How to Stain a Deck - Steps

[greatgardener]

Hello,

I stained my raised deck after 3 years.

I got many pictures during work.

Steps ---> Staining exterior deck


Comments?

 

[tyroneweaver]

I'm in. Mine looks like crap

 

[Pete7469]

Step 1.

Purchase the stain of your choice.

Step 2.

Apply it or pay someone else to do it.

Step 3.

Replace your furniture and drink beer.

 

[DGS49]

Back in the "old days" there was a building product called "Wolmanized" lumber. It basically lasted forever (i.e., 25 years without further treatment). But apparently, the chemicals in Wolmanized lumber were in some way toxic, so it is not available anymore, and lumber houses want to sell you "pressure-treated" lumber as an alternative.

Given that the basic wood is cheap-ass pine, the pressure treated stuff does OK, but it's nowhere near as durable as Wolmanized.

So, immediately after completion, I treated my deck with Thompson's water seal. It is - I would say - somewhere between paint and stain. Because that is all they had, I purchased a product that has a tan-colored tint to it. I didn't like it at first, but it has grown on me, and after two years I actually like it. I expect to have to re-treat my deck every couple years until I'm too old to continue, and I'm hopeful that this diligence will result in a deck that "never" will need replacement - at least in my lifetime.

If I were treating anything that is more than a couple years old, I would pressure wash the upper surfaces first, then give it a few days to dry completely before applying the stain or sealer. But that's just me.