House Deck Question

[supton]

Ok, spent an hour looking up deck finishes, am more confused than when I started.

Wife has a couple of days open, and was going to powerwash the decks and seal. So tonight we were going to look up what sealer to use. Errr.... No end of opinions.

Now I'm starting to wonder if I even should bother? Best I can tell, most of the complaining is from people trying to keep cedar decks looking mint. I have pressure treat wood that I don't think was ever treated. It wasn't treated for the 7.5 years we've lived here, and I think the decks were put in a few years prior to that. Heavy cracking on a number of boards (mostly any place you'd put your hands), lots of gray.

I don't think it's in danger of falling down, but if it's going to last 10 more years with zero treatment I'm starting to think it's best to leave as-is than risk making it look worse with the selection of the wrong treatment. As it is, I'd love to move in a few years.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

My favorite is Penofin, then Cabot. Both can last you several years.

 

[cmorr]

You want to let your deck dry at least two days (warm and sunny) after pressure washing. Considering it hasn't been treated for years I would allow even longer drying time as it will absorb more water.

Considering the shape of the wood I would then go with a solid color stain. Just one coat this year and one coat next. Most people apply too much at one time

 

[JC1]

I find that most deck finishes will start to peel and come off then your deck looks awful. That's why I went with an interlocking patio.

I would leave the deck unstained. Just powerwash it which depending on the size of the deck will take a day or so to do.

Regards, JC.

 

[dernp]

I've built decks for the past 25 yrs. Pressure treated wood is treated at the mill. It is normal for it to crack and fade since it is pine. Pine has lots of knots and staining usually makes things much worse and you'll be sorry you did it. If you pressure wash it, you will raise the grain of the wood therefore a light sanding will be needed to remove the birrs. If it were me, I'd save my money.

 

[Donald]

I agree - I have and hate peeling deck stain.

Be careful pressure washing if you have never done it before as you can easily damage the wood if you do not use a fan spray.

There are sealers like Thompsons that just disappear and do not peel.

 

[hisilver]

Use an oil based stain that will penetrate, not a 'surface coating' that may peel. Just this weekend finished up a deck using Cabot Australian Timber Oil in mahogany flame color (not the blue lid low VOC formula). Thirty year old pine that had never seen any stain. Came out really nice.

Clean it good.
Make sure its dry.

 

[QuietPortage]

I agree with most of what was posted here. Power washing and/or some deck cleaner is good surface prep. An oil-based semi-transparent stain will protect better than the clear stuff, add a bit of color, and absorb into the wood so there won't be anything to peel. I've used a few brands and found Cabot to be the best.

 

[KevGuy]

Do not use tinted deck stain. Always peels. I just used plain old Thompson's Water Seal and it looks great. Still has natural wood color. No peeling.

 

[JHZR2]

My parents put up a deck on the mountain house in 85 or 86. I remember it going up. Never once has it been stained, sealed or treated.

We did replace the hand rails about 5-7 years ago because they were cracking. One small section of one floor board was cracked so it was replaced a few years before that.

It still is ok, and not now are we talking about resurfacing it or rebuilding it.

It is on the south side of the house, so mold/moisture isn't an issue.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Originally Posted By: JC1
I find that most deck finishes will start to peel and come off then your deck looks awful. That's why I went with an interlocking patio.

I would leave the deck unstained. Just powerwash it which depending on the size of the deck will take a day or so to do.

Regards, JC.


Penofin and Cabot do not crack. It takes 5 years here in Michigan for it to fade noticeably.