HOW TO CLEAN WOODEN DECKING

Sun, rain, frost, humidity, snow, sleet… we get it all in Britain, and every year our weather breaks another record: wettest, hottest, driest, coldest.

As you can imagine, all of these temperature changes and various extremes can really upset your deck’s fill and amplify the effects of daily wear and tear. On the plus side, there are some excellent deck cleaning and preserving products that are specifically designed to keep your deck looking its best and in prime condition.

We’re not going to tell you how to make decks. That’s not our job. However, we can tell you the best way to carry out decking maintenance. Here’s how to most effectively maintain your patios for long-lasting life and beauty.

How to clean wooden decking

When to clean wooden decks? It may seem obvious, but you need a bit of dry weather if you want to prepare your patio for a (hopefully!) glorious spring, summer and fall of gardening, recreation and outdoor fun.

How do I clean garden decks?

Wooden decking is a wonderful feature, as practical and durable as it is good looking, but it can look very dingy if left untreated and unloved. Luckily, the ravages of inclement EU weather can also be overcome as long as you have the right products on hand. Better still, it’s a fairly easy job. But first, what problems might you be having with your garden deck?

Common problems with hardwood decks

Blackened wood is common, caused by fungi growing on the surface of the wood. This usually happens when water penetrates and reacts with the natural tannin in the wood. Different woods contain different amounts of tannin, so the problem varies in intensity. You can remove black fungus with a special fungicidal detergent.
Graying or silvering of the wood occurs when it is damaged by the sun. Some people love the mild effect, but if you prefer your wood to keep its beautiful color you can reverse the process with oxalic acid. There is a brilliant product from Osmo called Wood Reviver Gel that contains the acid and can help restore faded wood to its natural color.

How long does the covering last?

Keeping your rubber in good condition can be a challenge. Give it just a year and you’ll notice the effects of heavy foot traffic, spills and the elements, and see the finish degrade as the finish gradually wears away. This is why it can be so difficult for manufacturers to confirm how long a wood finish will last – there are so many variables. Then there are variations on a deck where more direct sun in an area fades the wood more than in a sheltered area.

You may need a more frequent deck treatment on the underside of your deck’s spindles, where the wood can become particularly dry, black or gray as the water drains and takes the finish with it. This is where oils come into play. Simply rub the area with steel wool and treat with more oil. Because oils provide a seamless repair, they are often a much better choice in these circumstances than finishes that seal the surface with a coating, similar to a varnish.

What is the best way to clean decking? The most effective way to keep your backyard patio in good condition is to sweep it regularly and keep it free of anything that is making it damp or bringing dirt to the party, such as dirt. B. Clusters of leaves and moss. Unless things are bad, a regular visit with a good patio cleaner should do the trick.

Has your garden terrace been pre-treated?

Before you do anything, you need to determine if your base has been pre-treated. Most modern decking is treated with a wood preservative to protect against wood disease and insect infestation, but very few, if any, are fully finished and protected with an oil or decking stain.

Pre-treated decking is sometimes referred to as ‘tanalised wood’, and you may also come across the term ‘Tanalith’, the industrial name for a wood preservative. How do you know if your flooring has been pre-treated? Look for a tinge of green or brown and see if the surface color is darker than the others.

While clear wood preservatives contain no pigments or dyes, the ingredients they contain will always affect the color of the wood. When it has been pre-treated it is usually ready for ‘finishing’.

Although buffered decking is already protected from pre-treatment, sawing decking leaves the newly exposed ends susceptible to rot and decay unless retreated. We recommend Barrettine End Grain Preserver, which is available in both clear and green formulas.

Does terrace treatment always include a wood preservative?

If your decking is bare wood and has nothing on it at all, we strongly recommend using a wood preservative to extend the life and protect it from the elements.

If your flooring was originally finished but needs a touch up, it is important to find the right product for the job. You need to know which finish was used first and use the same again. Luckily, there are only two types: oils and sealers.

Decking maintenance – Oils vs sealers

About Decking Oils – Decking oils penetrate the wood and become a part of it leaving only a small amount on the surface. The grain shows through beautifully and the wood retains its natural texture. An oil based decking product is beneficial because it is easier to maintain and repair. Most people also prefer to see the natural wood grain rather than cover it up.
About Decking Sealers – Decking sealers combine to create a film on the surface, similar to a varnish or paint. Because sealers sit on the surface, the grain is slightly obscured, more like a semi-transparent paint. It also feels smooth without much texture. A sealer is more problematic as it eventually peels off and flakes off. It’s just a case of when. This means you need to remove the flaky material before you can recoat your deck with anything similar, which is what you need to do. If you don’t deal with the flaking, it will peel and flake even more.

Removing existing finishes from wooden decks

Once you have determined what surface is currently on your wood deck, you will need to either prepare the surface for finishing or remove it altogether. Which one is right for your deck? It depends on what color you want and what finish you are using.

Sanding is only practical if your garden deck is smooth and without grooves. If you have grooved bases like most people, sanding will not remove the finish from the grooves.
Jet Wash is a popular choice for removing flaky or peeling sealers. You can also use a jet washer to clean decking finished with oils. However, you must be careful not to push the existing surface out of the wood into the surrounding plants, pond, or soil.
If you want to treat your base with a sealant, you have to remove oil-based surfaces with white spirit.
If you want to re-treat a previously oiled base with a fresh layer of oil, you do not have to remove the batch first. Simply clean them with a pad cleaner to remove surface dirt, grime, or other contaminants before re-oiling.
A varnish remover is ideal for completely removing decking sealer so you can replace it with an oil-based product.

If you like the look and color of decking oil, cleaning decking is usually your first step. Simply reapply 2-3 coats of fresh oil. Simple!

Make your garden terrace water-repellent

Ideally you want to make your softwood or hardwood deck water resistant. The idea is to get as much oil into the wood as possible since hardwoods are usually dense and oily. This means there are other things to consider.

Is the hard wood new or has it been cut down in recent months? Most people won’t have a clue, but it’s important because the wood is richer in oil when it’s freshly cut than it is 6, 12, or even 24 months later.

Some woods contain less oil than others and allow 2 coats of oil while others remain oily for at least a year. For example, teak is often used for outside decks because of its high oil content, which makes it very weather resistant. In this case it is often best not to do anything with untreated teak decks for the first year and just apply a coat of deck oil a year later.

The best way to know if a wood is ready for oiling or not is to throw small amounts of water on the surface.

If it pearls and sits on the surface, the wood is oily.
When the water sinks in and forms a stain or mark, the wood is ready for oiling.
If the water sits there for about 30 minutes before beginning to sink, it already contains a fair amount of oil and welcomes another thin layer of oil.

It should be noted that the color of the wood before finishing greatly affects the eventual color. For example, if you use a Cedar Red finish, you get three different colors depending on whether you apply it to new unfinished pine, new finished pine, or old unfinished pine.

When do you have to start with the care and maintenance of the decking?

While the water drop test can help you figure out when the wood is ready for oiling, it’s often easier to tell what’s what by looking at it. If the wood looks dry, stained, black or gray it needs to be oiled.

Demystifying the terminology of manufacturers of decking products

The wood finishing industry is full of disagreements. The terminology can be very confusing. Most people don’t know that a lacquer and varnish are the same thing, and many of us confuse pigments with dyes. Here are some guides to help you get it right:

Decking Stain – Dealers will probably tell you that a stain is just a paint product, usually a liquid. There is no shine or protection to the wood. Since it stains easily, you need to add a protective finish. However, a patio stain is rarely just a paint liquid, but usually a paint with protective properties. So far so confusing. But things get even more complicated…

Ronseal are one of the UK’s leading suppliers of decking and even have two decking products, both called Fleck although they are very different. Your Ronseal Decking Stain falls into the sealer category, a varnish-like material that does not enhance the grain and will eventually peel and flake. But they also make an Advanced Decking Stain which is oil based and far superior. In our opinion, none of these products should really be called a patio stain. And it’s a contradiction that doesn’t just apply to Ronseal.

How can you tell them apart? Ronseal Decking Stain is best described as a colored decking treatment while Ronseal Advanced Decking Stain, now discontinued, is best described as a colored decking oil. Ronseal recently released a new and improved decking stain, Ronseal Ultimate Protection Decking Stain.

Decking Oil – If it’s called decking oil, it probably is. In our experience, it’s always a good choice when the product is made by a reputable company like Barrettine.

Decking Treatment – This can be an oil or a surface coating. It is best to find out which ones before using them. A good example of a decking treatment as opposed to an oil or stain is Ronseal’s Decking Protector. This protects the wood from rain and sun damage without losing the “natural look” of the wood.

Decking Finish – This term is used to describe a variety of products. It is therefore best to check with the manufacturer that the product you intend to use is suitable for the wood you are treating.

Best Garden Deck Maintenance – The Application

How do you apply decking oils and treatments to protect and keep your wooden decking well for years to come? The application techniques that we will talk about are relevant to oil coverings. The sealer types need not be discussed as we really do not recommend them.

Note: This notice applies to decking that is either new wood, preserved new wood, or wood that contains only oil.

Once your garden patio is clean you can apply a clear or colored patio oil. Oils are easy to apply with no special skills required. It’s just a matter of making sure the oil gets pushed into the wood and not left on the surface. You can do this with a brush on textured decks or with a long-handled microfiber roller on smooth decks. If the decking is grooved, you can attach a floor brush head to a wooden handle and use it to press the oil into the grooves.

How many coats of top oil should I apply?

Try to get as much oil into the wood as possible. Since the oil content protects the wood from water, UV rays and more, it’s best to do a thorough and comprehensive job. You should apply the oil thinly as a thick layer cannot penetrate easily and it takes forever to dry. It is better and faster to apply three thin coats than two thick ones. Remove excess oil with a lint-free cloth.

As previously mentioned, oily woods sometimes don’t need to be oiled further for a while. You may only take a thin layer of oil before it stops absorbing.

It’s tempting to apply as much as possible in the hope that the more you apply the better. But all you do is leave an oily deposit on the surface that takes forever to dry, sometimes more than two days. In the worst case, the oil does not evaporate and does not sink into the wood because there is so much oil that a skin forms on the wood surface that can peel off.

There is no need to use a lot of elbow grease. Simply move the oil around the wood and apply some pressure until practically everything is sunk into the grain. A well-applied layer of oil dries comfortably in a day.

8 top tips for beautiful wooden terraces

Never use “seal” type sealing surfaces. Use a quality colored decking oil and tint like Barrettine Decking Oil, a complete decking treatment. It contains resins, waxes and color pigments that color and protect wooden decks and we get excellent feedback on it.
Always apply the oil thinly.
Get an idea of how much oil is still in your pad – do you really still need to oil it?
Clear layers of oil enhance grain structure best for a beautiful appearance.
The darker a finish, the more UV protection and the longer it will fade.
Sweep your deck regularly.
Lay the grooved deck face down – it’s a lot less slippery this way and requires less oil as the surface area is smaller. That means it’s easier to clean and finish.
With a suitable patio cleaner, quickly take care of visible problems such as graying, blackening and dryness.

Color your project

Black surfaces on patios are becoming increasingly popular and create a wonderfully dramatic contrast to the vivid green of plants and the bright colors of flowers. The easiest way to achieve this is to use 2 coats of Ronseal Shed and Fence Preserver in black coated with 2 coats of clear oil. Alternatively, you can use a clear wood preservative followed by 2 coats of black Osmo Decking Oil. Splendid!

Now you know how to clean decking so yours can be properly prepared, treated and restored. Just add good company, food and drinks and enjoy!