Wood Deck Patio Designs

Patio Deck Designs Deck And Patio Designs Deck Patio Designs for measurements 1212 X 682

Wood Deck Patio Designs – Wood decks, if left for the ravages of nature, can easily deteriorate from that clean, shining wood surface you so admired whenever your deck was a novice to a dingy, gray, mildew and dry-rot infested eyesore. If the damage is mostly for the deck surface, quick relief is on the way with all the cleaning and resealing methods I recommend below. Before you begin, though, you must look underneath to make certain dry rot hasn’t found its way to your deck.

Checking for Dry Rot and Making Repairs. Dry rot is often a fungus that forms in moisture soaked wood, usually in places shaded from sunlight. Left untreated it is going to spread and destroy the integrity from the timbers, ultimately causing structural failure. Seek it diligently. It will hide within you in locations that are hard to arrive at, often underneath the deck where boards and timbers meet. Use a screw driver or similar tool to jab at wood, searching for the tell-tale cardboard-like texture that gives little resistance to your probing. Don’t be fooled by painted boards that are sound. Dry-rot can hide behind a layer of paint and turn into hard to notice before you probe. Badly damaged supporting timbers and deck boards must be replaced. If the damage is not severe you can chip away the loose wood fibers and apply a fungicide product for example Bora Care or Shell-Guard. Many people report good success with using anti-freeze to help remedy the affected region. If a significant percentage of a timber is damaged, consider reducing that part and replacing it having a tight-fitting plug that you simply epoxy into place. (Follow recommended safety guidelines whenever using epoxy.)

Cleaning the Deck Surface. Even after an individual season new decks, otherwise properly treated, can lose their original luster and turn a dingy gray. Ultraviolet rays will often be at fault. Grime, mold spores may also detract through the appearance your deck. Before you start focus on your surface cleaning, be sure your deck has proper drainage. Clean the cracks between the surface boards having a pressure nozzle on your garden hose. (As tempting as it can be, avoid a pressure washer. Even if used judiciously the power from the spray can damage the soft fibers from the wood, giving your deck a grainy and fuzzy appearance.) Where stubborn grime remains inside cracks between the boards, work with a putty knife or saw blade to the way in which for water to drain. This is especially important near to a residence where winter snow can trap water and make up a pool inches deep.

The next distinctive line of attack is to use an oxalic acid-based wood cleaner for example Wolman DeckBrite Wood Cleaner & Coating Prep or Armstrong’s Wood Cleaner. The oxygen bleach products don’t contain chlorine and are stable around plants and animals. The main ingredient is bleach, sometimes in the liquid solution or perhaps in dry form with soda ash. As the solution soaks in to the wood, oxygen ions break down mildew, algae, and dirt.Another approach, in case you are dealing mostly with mildew, is to you could make your own cleaning solution with 3 quarts water, one quart of oxygen bleach, along with a quarter cup of liquid dishwasher detergent. Use the ammonia free type. The oxygen bleach will eliminating the mildew and also the detergent will help in its removal. After allowing the cleaning means to fix are a symbol of 10 to 15 minutes, scrub with area having a medium-stiff brush, either over a pole as being a push broom or upon hands and knees in case you are at all like me and you need to put good tone muscles to your work. The final step is to rinse it clean having a garden hose.

Apply a Quality Deck Sealer. Allow your deck to dry prior to deciding to apply any sealer or stain. Then select a day if you are confident that you simply won’t have got rain for an additional 24 to a couple of days. You shouldn’t attempt to make use of stains or sealers over existing paint or stain as the sealer won’t penetrate the wood. You can test this by sprinkling a little water on your deck. If the water beads and is still on top after quarter-hour, you will need to go back and remove the current stain. When it comes to picking a sealant there are several things to consider. Natural oil sealants are not recommended as the oils turn deck green or black. Also the natural oils serve as food for algae and mildew. Most clear sealants won’t provide much protection against UV ray damage.

Among the very best option is pigmented sealants as it is often the pigments that absorb UV rays and diminish the discoloration so often seen on wood decks. An epoxy sealant, for example DEFY Epoxy Fortified, has chemicals that both deflect sun light and absorb harmful rays. It is often a water based formula that comes in a variety of colors for example natural pine, cedar, and redwood. Tinted finishes add color without hiding the natural wood grain, while semi-transparent stains add more color, allowing some from the wood’s grain to exhibit. The semi-transparent stains provide longer protection than tinted finishes. If you have grown fed up with cleaning and your wood deck every several years, you may be willing to consider another option-paint. A great choice, but tricky to make use of, is often a new paint that is often a mixture of water-based urethane and acrylic resins, for example the Sears Weatherbeater Ultra. The advantage could be that the coating lasts for many years. Although decks can need a great deal of maintenance to keep them looking sharp, they also offer many years of enjoyment.