Decks, Patios, Porches and Docks - Pressure Treated Wood - Staining

I need to stain/paint a weathered swing set. The entire thing is made of pressure treated wood. I assume I need to sand or clean the wood prior to staining. What is the best way to prepare the wood for the stain.

Generally on PT wood you will wash it down, let it dry and then stain. Since it's a swing, sanding might be better. Basically you need to make sure the wood is clean and any weathered glaze is knocked off of the wood. A deck stain might wear better on a swing than a siding stain. As always you will find the better coatings at your local paint store [not dept]

Either something like an oxalic acid solution (sometimes called wood bleach) and a stiff brush, which will remove MOST of the weathered surface wood fibers, or a pressure washer with a fan tip (need to be careful not to damage/gouge the wood). It will need to dry for a minimum of several days, depending on the weather.

You will still probably need to do some light hand sanding...no matter what you do.

Just to clarify this is a childs swing set. So it is rather large not easilly maneuvered and a lot of surface area. Is sanding alone the incorrect way to do? Any concern with the chemicals in the wood while sanding.

Generally washing with a bleach/water solution or one of the commercially prepared cleaners and then rinsing [either garden hose or pressure washer] is how pt wood is prepped for paint/stain. I thought that sanding might be a good idea since their is hand and body contact with the wood - no splinters. Sanding without cleaning would still [more than likely] clean the wood good enough to apply the stain.

There are chemicals that can be released when cutting, sanding and even handling new pt, I don't know if this is still a concern after the pt wood has weathered.