No Deck Lasts Forever!
There’s a saying in our business – maybe you’ve heard it too – that reflects the difficulty of maintaining properties over time.
It’s essentially a variant of “nothing lasts forever.” You might say that “no deck lasts forever” either – that eventually you’re going to have to get to work replacing rotting wood pieces, or even rebuilding areas of the deck in question.
You might also say that no deck preservative or covering lasts forever, either. That means every so often, it’s necessary to go back and re-coat your deck area to protect it.
Painted Decks
Even with the best new paint available today, your deck paint isn’t going to stay impeccable for more than a few years. Time and the elements do a number on these wooden surfaces – both on the horizontal deck area, and on the vertical railings and other furnishings that make your deck what it is.
You can, however, buy yourself a few years with certain types of gripping paint that go deep into crevices in the wood, and seal out the types of problems that lead to quick peeling or flaking.
Stained and Sealed Decks
You can also get some good coverage from some types of wood treatment like heavy stains or sealers, but eventually these will start to wear off, too.
Here, the recovery process is a little different. The stains and sealers soak into the wood, and as you reapply them, you’ll be soaking more of the stuff into the wood surface as well. It’s less of an external shell than many kinds of deck painting, and gives a different final result and impression, which you can see when you look at both types of coatings side by side.
Wood Repair
If your deck is like many that we’ve seen over time, you have certain pieces that wear disproportionately.
That leads you to break out your miter saw and construct angle pieces that you can use to strategically replace parts of your deck that are failing.
Another key thing to think about here is the original wood treatment. Decks last a lot longer when wood has been pre-treated and is less likely to bow or suffer malformations over time.
Anyway, whatever you’re dealing with, WNC Wash Pros can help. Our soft washing will take the debris and top-level contaminants off of a deck space, in order to help prep it for new paint stain or sealer. Get your deck in good shape to weather the next few winters and buy yourself some time!