3 Tips To Keep Your Deck In Great Shape

If you've got a deck on your Conway property, you know how much enjoyment you can get from it! Keeping your deck clean and maintained is a big project, one that is required if you want it to last for years in the future so you and your family can keep enjoying it. But how do you know you're doing the right things to protect your deck? The pressure washing experts at Pristine Power Clean have provided this blog offering three maintenance tips to keep your deck in great shape, so keep reading to learn more.

1. Annual Deck Cleaning And Maintenance

Before you can truly protect your wood deck, you need to make sure that your deck's surface and structure are perfectly cleaned and maintained. Hiring a professional pressure washing service for your deck cleaning project is a great way to ensure you're getting the best service possible. Each deck cleaning project is unique. That's why the experts at Pristine Power Clean provide individual assessments for each project we work on.

Restoring weathered wood decks can require either cleaning or stripping. If your wood deck is uncoated, it needs to be cleaned gently with cleaners specifically used to break down mold, mildew, and bacteria that might have found a way into the surface of your deck. Uncoated wood that is gray or covered in dirt will prevent stains and varnish from adhering and penetrating properly. New wood still needs to be cleaned just as thoroughly to remove any invisible surface barriers that might cause the wood not to adhere to your stain or varnish.

To ensure you're getting a great deck cleaning with a thorough individual assessment of your deck, call the pressure washing experts at Pristine Power Clean today!

2. Protect Wood With Sealants

After a thorough deck cleaning with a professional pressure washing company, you should seal your deck. Your deck should be sealed with a clear water-repellant sealer, a water-repellant toner, or a wood preservative to keep your wood safe from warping, breaking, and other damage. Most importantly, you want your sealant to protect your deck from both UV damage and water damage. Water absorption causes rot and decay as well as possible fungus and insect attacks that will break down the structure of your deck. By investing in a wood sealant for your deck, you're protecting your biggest investment from the damages that come from being exposed to the elements year-round.

3. Protect Your Deck With Stains

Deck staining is another way to protect your deck from UV damage and water damage. There are several different types of staining that can be used on your deck's surface, including:

• Deck paint/ solid color deck stain
• Clear deck sealants
• Transparent deck stain
• Semi-transparent deck stain

Deck paint is a great option if you're looking for a full-coverage staining option. This option provides protection from both UV damage and water damage. However, one of the drawbacks is that this option doesn't let the natural beauty of the wood shine through. While your paint may last from five to seven years, it also becomes incredibly expensive to upkeep as a new coat requires a complete deck sanding and stripping beforehand. Clean deck sealants provide really great water protection and offer a view of the natural beauty of your wood. However, this option offers little to no protection from UV damage.

Transparent deck stain offers more protection from UV damages, but not as much as paint. This option adds color to your wood surface without hiding the grain and knots in your wood. Another downside is that transparent deck stain only lasts between 6-36 months.

Lastly, semi-transparent deck staining offers a high level of UV protection for your deck. However, it does not offer a water-repellent layer, which means a deck sealant would be necessary in conjunction with this option.

No matter what option you choose to protect your deck, you can always call the pressure washing and deck cleaning experts at Pristine Power Clean today to speak to our professionals to learn more about deck maintenance.