Painting vs. Staining Wooden Decks - Deck Restoration Tips in Prescott from Decktek Coating and Refinishing

Do you remember the days of family barbecues out back on the deck when you were young? Ah, the smell of the charcoal, and the taste of the burgers, running barefoot across the boards. Have you thought of building one for your family, or maybe you are fixing up the old deck from your past? Have you considered if you are going to stain or paint it? Decktek Coating, your local deck restoration company in Prescott, would like to help you decide.

Are you going to use paint or stain?

When building s new deck, or sanding down the old surface and starting over, you should apply some kind of finish to protect your investment. The finish you use will determine the time between maintenance needed to keep it looking beautiful.

Both paint and stain can give you a deck that lasts years longer than it would if left untreated. These finishes make the wood less water absorbent, causing the wood to stay dry on the inside. These products also help protect against damage from the sun.

Here we share with you some pros and cons of both.

Painting your wood deck – Painting your deck can be a great choice unless you want the natural beauty of the wood to show through. If you like the natural looking deck, you should choose stain or a sealer.

Pros to painting your wood deck – The pros to painting your deck is you can choose any color, you can cover wood that is not very beautiful, thick paint can fill small gaps and cracks. Paint can also create an easy to clean and maintain shell if allowed to cure and when property applied. Dirt usually just washes right off!

Cons to painting your wood deck – Paint is forever. Once you paint, you must always paint. Also, as most people do, they painting their deck the same color as the eves of their house. Depending on the color, painting such a large area the accent color of your house can look odd. Lighter colors are also more difficult to keep clean. Additionally, high quality floor paints are limited in their color palate, and may not match everything. Paint is also slippery when wet causing issues during local monsoons or inclement weather.

Paint can be slippery when wet. Depending on the sheen of your paint (gloss, semi-gloss, etc.), painted decks are sometimes as slick as ice when wet.

Paint hides the natural beauty of wood. The biggest drawback is probably that paint hides the wood grain, thereby erasing one of the biggest upside features of a real wood deck.

Staining your wood deck – If painting your deck does not sound appealing to you, then stain is for you! Letting the natural beauty of the wood shine through helps to pride that rustic or outdoorsy feel.

Pros to staining your wood deck – Stain is semi-transparent and comes in a wide array of different colors and shades, stain is less slippery than paint, stain is easier to apply and is more forgiving as it penetrates into the wood.

Cons of staining your wood deck – Depending on the quality, application, and number of coats, stain may not last as long as paint. Stain is thinner and cannot be used to fill cracks, voids, or stop splinters (you must sand those down). Also, the pro of the natural look, can be a con as well. If you have ugly wood, stain is not going to help hide those issues.

In the end, either finish you choose requires little effort to maintain a wood deck, but can be well worth it. Deciding before you start can help you to get the product that is right for your lifestyle and tastes. Do you have an old deck to refinish? Have you considered the work involved with restoring or repairing it? Decktek would like to offer some assistance. To schedule a consultation, or for any questions you may have for staining vs painting your Prescott deck, contact us today. Call 928-899-3225 or visit http://www.decktekcoating.com today.

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Deck Restoration in Prescott
Prescott Deck Refinishing
Helpful Deck Tips