Staining Existing Deck

[dirtsniffer]

Just finished restaining my deck and figured a thread would allow me to recall what I did and what I would do differently next time.

We moved into the house last year and did not build or stain the deck originally. There was a portion of can of stain in the shed and I assumed that it was what the previous owner used. The deck is in good mechanical shape but the stain had deteriorated in areas that get sun during the day. In the shade of the house, the stain was in good condition. Deck is roughly 15'x40'. 2 gallons of cleaner but could have used a 3rd. Almost 3 gallons of stain.

Attachment 91060



I spot sanded a few damaged areas on the deck boards and all of the railing with 80 grit sandpaper. Next time I will do the railings again with 120 grit as they are still a bit rough for me. I did not use a chemical stripper or sand off the finish that was in good condition.

Then I cleaned the deck and railings with a wood cleaner to remove some of the grime / mildew / dirt. Pressure washed the deck afterwards. Definitely got too close a couple times and it impacted the grain or caused some damage that was mostly repaired with the sander after the deck was dry.

Two coats of stain on the railing had the color matched pretty much exactly. 2 coats on the deck boards still has the finished color lighter than what was there previously. Based on what I read online doing a 3rd coat isn't really recommended. I used a roller on the boards and it was a little challenging to get consistent application across a few of the boards. I think I went a little light on how much stain I was applying with the roller. Really used pressure to put second coat on; broke roller extension.

first coat

second


Next time I think I will strip and sand the deck boards to get a consistent finish. I should also not use a roller. the consistency across the board wasn't good enough.

Removed most of the grime and mildew. Previous owner stained the spindles, not me.

[dj_rice]

Picssss

[loweg]

Pics?

Built a big deck 2 years ago about 45x30

Built at the start of summer with pt . And stained at the end of season .

Wife wanted a tinted semi transparent stain and picked me up. Behr which is literally the worst product on the market . It is terrible. It is the entire reason I have replied to this thread . Don't buy Behr stain.

Snow melts last year and the stain in lifting off, wasnt applied too hot the year before , probably perfect weather actually. Deck looks like it's aged 10 years in the last two.

I decide to strip and sand the entire deck. My poor knees ! Then I applied a tinted stain called cutek stain . It is a phenomenal product . Beads so nicely,. Survived the winter well. Deck even looks. Much younger than it did after Behr

[revelations]

There is a mega thread on all this. Could this be combined please?

The best product for CALGARY, is the Cabot Timber Oil - however the PREP is 2x the work of the stain. I'm going on year 4 on our south facing deck and I might do a light touch up. Its that good.
You do NOT want a water based anything, for a deck in our climate.

I did a detailed write up about this after I geeked out on the processes from other forums and discussion groups (what not to do).

----------
(2 years ago)

Just a thread bump - im going past winter 2 with the Cabot deck stain. Repels water just fine and look the same as 2 years ago - ZERO peeling or odd look. (stained in late summer 2016)
I intentionally left a small area WITHOUT any sanding/cleaning prep work mentioned earlier and now I can see the water isnt being repelled as much on that area.
The prepwork IS KEY (with this and most other products).


https://www.lowes.ca/product/exterior-stains/cabot-wood-toned-deck-and-siding-stain-367429



Here is the catch, in order to have a deck water repelling coat that lasts you MUST follow these steps:

- You will need about a WEEK of no rain and above 10c temperatures. If temps call below 10c shortly after the stain has been applied, all bets are off.

- clean with chemical (wood) cleaner, rinse with garden hose. You MUST then let deck dry for 2-4 days (2 if warm and sunny, 4 if cloudy and cool). DO NOT use a pressure washer as it will require WEEKS to properly dry the wood .

- sand with a pole sander. You MUST not have water or rain after this otherwise you will have to re-clean and re-sand

- apply the chosen, high quality stain with a pole BRUSH (you need to PUSH the stain into the wood, not roll).






This is why many people have issues up here (and other climates like ours). Each step has to be followed EXACTLY.

[88CRX]

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You will need about a WEEK of no rain and above 10c temperatures. If temps call below 10c shortly after the stain has been applied, all bets are off.

Seems like a gamble in Calgary! hah.

After researching the last couple weeks I'm going to stain our PT deck with Sansin stain. Seems to be one of the better penetrating stains.

[revelations]

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Seems like a gamble in Calgary! hah.

After researching the last couple weeks I'm going to stain our PT deck with Sansin stain. Seems to be one of the better penetrating stains.

Yea, spring or fall are pretty much the only times when t/storms wont popup and the weather is somewhat predictable.... best time to do it.

[killramos]

I’m planning on doing one of those thick coatings on mine. If I can basically make my wood deck seem synthetic that is the goal.

[dirtsniffer]

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Pics?

Built a big deck 2 years ago about 45x30

Built at the start of summer with pt . And stained at the end of season .

Wife wanted a tinted semi transparent stain and picked me up. Behr which is literally the worst product on the market . It is terrible. It is the entire reason I have replied to this thread . Don't buy Behr stain.

Snow melts last year and the stain in lifting off, wasnt applied too hot the year before , probably perfect weather actually. Deck looks like it's aged 10 years in the last two.

I decide to strip and sand the entire deck. My poor knees ! Then I applied a tinted stain called cutek stain . It is a phenomenal product . Beads so nicely,. Survived the winter well. Deck even looks. Much younger than it did after Behr

Wow that's a huge deck. Must have been a real pain to redo it so quickly. Hopefully I get two years out of this Sico semi-transparent. Not holding my breath based on me being a noob and how easily it washed off my hands afterwards.

[cet]

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snip
- apply the chosen, high quality stain with a pole BRUSH (you need to PUSH the stain into the wood, not roll).

which kind of brush did you use, one of the stiff bristle deck scrubbing ones?

[The_Rural_Juror]

A week with no rain? Better luck to have @spikerS replace my entire deck with composite.

[3drian]

I am currently getting quotes to replace my deck, one of the things I am not sure about is railing. Just metal railing will cost me around $2k so I am considering something like you have.
Was it much trouble staining the railing posts? the insides and between the metal metal dividers? Do you have any recommendations? Thanks

[RX_EVOLV]

Thanks for the information and thread. We have a similar problem with our front porch and looking to re stain it this summer as it's looking quite faded.

[dirtsniffer]

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I am currently getting quotes to replace my deck, one of the things I am not sure about is railing. Just metal railing will cost me around $2k so I am considering something like you have.
Was it much trouble staining the railing posts? the insides and between the metal metal dividers? Do you have any recommendations? Thanks

I'd say I spent 10 hours total on the railings and 5 on the deck itself. It is quite a bit of work to do the railings for sure but not too crazy. One thing I have found is that water runs down the spindles and can get into the hole in the bottom section. Some of the pieces have damage that seems to run quite deep and I couldn't sand it off. It might be feasible to drill a smaller hole through to promote drainage, that could be overkill for sure.

Generally I enjoy the look of the railing (and deck) and I found the experience almost therapeutic so I don't think I would change to a non wood system in the near future.

[revelations]

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which kind of brush did you use, one of the stiff bristle deck scrubbing ones?

yes, short plastic - you are pushing the stain into the wood (image is not exactly what I have, but very similar)

https://theragfactory.ca/products/10...YaAjOlEALw_wcB

[spikerS]

Yeah, wooden railings are such a PITA over their entire lifecycle on a deck. It's why I always recommend doing aluminium railings. When I do them, the cost difference is negligible as I can put up an aluminium railing way faster than doing a wooden one, so while you spend more on the actual railing, you save on the labor which basically makes it a wash.

Add to that the future maintinance, it's a no brainer to go aluminum. Staining or sanding a deck is easy. Until composite solves the heat soak and expansion and contraction issues, I stick with PT wood for decking.