Deck Doctor

 

Deck Care Maintenance Tips

Decks are the most popular outdoor addition to a home and have grown in popularity in recent years.  A beautiful deck is a great addition to a fine home but is an item that needs regular maintenance.  Colorado weather is especially tough on decks because of the extreme temperature changes. 

 

Deck owners sometimes overlook the need for regular maintenance. In many cases, annual cleaning and refinishing (sealing) are needed to keep a wood deck in good condition. Neglect quickly leaves its marks, which often show up as dark mildew stains, cracked railings and decking (the walking surface), and an overall darkening of the wood.  Careful maintenance and using the correct products can often reduce the need for cleaning and refinishing to every two or three years instead of every year. A dirty or discolored deck should not be refinished unless it is first cleaned.

 

Maintenance Tips:

 

¨ Don’t let water puddles sit on a deck or porch for more than two days; brush them off. Standing water can cause mildew to form on the surface of a coating.

 

¨ Pitch stains, or crystallized sap, found mainly around the knots of pressure-treated wood, can be removed with turpentine or simply scraped away. Turpentine will not harm an existing coating. Pitch is a non-water soluble, organic wood extractive material found in species such as Ponderosa, Southern and White Pine.

 

¨ Do not use a metal shovel to remove snow from a deck; it can pierce the underlying coating and cause it to erode.

 

¨ If you need to salt, only use sodium chloride (i.e. Halite) types of salt on a wood deck or porch that has been water-sealed or stained. Calcium chloride salts will reduce the effectiveness of a water-repellent coating.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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