Annual Deck Upkeep Isn’t Magic, But Common Sense
Each year while at the Minnesota State Fair, we see the standard booth that offers a five year warranty on deck floors. Many manufacturers put wording on their paint cans that publicize long guaranties. But when you study the small print, we have not begun to find anyone that will back up a warranty on a standard deck floor in Minnesota. The most amazing fine print on the guaranty is from one manufacturer that gives a 3 year warranty, so long as the deck is re-coated yearly!
The best stains are from Sherwin Williams, PPG, ICI, Glidden, Hirshfields, X-100, Floods, CWF, Deckscapes, Cabots, Sikens SRD, TWP, and others. All of them have good products, but there aren’t any magic products that last significantly longer than their competition. The most important thing is to not put a coating on your deck that is non compatible with the previous coating and keeping your maintenance costs as low as possible.
Consumer Reports is usually a good resource for many products but for protecting decks their advice is not good for Minnesota. They like to recommend employing a solid stain for best longevity, but you don’t want to do that if you are inthis is completely wrong for Minnesota. In Minnesota, we experience a large amount of freeze heat up cycles. When deck boards get wet and then freeze, the water expands and pushes the coating off. If the coating is a penetrating stain that does not leave a film, there’s not much to no coating to push off. ( less is better for decks ) As a semitransparent wears away, it would seem more country. When a solid stain is used on a flat surface it ends up peeling and looking terrible. It doesn’t look country, it is worn out and in disrepair. The cost to make a solid stain look great again is much higher than the price to maintain a semitransparent stain because it requires scraping and sanding.
Schoenfelder Painting is a deck painting Minneapolis company that paints or seals over 500 decks each a year. We are adept at using most any type of deck finishing system, but have developed some preferences. We strongly recommend using a semi transparent stain on deck floors. It is a little harder to apply, but holds up as well as anything. More importantly it is good even as it wears away and it wOn’t peel. Semitransparent stain is also the least costly to redo in two years. It only must be washed and reapplied. Eventually it looks good even after many applications, so the long term maintenance is awfully cost-effective. Semi-transparent also comes in many different tints.
The railings, spindles, bottom sides and skirts can be done with the same product and color. This is the system I used on my own deck. With proper maintenance each other spring, it looks great year after year. We are proud to be your provider of exterior painting Minneapolis.
The sole downside to semitransparent stain is you can not use it over other additives or paint. If your deck was painted in the past, further prep is required. In these cases, we generally sand the decks down to the bare wood using floor sanders. We remove 98% of the existing stain or paint from the floor, steps and railing top. Our clients love the result. Your deck feels as new again. Sanding only costs roughly $1.25 per square foot and does not have to be done again for 10+ years. The feel of your well maintained deck floor, precious! So just remember that if you want deck staining professionals we are here for you.
Tags: Family, home, Home Improvement, house, Painting
Window Hardware | Jane | 29 July 2010 |
