OMG did our new salt cause THIS???

[Oly]

Looks like sprinkler overspray patterns. Recent rain event? Specific tree type overhead of discolored areas? Any other similar discoloration on your lot say in front of the house or at neighbors? Do you observe a wind directional pattern? Try a 50/50 bleach water solution on a small area. The spill stain on the deck edge is unique and puzzling.

 

[bloodocean]

It looks to me like dye from your mulch is staining the deck. How is the slope from your garden beds to the pool?

 

[Bperry]

It looks to me like dye from your mulch is staining the deck. How is the slope from your garden beds to the pool?

I had similar stains on my driveway from a bag of mulch.

 

[rstrouse]

Yeah but that spill on the coping is either a crime scene or silver nitrate.

The dark stuff could also be mildew on the deck. It would be clear where it wasn't getting wet. This happens to travertine if it stays wet. A little bit of laundry detergent and a pressure washer makes short work of it.

 

[Jellwood]

Wow, thank you everyone!!! Several replies here:
@Leebo the table is old and we haven’t done any staining projects lately
@bloodocean & @Bperry I don’t think it’s mulch because there is mulch all around the pool and the stain is concentrated at the ends
@Oly yes recent rain all weekend and oak trees above all areas of staining...this was my initial thought that it was some kind of tannin or something from the oak trees! It’s not pollen and looks different from the leaf stains (which we also have but at least I know what those are).
@ajw22 good point about the brass and mortar haha ok I think I have to give up on the rust idea. I could wipe the brown stuff off the anchor but it won’t come clean on the paver.

we also get spray in yard for fertilizer and flea/tick but we’ve had other treatments this year with no problem. Again though stain would be everywhere if it were the spray???

 

[mknauss]

Fertilizer normally contains iron.

 

[Jellwood]

@rstrouse haha crime scene! Thanks for making me laugh cause we are pretty devastated about this mess. I will try hydrogen peroxide and also give ascorbic acid a try just in case.

 

[Jellwood]

@mknauss yes I was thinking iron in the fertilizer spray. But what would make it suddenly turn brown now when we had treatments earlier this spring with no problem? Any ideas?

 

[mknauss]

Different concentration used by the applier. High pH causes iron to show up as rust. The corrosion on the metal implies acid was spilled or poured on it.

 

[ajw22]

I could wipe the brown stuff off the anchor but it won’t come clean on the paver.

So it is some type of surface stain that wiped off of brass since it is not porous and was absorbed into stone and porous surfaces.

I would carefully examine what wiped off.

 

[mknauss]

I did not catch you could wipe it off of the metals -- so corrosion is not the issue.

 

[Oly]

Oaks above all the stained areas with a recent rain event, major clue. The big spot on the coping needs explaining, perhaps wind driven slug of debris, rotted acorn from tree? Try bleach solution in an out of the way area.

 

[Jellwood]

@Oly @mknauss @ajw22 @rstrouse Ah! now we’re getting somewhere! Anchors wiped off with a towel. 50/50 bleach solution cleaned mortar, paver, and paver with a known leaf stain.
See photos.
Did not try bleach on possible silver nitrate because I wasn’t sure if that would make it worse. Will get hydrogen peroxide tomorrow!

@Oly can you tell me more about the oak tree clue?

 

[Oly]

The fact that the stain responds to the bleach solution identifies it as organic. A recent rain (noticed the drops hanging from your hand rail and see your proximity to the sea), with the darker stains below oak trees becoming lighter as you move out from under the canopy is a clue. Tannins from oaks will stain concrete and porous pavers, there are many pics of your symptoms on the net. Search your area for stained concrete under oaks there should be more around. When was your last significant rain event before this?

 

[rstrouse]

Lets hope I am wrong about the silver nitrate and it truly is a scene from a horror movie, a hawk decided it needed to drag some entrails in the pool to wash it down, or the dog got herself a possum there. If I'm right its a tattoo you got in your 20s that didn't wear well into retirement. If you get reagent on your hands you have to cut them off to get rid of it.

 

[Jellwood]

The fact that the stain responds to the bleach solution identifies it as organic. A recent rain (noticed the drops hanging from your hand rail and see your proximity to the sea), with the darker stains below oak trees becoming lighter as you move out from under the canopy is a clue. Tannins from oaks will stain concrete and porous pavers, there are many pics of your symptoms on the net. Search your area for stained concrete under oaks there should be more around. When was your last significant rain event before this?

A couple of weeks ago.
We just passed pollen season. Is this oak tannin a spring/seasonal thing? The trees are staying so is there anything we can do moving forward to prevent it?

 

[Orion7319]

A couple of weeks ago.
We just passed pollen season. Is this oak tannin a spring/seasonal thing? The trees are staying so is there anything we can do moving forward to prevent it?

I have a large oak and it makes a big mess on the top of my fence and deck stairs. In my old house the HOA required the houses to be pressure washed each year. I would just spray bleach on the siding. The easiest way I have found to clean up mold and oak stain stuff and algae and moss is by putting bleach in one of these garden hose sprayers and adjusting the ratio to control the strength of it. Just spay it on, let it sit for a few minutes then hose it down with water. Be careful around plants though. It can harm them, but I haven’t managed to do that myself.

Amazon.com : RL FLOMASTER 36HE6 RL Flo-Master Chameleon Hose End Sprayer, Natural : Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com : RL FLOMASTER 36HE6 RL Flo-Master Chameleon Hose End Sprayer, Natural : Garden & Outdoor

www.amazon.com

 

[S-Merry]

That stain on the deck looks like somebody dripped silver nitrate when testing the salt level.

Picture the scene. A sample is drawn from the pool to test the salt level. Then all the reagents are added to determine the level. Ooops it gets knocked over. You now have silver nitrate reagent on your coping. The stains from this do not appear immediately and begin showing up when the sunlight gets to it.

So the tech starts washing it off. Now I don't know how far and wide it can go once it is diluted but the stains are pretty much permanent when they land on something semi-permeable. You can try hydrogen peroxide but the real thing that will take it out is sodium cyanide. Even if you have some laying around I wouldn't use that. Give hydrogen peroxide a try on the coping spill to see it that has an effect.

I spilled silver nitrate on our white quartz kitchen counters last year. I poured soft scrub with bleach on it, covered it with a paper towel and let it sit all day (wiped off to check periodically, then poured and covered again), and it finally faded out.

Is Hydrogen Peroxide the better choice? We used it once to induce vomiting when our dog swallowed a plastic squeaker (vet recommended dosage). It left quite the bleach spot on the deck. Oops.

 

[Jellwood]

I have a large oak and it makes a big mess on the top of my fence and deck stairs. In my old house the HOA required the houses to be pressure washed each year. I would just spray bleach on the siding. The easiest way I have found to clean up mold and oak stain stuff and algae and moss is by putting bleach in one of these garden hose sprayers and adjusting the ratio to control the strength of it. Just spay it on, let it sit for a few minutes then hose it down with water. Be careful around plants though. It can harm them, but I haven’t managed to do that myself.

Amazon.com : RL FLOMASTER 36HE6 RL Flo-Master Chameleon Hose End Sprayer, Natural : Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com : RL FLOMASTER 36HE6 RL Flo-Master Chameleon Hose End Sprayer, Natural : Garden & Outdoor

www.amazon.com

Thank you so much for all the links!!!

 

[Jellwood]

I spilled silver nitrate on our white quartz kitchen counters last year. I poured soft scrub with bleach on it, covered it with a paper towel and let it sit all day (wiped off to check periodically, then poured and covered again), and it finally faded out.

Is Hydrogen Peroxide the better choice? We used it once to induce vomiting when our dog swallowed a plastic squeaker (vet recommended dosage). It left quite the bleach spot on the deck. Oops.

Yikes for your dog!!! I will try the hydrogen peroxide first and if that doesn’t work then I’ll try the soft scrub!!! Thank you!