How to make my wood deck less Slippery

[ultrarunner]

Western Washington has recently had record rain. With so much rain, my 3 year old, 20 by 30 wood deck has become very slick. The neighbors call it a "Skating Rink"

Pressure washing helps in the short term...the downside is the damage caused from washing it so often.

Is there a treatment I can apply that would make the deck less slippery when wet?

[JimR]

I have never heard of such a product. You could sprinkle sand on your deck. But that will really make a mess out of it and the wood. My other thought would be to paint it with a sand mixture mixed in with the paint. This will give you traction when wet. But rough on bare feet unless they are used to it.

[SnowRidge]

Hi Jim,

You might try looking at the sailboat sites. Skid proofing a wood or fiberglass deck is a big deal on a boat that heels over. I've seen a lot of methods and tried a few myself, but I don't know of any that work with bare wood other than pressure washing, which is short lived, as you know.

I tried the sand in the paint trick on a dinghy I built, and while it worked, it was impossible to keep it clean. The sand absolutely trapped the dirt.

You can also mix a commercial roughening agent in with the paint to produce a pebbled effect. It is a lot less slippery than bare wood and doesn't trap dirt. I can't recall the proper term for it at the moment, but the stuff I'm thinking of is a dry granular powder and is similar to that which is sold for popcorn ceilings. I'm pretty sure they sell it in Home Depot.

[JimR]

Yup, good idea. Here's one for him.

Paint

[beenthere]

I would try a simple solution of bleach mixed with water (1:10 should be in the ballpark). I think you have a growth of bacteria due to all the rain, and would suggest trying the bleach to kill the bacteria and then see if the wood is less slippery.
Also, when wood is exposed to the sun, the cell wall structure breaks down from the UV and leaves just the cellulose, which is a bit 'snotty' when wet. I think the bleach will cut that slipperiness, and might be worth a try.

[ultrarunner]

I never thought of checking with a sail-boat shop....Thanks