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The best way to sand a deck is by cleaning it, sanding the boards and stairs with 60- or 80-grit sandpaper, and sanding the railings and posts with 80-grit sandpaper. You should sand in the direction of the wood grain to avoid damaging the timber. When sanding your deck, use medium pressure and aim for an even sand. Pressing too hard with a sander can damage decks, as most are softwoods.

Sandblasting is a common method for removing paint. It works great if the underlying material is tough. This is because you can then use more abrasive sandblast materials, making the paint removal process much faster and less expensive. If you plan on removing many layers of paint on smooth surfaces, you’ll need to be more careful about which materials you choose to use to sandblast.

Soda-blasting systems are slightly more expensive than sandblasting systems. To soda blast, you’ll need to spend a few hundred dollars for a blast hose and nozzle, a compressed air supply, a blast generator, a moisture decontamination system, and sodium bicarbonate media, a recurring cost because the powder is not reusable. To start with sandblasting, you will need to spend upwards of $30 for a blast pot, a blast gun, an air compressor, and sandblasting media, many of which are recyclable—further reducing the cost. The total cost for either will depend on the size of the system.

Sandblasting is useful when you need to strip material off a hard surface. Common reasons to sandblast are to remove paint, rust, or get a surface ready for a new material. You aren’t limited to surfaces like walls either—you can sandblast rusted tools, bicycle frames, cement, bricks, and many others. If what you’re sandblasting is still structurally sound, sandblasting can be a fast and inexpensive way to revive the original material.