Brighten your exterior with a dazzling deck

ONE of the most attractive features to liven up any weary exterior space is decking, and while it looks amazing when it’s first installed, maintaining it is hugely important.

Whether it’s hard or soft wood, decking needs to be maintained – softwoods requiring treatment every few years, with hard wood far more hear-wearing, thus requiring somewhat less attention.

While some people may have had the good sense to cover their deck area over the winter months, there’s no need to panic if you weren’t one of them. There are plenty of ways to get your deck looking ship shape this Spring.

Before you decide on a treatment, be sure to clear away leaves as they tend to keep moisture on the deck and cause it to rot.

If your deck has green algae on it (most likely to occur where the deck is shaded) then a good power wash or deck scrub is very important

Try not to allow metal objects on the decking – such as metal plant pots, furniture or BBQ legs, as it may result in unsightly rust stains that are hard to remove.

When it’s time to treat your deck, experts suggest you use decking oil instead of a decking stain, as the latter is merely a surface coat and doesn’t tend to last very long. Decking oil, on the other hand, penetrates the timber and acts as a great preservative.

When you do get to work, remember that some decking oils need to dry in before recoating and others need to be recoated whilst the previous coat is still wet, so always check the tin and follow the guide lines.

If the deck you’re treating is quite old then power wash it first and leave to dry before you apply the oil.