How To Maintain Your Beautiful Deck

By Author: Ben Wall
Total Articles: 40
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A good deck can add beauty and value to your home. You can install it at your backyard or outdoor space to create a nice place for you and your family to enjoy. Your responsibility as an owner doesn't stop at installing a deck. Proper cleaning and maintenance are required to ensure that your deck would be in its best condition and appearance for years to come.

The Importance of Maintenance

Climate and environment has the tendency to wear out a deck. With daily exposure to direct sunlight, it can wear out and dry easily. That is what you have to avoid at all costs. The good thing is it doesn't take weekly cleaning and maintenance, especially if you chose a good deck material, paint, and sealers. It would take about once a year to do a thorough maintenance, or twice a year if your location has a typically sunny and warm climate. If you don't maintain your deck, the boards can become dry and split. Even deck planks and rails can split and be broken. The gaps in between boards can widen to more than inch. These can be potential dangers to you and your family. Tripping over split or broken boards can happen. Wood splinters ...
... can harm you as well.

Decks are designed and built to last you a lifetime. The return of investment can prove to be more valuable if you take steps to ensure that they are in good condition. One of the main disadvantages of not maintaining your deck is the possibility of paying more to replace the entire deck. If buying the materials and having the deck installed are not expensive and troublesome enough, replacing it would cost you even more.

Ways to Maintain Your Deck

As mentioned earlier, proper maintenance should be done once or twice a year. You would need to properly clean the deck and apply sealers to ensure the surface are cleaned and protected. Before applying sealers, clean the deck using washcloth and water. If it has been a while since your deck has been cleaned, dirt and grime might have been stuck to the surface, corners, and edges. In this case, you would need a more thorough cleaning. If using washcloth and water can be tasking, you can use a power washer or pressure washer to remove dirt and grime buildup. If you don't have one, you can rent or buy one at a hardware store. The power washer can help you thoroughly remove dirt at less time and effort.

After cleaning the deck, let it dry out for about 24 hours before applying the sealers. Sealers are used to maintain the good condition of the wood. Make sure you choose waterproof sealers or sealers that can maintain the natural color and material of the wood. There are sealers that can make the deck gray in color, which can reduce the beautiful appearance and condition of your deck.

When applying sealers, use eye protection and gloves. Make sure it won't come in contact with your skin, as these are chemicals that may be harmful to you. Use a sprayer with a big container and pour the liquid in the container with caution. After which, you can apply the sealer on the entire deck. Let it dry for about 48 hours. Moreover, check the weather and see to it that there will be no rain for the next 2-3 days before you clean the deck and apply the sealer.

If you follow recommendations here, you will have the least problems with your deck for years. It will also continue to be beautiful and useful to you and your family.

To find out more about outdoor decking and maintenance, visit deckerdecking.com.

Ben Wall is a home and design blogger with over 10 years experience in interior design and landscape. He is passionate about this industry and wishes to share what he has learned from his experience. For more info on decking material and maintenance, you can check out Deckerdeckering.com.