What Stain to Use on Deck

A good water sealer is all you need. You should not have to stain it because the water seal will change the woods color. Thompson's water seal is the best. My husband is a contractor and he swears by it.

One thing to think about is did you stain the deck before it was a year old. Many times treated wood needs to sit and weather for a year. Second did you put a sealer on top of the stain? Many stains are just like paints and if you stained or painted your house in Illinois it does not last because of the 4 seasons. Also you need to look at how much your deck is used. If it is used of a daily bases, wood needs to be sealer from stains and scuffs. Also is it in the direct sun of in the shade. Is it covered by sappy tree. All reasons to seal your deck.

I would pressure wash it again. Then sand it down and start over. You may consider hiring a professional who will guarantee is work for a number of years. (Just an idea)

Have a Great Sunday,
S.

2 moms found this helpful

I was told to try Cabots from Lowes. It is colored, so make SURE you like the color - don't just randomly pick it in the store. GO with brown hughes - the red turns pepto pinkish & looks horrible. We had the same problem with the BEHR stain from Home Depot. Don't use that one - we did our whole deck last year & it is already fading/peeling & showing signs of needing to be re-done.

1 mom found this helpful

Please let me know if anyone suggests a better stain. I have the same problem and I am tired of restaining also.

Thank you

T.
____@____.com

Hi C.- I have had about 7 free quotes this year for the exact same problem! We decided to do it ourselves, & I used Cabot stains (semi-solid gray on the rails & benches) & a natural wood color on the flooring figuring the floor suffers the most wear & tear. Well, the same thing happened that you described! I hate the way it looks & our deck is so large, that we've gotten estimates between $1000-$4500 to refinish it. The topper is, they cannot remove the semi-solid paint either! I wish I would have sought a professional in the first place to do the staining, or stuck with one natural wood color. The flooing looks terrible. I hate to spend the money to refinish it, but I'm in the same rut as you are. All the companies out there said that every other year you do have to refinish it. That stinks! Good luck finding a good stain. Let me know if you have any success!

That's a good question. I can tell you another stain not to use is BEHR. Consumer reports said it was the best. We spent extra money on it and stained our deck last summer and it is already chipping away also. If you find a good one, I'd like to know which one it is.

Try Cabot. Most contractors use it. Works great.
N. - Nutrition Naturally
www.jp4ahealthieryou.com

Thank you so much for asking this question! I certainly feel your pain on this, I've been down this road myself year after year. I finally gave up and just went with an indoor/outdoor carpet. I will be very interested to read the rest of the replies.

K.

Hi C.,
It kinda depends on what you are looking for. Do you want a "natural" clear stain more like a protector or do you want more color like a solid stain? Do you have treated wood, cedar or redwood decking? I have sold wood deck materials and dealt with deck contractors for almost 10 years with a lumber company and you want to make sure your deck is clean and DRY before applying the stain or it will peel and chip. I recomend either Cabot stain or Penofin depending on the look you want. Make sure to use the stain formula recommended for your wood type too. There is a difference between treated (Wolomanized) and cedar/redwood formulas. I have a cedar deck and I ignored the advice (don't ask why) and used Bear stain. It was terrible. We restained last year with Cabot and it is beautiful. It went through this past winter with all the snow and not a single chip or flake. The color is as vibrant as the day we put it on. I love my wood deck but I don't want to stain it every year either :) If I can help an more feel free to contact me.
Good luck!