound wood it’s time to clean up and remove wood fuzz media blasting another methods left behind.

When properly done, most blasting methods create at least some “felting”, AKA “wood fuzz.” Prior to applying any finishing products you must remove wood fuzz. Eventually all of that fuzz will fall off, so any stain applied to it will leave a mottled appearance and leave those areas exposed to weather. Additionally, blasting can sometimes raise the grain too much, making the wood too coarse. Even though the coarse texture is beneficial for stain adhesion, it makes the stain look darker and rougher.

The best tools to remove this felting and make the texture smoother are Osborn® brushes or Sashco’s Buffy Pad system, both of which attach to a variable-speed grinder. Of course, random orbital sanders with 60- or 80-grit sandpaper will work, but they will be more time-consuming and don’t always do as good a job.

If you use Sashco’s Colorfast, you may not need to do secondary prep. You should eliminate any fuzz, but if no fuzz exists and the texture is acceptable, you should apply Colorfast without getting a too-dark color. Getting those tools out and sweating might help if the surface is too rough.