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Decks are some of the most popular homeowner projects, and they're also some of the most abused. Weather, hot sun and foot traffic all take their toll. Today a wide range of deck materials and tools for maintaining as well as repairing decks are available. Take a look at your deck; is it time for a redo? The amount of redo required depends on the condition of your deck. Cleaning, along with recoating with a new finish, may be all that's required. Or you may decide to recover the deck with more modern materials such as composite decking, or upgraded pressure-treated lumber such as Arch Wood Protection's Wolmanized Outdoor Treated Wood.
The first step is a complete deck inspection. Check the weathering of the deck covering. Look for cracks, splits and splintering. Older semi-transparent stains may have worn away, especially in high-traffic areas. Look for popped nails, a common problem with decks assembled before today's hi-tech deck screws. Older deck screws used with pressure-treated lumber may even be corroded through. Inspect the structural components of the deck thoroughly. Older materials, even pressure-treated, may have degraded or sagged with usage and indicate the need for an upgraded construction.
Left: Decks take a lot of abuse from the sun, weather and traffic, and this 25 year old deck is more than ready for a redo.
Right: Split boards and popped nails are common with a deck this old.
Left: First step in repair is to drive down all popped nails.
Right: In some cases a simple cleaning chore is all that's necessary. Campbell Hausfield's electric power washer and Deck'n Drive rotary surface cleaner make cleaning dirty decks easy.
Left: Completely clean and remove old finish using a heavy-duty deck cleaner sprayed on with a pump-up sprayer.
Right: Keep the surface wet, working with a little area at a time. Wait about 15 minutes and scrub away old finish with a stiff bristle brush.
Deck Cleaning in Detail
If you're lucky and only have a mildly dirty deck, a thorough cleaning may be all that's needed. According to Sikkens, manufacturers of Cetol DEK finish and Cetol SRD deck stains, the first step is to spray the wood with clean water to wet all surfaces. Then clean the wood surface using a solution of 4 ounces of Tri-Sodium Phosphate (TSP) or phosphate-free substitute, and one quart of liquid bleach to three quarts of water. Use a garden pump sprayer and apply generously to all surfaces. Allow the solution to sit on the wood for 15 to 20 minutes. During this period, scrub the surface with a hard bristle brush to help remove debris and weathering. Do not let the solution dry on the wood, keep it wet. (It's a good idea to work in smaller or manageable sections.) Before the solution dries, power-wash it away with clean water. Do not exceed 500 psi in order to prevent damaging the wood surface. With most power washers, the nozzle must be 1 foot from the surface for full effectiveness. Do not use a garden hose as the pressure (approximately 60 psi) is not high enough for effective cleaning. Allow the surface to dry for three good drying days before applying a coating.
If the wood has rust marks, stains or blue fungi left after the initial treatment, retreat the surface with a solution of 4 ounces of oxalic acid crystals in 1 gallon of warm water. This solution should be allowed to sit on the affected area for 15 to 20 minutes then rinse with clean water. Again, allow it to dry for three good drying days before coating.
Left: Apply a new sealer coat. Available in clear or a variety of colors, they add new beauty to old decks.
Right: The sealer can be brushed on or rolled on.
Left: Deck boards that have splintered and split, cupped and warped , or with lots of popped nails, are best replaced with new boards.
Right: The McFeely's Deck Wrecker makes quick work of prying up old deck boards.
Left: You may find major structural damage that must be replaced. One common problem is a rotted sill plate fastened to the house to support the deck. Remove the old plate.
Right: Then fasten a new plate in place with lag screws.
If you have a deck constructed of natural wood, such as redwood, cedar or ipe, sanding may be in order to bring back the beautiful color and grain. Use 80- to 120-grit sandpaper for vertical surfaces, 60- to 80-grit for horizontal surfaces, such as deck floors and tops of handrails. This can be time consuming, but the results are worth it.
If you have a really dirty deck, or one with a weathered finish, you'll have to work a little harder, and use a purchased deck cleaner. The Thompson's Company offers three different deck cleaners, including specialized cleaners for removing weathered waterproofers and semi-transparent stains, and for redwood and cedar decks. All Thompson's Water Seal deck cleaners are premixed and work in a matter of minutes. In the redo of one old deck we used Thompson's Heavy-Duty Deck Cleaner. The deck had a semi-translucent latex stain, badly weathered, but still adhering in spots. A deck cleaner is basically a “stripper.” You'll need gloves, eye protection, a stiff bristle brush or broom, and a tarp or drop cloth to cover plants. Cover all plants around or near the deck. The cleaner is sprayed on using a pump-up sprayer and allowed to work for 10 to 15 minutes. The surface is then lightly scrubbed with a synthetic, stiff-bristled brush or broom and thoroughly rinsed with clean water. Allow the surface to dry for at least two hours.
Left: If using composite materials or redwood or cedar lumber for decking, EB-TY hidden deck fasteners can be used.
Right: First step is to cut slots in the boards with a biscuit cutter.
Left: The fasteners are then fitted in the board slots and fastened with screws.
Right: The old deck shown was redone using Wolmanized Residential Outdoor pressure-treated wood, for a long lasting deck in Missouri's severly changing weather.
Left: The Vaughan Bowjak makes quick work of installing bowed boards. Firts hammer it in place against the board.
Right: Then push the lever to force the board in place.
Staining and Protecting
After cleaning, the next step is recoating to protect the cleaned wood. Three different products are available for coating cleaned older decks or new woods. These include semi-transparent stains, tinted wood sealers and clear waterproofers. Semi-transparent stains allow the wood grain to show through, yet provide UV protection as well as protection from water damage. They are also available in a wide range of colors and can really brighten an old, weathered deck. Tinted wood sealers do not provide as much color and are a good choice for less-weathered decks. Clear waterproofing products do not hide the natural color or grain of wood, but can slow down the graying process and provide waterproofing.
Two decks are shown in this article. One deck was cleaned and refinished with Thompson's Water Seal Advanced Waterproofer. The product can be applied just two hours after cleaning wood, a significant time saving from the 48-hour or longer waiting period required for most deck coatings, between washing and waterproofing applications.
Left: The Rigid Impact Driver and McFeely's Square-Drive screws quickly and securely fasten deck components in place.
Right: The Milwaukee Sharp-Fire-Screw-Shooter System with square-drive screws make the chore extremely fast, with stand-up fastening.
Left: With deck boards down, benches and railings are then installed. When screws must be driven in the ends of boards, the holes should be predrilled.
Right: 5/4 deck boards are used to cover the sides of the steps and other areas.
Left: The cut ends of all boards are trimmed with a round-over trim strip. A round-over bit in a router is used to cut the edges.
Right: Then the boards are ripped to create the trim.
Heavy-Duty Repairs
Now for the worst case scenario, a badly degraded deck with lots of popped nails, splintered, cracked and weathered deck boards. The second deck shown in this article was more than 25 years old, and had all those problems, plus some structural damage as well. Several options are available in a case such as this. The most economical method is to remove the old deck boards and simply turn them over, if they're structurally sound. Their undersides won't be as weathered, although you may need to clean and/or sand them back to a brightness. You will, of course, have the nail holes to fill with new screws. Another alternative is to simply cover the old deck boards with a composite deck material. Or remove the old boards and use a composite material. In that case you may have to add more structural support. Most composite decking materials require closer spacing than older 2-by material decking, as does 5/4 decking material. In the case shown the owner chose to redo the old deck with pressure-treated 2-by-6's to keep the design and appearance of the original deck.
Arch Wood Protection's Wolmanized Outdoor Treated Wood was chosen because it is a proven product. And it's less costly than cedar, redwood or composites. Wolmanized Outdoor Treated Wood is pressure-treated using a patented copper-based preservative along with an organic fungicide. Termites and fungal decay are the prime causes of degradation in outdoor construction wood exposed to moisture and weathering. The copper in the preservative protects against these problems, while an organic azole, also used as a fungicide for fruits, peanuts and other crops, protects against copper-tolerant fungi. The formulation makes the wood useless as a food source for termites and fungi, and keeps it attractive, clean and odorless.
Left: The ends of the deck boards are rounded with a jigsaw.
Right: The Bosch digital angle-finder is used to determine the angle of cuts for the trim boards around the pool.
Left: The deck is sanded smooth and cleaned thoroughly.
Right: Sikkens Cetol SRD was used to apply a transparent stain/oil finish. The finish is applied with a roller, sprayer or deck pad.
The finish is then brushed smooth. Bench tops, railings and
other details are usually best finished off the deck, and then installed.
The first step in redoing the old deck shown was tear-off of the old deck boards. The deck had a bench and railings all around that also had to be removed. Since all components were primarily installed with galvanized nails, it was an arduous task. The McFeely's Deck Wrecker, however, made the chore much easier.
The next step was replacing some rotted joists with the pressure-treated materials. Joist hangers were also used to provide strength. The old deck had been installed without them. A rotting sill plate was also jacked up and re-anchored in place, and a couple of support posts were replaced as well. New 2-by-6 deck boards were then installed down over the repaired structural members. New railings and benches were constructed and fastened in place.
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