Deck Stains and Staining

Most of the complaints that you hear about the failure of wood finishes on decks is usually limited to the use of film forming sealers. Not every complaint is about a film forming sealer but the majority of them are. Most weekend warriors (homeowners) and professionals (painters) do not have the full knowledge of staining decks. Staining a deck is not the same as applying paint. Most people believe that more is better. Not the case with film forming stains. With oil based deck stains, more will not hurt the final outcome. If the wood can not absorb all the stain, all you have to do is wipe it up. If you over apply water repellant products, you may end up with a surface that is slick, waxy or sticky. This is why we only use oil based deck stains.

Although we do not advocate the use of film forming deck stains, we do recognize that most deck stain failures are a direct result of improper preparation. Proper preparation is the single most important factor for the performance of any wood stain. The surface of the lumber needs to be clean and dry before the deck stain is applied.

Applying the deck stain is not as big of a choice as the types of stains out there but you will find everything from using a rag to spraying. Different methods of applying the deck stain that we recommend are brushing, rolling, stain pads or spraying. We have never used the rolling or stain pad method as we believe that you do not get enough stain on the deck. If we can, we always spray the spindles or you will be there all week. Many people will tell you that brushing is the best way to stain your spindles and we have to disagree with that. We always use a sprayer when we can. As for the deck surface, we don't mind brushing. We do NOT brush with a hand brush however, we use what basically is a push broom that covers a swath 3 boards wide. Staining goes very fast with this method. Most water based sealers will warn you to stay off the deck for 24 hours for the product to dry properly. With oil based stains, we tell our customers to wait 48 to 72 hours. WOW! You say that is a long time, well you don't have to wait that long at all but be aware that oil takes longer to dry and your feet are walking on it. You will not hurt an oil based stain by walking on it before it is dry.

As with any product on the market today with many different manufacturers, there are many different application instructions and guidelines. Follow the directions of your particular product and you should do fine. There are exceptions to this however, film forming stains are usually pretty close to the application rate on the can or bucket. Oil based deck stains, on the other hand, are a different animal all together. With our deck stain we always cut the coverage rate in half. If not, we will run out of stain before the project is finished because of the amount that we apply so the finish will last longer.

Always be sure to use an OSHA approved mask to protect against inhalation of vapors if using solvent based products.

Depending on the environment of your deck, the stain should last you 2-3 years before needing a maintenance coat. If preparation and application are done incorrectly, you can count yourself lucky if it lasts 6 months. A deck that is exposed to full sun all day will require a maintenance coat sooner than one that is covered. No 2 decks are alike when it comes to the maintenance timeframe. Beware of deck stains that claim to be the last you will ever use, there were several laws suits over this claim a few years back. When we say this is the last stain you will ever use, this means we only use one brand not that we only have to stain the deck one time. With a film forming deck stain you will have to remove the existing finish before you do a recoat of the deck. With an oil based deck stain, all you do is clean the deck to remove dirt and debris then reapply the deck stain.