Stain / Sealer for Deck in Crisis

[spasm3]

That deck is so weathered, the only thing i think will buy some time is this. Its a solid coating, might fill in the roughness. I might use the textured finish.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/BEHR-Pr...and-Concrete-Coating-500505/308486758#overlay

 

[Racer4]

Check out TWP oil base stain. Clean and sand with a deck sander I rented one from Home Depot. Add screws where needed. Make sure the old screws and nails are below the surface will damage the sander sand paper. I got the TWP from Ace Hardware.

 

[Pablo]

I see wood so toasted it's done. It's dead Jim.

 

[doitmyself]

Here's the best deck stain review site in my opinion: https://www.deckstainhelp.com/

The OP's deck is in survival mode, lol.

 

[2005jettatdi]

It is replacement time. Seriously considered the plastic, ok composite, wood. It will cost more, not quite twice as much as Douglas Fir, but will last a long time and no slivers or pitch. If you go with wood, only Douglas Fir. Not KD is okay. I did our deck with 2 x 6 Western Red Cedar in 1985. When we sold the place in 2011 the deck was still in fine shape, but also mostly protected from weather.

 

[KCJeep]

Here's the best deck stain review site in my opinion: https://www.deckstainhelp.com/

The OP's deck is in survival mode, lol.

The OP is in survival mode.

 

[Cropduster172]

Here's the best deck stain review site in my opinion: https://www.deckstainhelp.com/

The OP's deck is in survival mode, lol.

That site is a well known joke. It's a marketing scam for the company that makes TWP and Defy.

 

[Cropduster172]

And this is under the outdoor rug, I had no idea.

View attachment 351835

I'd cut out those rotted 2xs with a drill and jigsaw or a multi tool and replace with new sections.
For the entire deck surface, fill a pump sprayer with a mixture of 3/4 gallon of bleach the rest water and a 1/4 cup of liquid Tide or similar.
Give it a shake and saturate the entire deck. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes and then rinse with a hose or power washer. Let it dry for a day or 2 .
When completely dry, put down 2 coats of this:
BEHR DECKplus 1 gal. White Base Solid Color Waterproofing Exterior Wood Stain 21101 - The Home Depot https://share.google/fqVBhV9O0fBoqpoYy

Assuming the substructure is sound, you'll get some years out of it still.
I've built 4 decks and cleaned and stained them more times than I wish to think about... including the one outside our front door at our beach house where I am now. I've tried different brands of stain... settled on Valspar/SW from Lowes until I tried this Behr from HD.
It's not their premium but it's the best I've used and it's held up going on 2 years in a tough environment.
Good luck

 

[Snagglefoot]

How big is your deck? Are you willing to do the work? Start with a thourogh cleaning, sanding, tighten/replace/add deck screws, replace wood where necessary and then finish with a quality stain.

It just might look beautiful when you are done. Perhaps consider hiring someone who knows what they are doing?

I would add “quality oil based stain”.

 

[Snagglefoot]

I find water-based stains perform OK for vertical structures like posts and fences. For horizontal surfaces exposed to rain you really want to use oil-based stain.

 

[Cropduster172]

For that deck, given it's condition and age. Solid latex acrylic stain after washing with a bleach solution.

 

[demarpaint]

It depends on how much time you want to spend on the project, and what your expectations are. It can be made to look good, for a while, the wild card is how many rotted boards there are. If I were to attack that project the first thing I would do is make sure the screws are sunk below the surface of the boards so they don't tear up sanding belts. Then I would go around putting in more screws where needed. The next step would be sanding until I had a smooth surface, it looks to me like a 1/16" or more would have to be sanded out, and the deep splits, cracks, and checking will still remain. Make sure it is clean and mildew free. Wood fillers don't hold up well to expansion and contraction along with people walking on the deck. Bondo is hit or miss especially on a deck people walk on. All dust must be removed after sanding, if the surface is slightly damp it helps with applying the 'first' coat solid acrylic stain, try and work in shade or on a cloudy day! Regarding finish, I would use a solid acrylic deck stain, no priming, just two coats. Oil based products on a deck are a breeding ground for mold and mildew. It should look decent when done, some might say like a suit on a Gorilla. As I mentioned earlier, it depends on your expectations.

 

[2002 Maxima SE]

Use the solid color acrylic stain by BEHR Premium at Home Depot. It holds up 10X better than any semi-transparent stain due to a magnitude level more particulate content. It will last 10 years if applied correctly. My deck is 16 years old and is only now showing signs that it needs re-staining on some areas.

+100. Our fence was a mess when we moved in about 5 years ago. Sun damage and lichen growth on most of it. It appeared to have never been treated with any stain or water repellent. We bleached then power washed it, front and back that summer. The worst pickets tore apart and had to be replaced.

We used Cabots solid color and it came out great. Luckily our deck was already a solid stain, so we reapplied last summer. Solid stain hides a lot for a structurally sound deck where transparent stain will not work.

 

[Cropduster172]

That site is a well known joke. It's a marketing scam for the company that makes TWP and Defy.

Correction...it's a marketing scam for an online retailer that sells both of those products but tries desperately to steer DIY folks away from Home Depot and Lowe's and to their site.

 

[RhondaHonda]

I’d be concerned that a solid stain is going to peel and flake on those old boards. Some old neighbors used it and it looked like crap, more paint than stain although I don’t know the brand.

Maybe the products are better now. I did the kids’ Rainbow with TWP and am very pleased.

 

[RooflessVW]

They make deck resurfacing paints for your situation, with and without grit.

It is extremely thick and durable.

 

[Urshurak776]

Our deck is just as bad. I bought a five gallon bucket of boiled linseed oil and it helped for a few years. i think I cut it with mineral spirits when I applied it, but that was a while ago.

If I knew someone wouldn't rat me out I would just douse it in used motor oil every couple of years.

A guy I served with was from Oklahoma and he said they treated wooden fencing with ATF. Swore by it.

 

[#18FAN]

They make deck resurfacing paints for your situation, with and without grit.

It is extremely thick and durable.

This is the direction I would go prep prep prep is key for any coating longevity.
https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/rock-solid/deck/20x-deck-resurfacer
I'd look into a product such as this.

 

[demarpaint]

I’d be concerned that a solid stain is going to peel and flake on those old boards. Some old neighbors used it and it looked like crap, more paint than stain although I don’t know the brand.

Maybe the products are better now. I did the kids’ Rainbow with TWP and am very pleased.

A good solid deck stain works well for this situation. It is thin enough by design to really penetrate into that wood, and with the degree of sanding that needs to be done makes it even better suited. Where people go wrong is they think a primer is needed, which is incorrect. The primer seals the surface defeating the ability of the stain to penetrate, in which case it can peel and wear off quickly. Simply put primer works better for sealing wood, and allowing paint to properly bond in areas that are not going to be walked on.

 

[doitmyself]

Correction...it's a marketing scam for an online retailer that sells both of those products but tries desperately to steer DIY folks away from Home Depot and Lowe's and to their site.

Thank you for bringing that to my attention. I'm an astute online researcher and am embarrassed that I just learned this. Live and learn, even in old age, and continue attempting objectivity is my goal.

For fun, I just did an extreme in-depth A.I. study (yah, I know) of online deck stain review sites. It was very revealing of the deckstainhelp website but didn't toss it our completely. Instead it recommended the site as a cautious data point, but compare the source to other data. It discussed Consumer Reports, but MANY here also question CR's legitimacy. CR's tests are on new wood only, not exposed to foot traffic. Still, it's a data point. My A.I. study suggested that there are outside consumer reviews of the TPW, Armstrong Clark, etc. that substantiate excellent results, so we shouldn't toss out the baby with the wash water regarding the deckstainhelp site?

The problem is we have no single excellent review site of deck stains, and the climate/user variables across the nation make it even more difficult. Add to that frequent stain formulation changes. That people share completely different experiences with the same products supports this. I used a very highly rated Consumers report acrylic solid stain product, doing excellent prep and following all instructions and had very mediocre results. I have used Behr acrylic solid stain on vertical plywood hoophouse gable ends with excellent results.

I tend to gravitate towards penetrating, non film forming oil products. In the Op's example, I understand some of the recommendations to use a solid stain to better cover/protect the very poor quality surface, but I also question any product that edges on becoming film forming.

As always, the opinions are all across the board. Thanks again @Cropduster172 for bringing that information to light.