Deck Preservatives Is There A Difference

PineRidge · Mar 13, 2004

It's a beautiful cold but sunny day here in Northeast Ohio. As I sit here pecking on the keyboard I can't help but look out the window at my attached deck. It is currently calling me for some attention. It looks like it's time to pressure wash it, and add some wood sealant of sorts.

So my question is this, are all deck sealants created equal? Is price the only difference between the products themselves? Tell me your personal experiences on which is better if any as I only want to do this deed every couple of years if I can get away with it. I hate asking this info form the local supply houses as they will most always tell you the product that they handle is the best for most any given application. Can that always be true? /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

I have a neighbor that swears by the use of Kerosene and oil mixed as a deck preservative. But that sounds like an accident looking for a place to happen if you ask me. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

My deck is made from standard pressure treated lumber, is 790 square feet in size, and is currently about 4 years old.

5030 · Mar 13, 2004

Mike:

I have decks on both of my rental properties, large ones at that. Every year I cold wash them with my pressure washer after spraying them down with cheap chlorine bleach in a garden sprayer. Then I let them dry out for a week or two. I wait for a nice sunny day and mix boiled linseed oil with mineral spirits. 1 part of boiled linseed oil to 4 parts mineral sprirts and apply that with my garden sprayer to the deck. The decks are over 10 years old and still look like new.

You have to be careful with a pressure washer or you will lift the grain of the wood and make it "fuzzy". My pressure washer is 3500 psi, hot-cold or steam. I back the pressure down to about 1000 psi and use a wide fan tip, no heat or steam. I soak the decks with the bleach for about 15 minutes prior to washing.

PineRidge · Mar 14, 2004

Daryl thanks for the heads up. I'll crank my pressure washer down and give your formula a try.

BB_TX · Mar 15, 2004

I remember a report in Consumer's Report magazine some time ago (couple years maybe /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif) where they compared various brands of deck treatments aged over a period of time. There was quite a difference in the results. Unfortunately I don't remember who was good and who was not. You might try your library. Some libraries keep back copies of the magazines.

coachgrd · Mar 15, 2004

Thanks for your preservative concotion....wish I'd had that 4 years ago when I put my deck on.

Just thought I'd throw this one in...an Amish gentleman who I bought my shed wood from suggested I use transmission oil and mineral spirits to coat my shed. It looks better than my deck now!

Gary

EastTexFrank · Mar 15, 2004

Just a thought .... where do the Amish get used transmission oil from???? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

PineRidge · Mar 15, 2004

Just a thought .... where do the Amish get used transmission oil from???? 

They drain it from those Amish buggies. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

jayhawkRoy · Mar 15, 2004

Consumer Reports has an on-going project concerning exterior paints and siding/deck stains, etc. Their test results, combined with my personal desires to see some of the grain of the wood, led me to using Cabot deck stain with good results. We get about four years of use between new applications with semi-transparent deck stain. I believe in their tests Akzo-Nobel (sp??) was the best, but it was completely opaque, so it looks like you painted your deck and the grain doesn't show through. That's why I voted on Cabot and am happy. The annual update for exterior paint/stain products should come up in a month or two.

jayhawkRoy · Mar 16, 2004

Found the article. Consumer Reports, Aug 03:
1. Cabot Decking stain was best. CR considered it opaque, but I consider its cedar color I used semi-transparent.
2. Wolman Durastain (semitransparent) was #2.
3. Olympic Water Guard (clear) was third best.
4. Akzo Nobel Sikkens Cetol SRD (semitransparent) came in #4.
Ratings were based on 3 year test. I think there will be an update in Aug 2004, since they are testing ten more products that have not finished the three year test period.

PBMAX · Mar 17, 2004

I have used Thomson 1 once... Found it lacking, lasted just over 1 year. Think it's water based... Used it back at the old home stead...
Switched to Bear (spelled?)after that. it has Linseed oil (as someone mentioned using) in it and lasted a good 3 yrs... Is what I will use, unless some one can point me in a different direction for the deck here at the new CASA...Not Cheap though..

Great question... Been trying to talk myself in to doing it soon...before the summer heat rolls in May...Been here about 3 yrs and the deck is starting to show the lack of treatment...

Bird · Mar 17, 2004

( Switched to Bear (spelled?)after that )

Spelled "Behr" I believe. Many years ago, one of my brothers showed me some homes in the Anchorage area with cedar siding that Behr products were used on; beautiful results.

PBMAX · Mar 17, 2004

Thanks Bird I new it was spelled odd....
We even had a light rain as were finishing up and it beaded up on the deck like fresh waxed car...Have used it since....

MarkV · Mar 17, 2004

I used a Behr tinted oil based transparent finish on a mountain home we built that has cedar shingle siding. It worked real well and has held up pretty well. About two years ago I was ready to put a new coat on the decks and found that the product I used before was not available. When I called Behr to find out where I could get the same thing I was told it had to be pulled off their product line because of EPA problems. Of course they didn't offer anything that matched the color of the old product in their present line. I believe all of their present transparent finishes are water base.

MarkV

PBMAX · Mar 17, 2004

MarkV is just the tranparent products. We tend to use the tinted ones (honey oak i think). Not real found of water based products for anything that gets wet. They IMHO just don't seem to hold up in WET Environments. WONDER WHY /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

MarkV · Mar 18, 2004

Paul I agree about the water based finishes. I just don't feel they hold up as well.

MarkV

PBMAX · Mar 18, 2004

I might be willing to try the Linseed oil and Mineral spirits if any one knows the right mix.....

My MUDDDER in law has hard wood floors thru out even the kitchen and has recently had them refinished and was told the sealent is water based try not to get it wet..... /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif With grandkids is he nuts...??? Apparenlty more than a short period of time say .5 hrs or more and the seleant will start to break down....
i suppose he could be streching it bit to make a point... Given the floor is 10yr old and has done ok with a similar seleant....

MarkV · Mar 18, 2004

Paul,

Hardwood floors are one of the few things I know a bit about. It has been my primary business for the last 20 years. I can't quite imagine what type of finish the guy is talking about. There are water base polyurethane's but after they dry they should not be affected by water. In the old days wax was used on wood floors and it would spot with water, it is rare to see wax used these days. I would be real interested on how you clean a floor that you can not put water on.

I'll bet the finisher poorly worded a caution about the floors while drying. Water base poly dries real fast and should be fine with in 12 hours.

5030 mentions using 1 part boiled linseed oil to 4 parts mineral spirits, sounds about right to me.

MarkV

PBMAX · Mar 18, 2004

I think he was trying to make point with her not to let wet stuff stand to long on the floor.... Because it may cause damage....CYA story, I'd be willin to bet...
But to be honest I don't care for the looks of some of the stuff when it dries...can't explain it it just doesn't look right to me....have seen many Back when I used to wire houses....

Probably cause I spent many a day at my aunts house as a young-in and she had the old wood floor with a realy thick layer of ploy on it, looks a lot like an old gym floor...

Working with wood as you do ( relize there is big dif) but,can you think of any product better than Behr for the money. I need to treat 12x32' deck and rails. Support post are steel and 15' tall..So the deck is way up and exposed top anmd bottum to the eliments...6-8n hrs sun each day and lotssss of 5-30mph wind and rain... Geash you'd think I lived at the beach... /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif Not on a hill... NO trees complete exposure...

Great view though /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Unfortunatly she doesn't know what product was used I asked cause I wanted to post it here...

shvl73 · Mar 18, 2004

I was under the impression that water based poly & oil based were somewhat similar, just the carrying liquid was different. I also think water based poly usually has less solids so, more applications are needed to acheive similar results & durability. I could easily be wrong.

MarkV · Mar 18, 2004

Paul,
I wish I knew the best answer for you. I have some decks that need a new finish coat myself. I have had a number of contractors and painters tell me they like CWF made by Flood. Flood They also have a good bit of DIY info on their site. I think that is what I am going to try next.

MarkV