Staining deck how many coats

How many coats of stain should I apply? One Coat These Olympic stain types only require the application of one thin coat: Clears sealants Toners Semi-solid Semi-transparent Apply with a high quality brush, paint or stain pad, or with spray equipment. Two Coats Olympic solid color wood stains require the application of two thin coats for optimum durability. How many coats should I apply? Why Do the Number of Coats Vary? After more than 20 years of hard use, my good old Porter-Cable is still going strong.

No matter what kind of wood your deck is made of — cedar, tropical hardwood or pressure-treated lumber, wear a dust mask while sanding. This is important. Dust is bad for you. You might not need to sand all the way back to bare wood if your deck has an existing finish, or you might save sanding time with a supplemental technique.

That said, pressure washing does have dangers you need to be aware of. The main risk is the danger of frazzling the surface of the wood. Pressure-washers typically deliver a stream of water at to psi — more than enough to loosen surface fibres, especially with soft deck woods such as cedar and pressure-treated pine. A new deck finish can simply peel off as these fuzzy fibers let go.

Not all, but some. Be sure to blast into all nooks and crannies, though keep the wand tip far enough away to avoid tearing up the wood. Let the deck dry for a couple of warm days, then run your sander quickly over the surface to remove fuzz like you see here to the left.

These fibres come off easily with just one or two passes of the sander, leaving a very solid and absorbent surface behind. The fuzzy area on the top of the photo is after pressure washing and drying. The lower left part of the photo is after a very quick sanding. The wood will then be in great shape to accept a finish. Refinishing an old deck is similar to finishing a new one, though there are important differences you need to recognize before settling on a strategy. The first is the condition of your existing finish.

How bad is it? What kind of old finish are you dealing with? What type of new finishing do you have in mind? Is the wood weathered and cracked? In this case, you can save yourself lots of time by simply sanding the surface lightly in preparation for a new top coat of whatever you used before.

What does lightly mean? A or grit abrasive in a random-orbit sander works well. In those small areas where the surface has peeled down to bare wood usually around knots , sand off any loose frazzles of finish. Nothing can be left loose. Use a workshop vac to remove dust, then recoat with the original product used previously. Over coating is a common cause for deck finish failure. This is the situation most deck owners face by the time they get serious about refinishing.

Making your wooden deck look good again depends on removing all traces of the old finish and grey wood. There is no salvaging. After that, follow my finishing instructions for dealing with new lumber. Exactly how you strip depends on the size of the deck and the equipment you have available.

You could simply sand to remove the old finish, but the fastest approach usually involves a water-soluble chemical deck stripper brushed or rolled on, then cleaned off with a pressure washer. The only difference might be if you have deep cracks caused by weather.

You could use a traditional deck brightener if the grey colour runs deep and persists after sanding. There are many on the market that work well. Gasoline-powered versions speed up the work considerably because they deliver a greater volume of water at considerably higher pressures than electric models.

Just be careful. Pressure washers can easily damage your deck if you let the tip come too close to the wood. Start by connecting your garden hose to the pressure washer, turn on the water, then pull the trigger on the wand while the motor is not running and the spray nozzle temporarily removed. If you purge with the spray nozzle installed, a tiny bit of dirt can clog it. When all air has escaped from the system, reinstall the spray nozzle, start the engine and begin work. High pressure water can cause a lot of damage, as you can see above.

This tearing of the wood was caused by nothing more than a pressure washer nozzle held too close to the surface. Click below to hear me explain the need to get your hands on tools that are truly up to the job of prepping a deck. The bigger your deck, the better the tools you need. Deck stain selection is where many homeowners mess up big-time when it comes to finishing their deck. They go to the store and choose whatever product has the most compelling label or the most widespread advertising, or the biggest discount, or the most familiar name, hoping things will turn out well.

Never rely on hope as the basis for a durable deck finish. Listen to my comments by clicking below before you go further with the course. Fact is, you can wear out your knees doing all the right deck prep work, but if you choose a weak finishing product, your deck will look bad in a year or less.

All else being equal, finish life is directly proportional to how opaque a coating is. And even then, after 4 or 5 or 6 years, weathering of the wood will eventually take away that bright new look anyway.

At the other end of the spectrum are the deck finishes that look like paint. Some even look great after six years. Let me show you how I decide which deck finishes are good and which are not:. I also monitor other deck finishing trials that have been going on for more than a decade to round out my recommendations. By applying a second, light coat of material, you will fill up the cell structure of the wood kind of like topping off the tank and the project will last longer.

Most stains will have some type of waxes or paraffins in them, which work to help them repel water. Applying a waterborne material over the top of a dried and cured first coat will result in it being repelled by these waxes, lay on the surface, and eventually peel. Direct sunlight will always raise the temperature of the wood and can do so significantly.

Applying stain to a hot surface will almost always result in a disaster as the stain is cooked by the sun before it has a chance to penetrate deeply in to the wood. Always try to stain in the shade or during the cooler parts of the day. Whether using a sprayer or not, always use some type of brush to either apply the stain or to back brush it after spraying.

The brushing will even out the material and the friction of the brush against the board helps to work the stain in to the wood.

Failing to do so can often times result in peeling.