cleaning slimy wooden decking

[chrisbainbridge]

over the winter our lovely decking has become slippery and slimy.  In the summer this dries out and all is well.  I think this winter it was worse than last and there is some staining from the slime.

Is there anything we can treat the wood with or wash the wood in the winter with?
Which will not cause damage to the wood?

[Jaded]

I've pessurewashed ours and put up with the splinters. I've awashed ours with an anti-whatever paint but it doesn't last long enough to be worth it.

[Redlight]

Most of the big DIY/Garden places sell deck cleaner. It's a bit of a faff if you have a large deck but I find using that and a firm brush does the trick for getting the slime off. Then you have to hose it down really well.  More important is to reduce the slime by regularly brushing off any leaves that fall on it during the autumn.

I also re-treat it with wood preservative every couple of years.

[ian]

We pulled ours up and gave it to the neighbour to burn. Drastic perhaps, but we've not had the problem since.

[Canardly]

Biocidal wash?

[redshift]

Go to your local oriental / commercial supermarket and buy a 5 litre poly bottle of concentrated (5%) non-brewed condiment, aka white vinegar. Dilute to about twice the recommended concentration with tap water and apply along the grain with a stiff-bristled scrubbing or yard brush.  Sluice off with water and allow to dry.  Apply decking or teak oil as required.  This is how I prep our outdoor furniture each year when it comes out of storage after winter.

[caerau]

We pulled ours up and gave it to the neighbour to burn. Drastic perhaps, but we've not had the problem since.

We did that, now we just slip over on the slimy wet mud/grass combination instead.

[ian]

We uncovered a rather nice paved patio. No idea why they put decking over it. I guess they really didn't want anyone discovering the bodies.

It was one of the few things we discovered at the Asbestos Palace that didn't come with a large bill.

I will say that everything is very, very mossy this year. The bottom of our driveway, where it emerges from under the house, is completely green, as is the balcony. Everything's gone green. I've not even been nibbling the special mushrooms.

[Asterix, the former Gaul.]

Rmovable decking.  Store it dry over winter.

[hatler]

I was going to say 'a daily scrub with holy stones and plenty of salt water', but then I realised it's not that sort of decking.

[chrisbainbridge]

cuprinol deck cleaner ordered.  Thank you for the prompts.So many people had said in conversation that it was really difficult to clean decking that I had believed them. 

[MikeFromLFE]

We pulled ours up and gave it to the neighbour to burn. Drastic perhaps, but we've not had the problem since.

That was my solution (except we used the non-rotten boards as flooring in the allotment sheds)