With the inside of the house finished and ready to go, a new renter moved in whose priorities did not immediately include the need or use of the wooden deck outside the kitchen door. The deck was built as an original feature of the house in 1990 and was much-used when my wife was raising her children there. Most of the outside woodwork of the home was in need of painting or replacing. To put it more correctly, it looked sad. We agreed to wait until the following spring to tackle the deck and front porch needs.

Assessment

The front porch posts, gingerbread trimmings and door could all do with a fresh coat of paint. The wooden deck off the kitchen, however, needed a miracle. Floor boards had deteriorated as well as the steps, banister and railings. Only the treated 4x4 wooden posts and floor joists providing the underneath support for the deck were still holding up well. A new deck floor would have to be constructed along with new banisters and railing. And finally, a sealer with stain would have to be applied to the boards.

Action

Off with the old and on with the new! Our first step involved moving all the old boards and railings. To our dismay and surprise, all the deck boards were nailed with 3” construction grade nails making them a bit difficult to remove. The upside was that it may well have been those nails that helped this deck survive the 30 years of its life!

Once all the deck boards and railings were removed, we hired a carpentry service to install all new wood again.

Affixed in place during the fall and winter, the deck boards were allowed to dry thoroughly before attempting to stain and finish the floor. This provided us with an opportunity to search and compare the various stains and finishes available in the marketplace. Our desire was not to have to reapply a finish to the deck for a long time.

One product stood out among the many we looked at. Perma Chink Systems, Inc. makes a product called Deck Defense, which appeared to offer all the qualities we hoped for. It offered UV protecting pigments that protected it from the sun and was specifically formulated to protect against mold and mildew. Exactly what we were looking for!

We were able to select from a wide variety of stain colors from their website. We chose Honey Maple #1930 for our stain. Other factors we found desirable was the clean-up could be done with soap and water, and the product is manufactured in the U.S.A. At 40 lbs. per 5 gallon bucket, it helped also that this product could be conveniently delivered to our front door.

Application

With help from a family friend, the project was coordinated with the painting of the railings, bannister, step riser and underpinning. Painting came first as we believed it would be easier to accomplish while saving the deck for the last step. Once begun, however, we were surprised at how easy the stain and finish could be applied.

We used a pad specifically designed for this purpose, and it worked very well. The stain was beautiful as it contrasted and blended the beige vinyl siding on the house with the dark green paint we selected for the railing and bannister. The staining process was far easier than that of painting.

In stepping back and looking at our work once the project was completed, we were in awe at the transformation possible when using well-chosen products and materials. We are very happy with the results.

Questions About Deck Defense?

Read our Deck Defense FAQs for more information about Deck Defense.

Full Project Gallery

• Old Deck Old Deck
• Before Stain Before Stain
• Before Stain Before Stain
• Before Stain Before Stain
• Before Stain Before Stain
• Before Stain Before Stain
• Deck Defense -... Deck Defense -...
• Application Application
• Application Application
• Applying Deck Defense Applying Deck Defense
• Work In Progress Work In Progress
• Drying Drying
• Drying Drying
• Dry Deck Defense Dry Deck Defense
• One Week... One Week...
• One Week... One Week...
• Finished Deck Finished Deck
•