Deck Maintenance Tips: Maintain and Extend Its Lifespan

Having a deck provides you with ample usable space to enjoy the signature outdoor beauty of the Eastern U.S. Whether used for cooking, entertaining, relaxing, or all of the above, decks are incredibly versatile outdoor spaces.

However, due to its location outside your home, decks withstand a lot of potential damage. Moisture, UV rays from the sun, and pests can cause considerable harm to any deck. Additionally, decking materials will also wear down with the passage of time.

Fortunately, learning a few key deck maintenance tips can ensure this part of your property remains in pristine condition all year long.

How to Maintain a Deck: 6 Proven Tips

Are you confused about how to maintain a deck? There’s no need to worry. Instead, check out the excellent deck maintenance tips below.

1. Regularly Inspect Your Deck

You don’t necessarily have to be a professional to inspect a deck. Whether you conduct your inspection before or after cleaning your deck, it’s a crucial step. Get started by inspecting your deck during the daytime, preferably on a non-cloudy day.

As you can imagine, deck damage can happen in many ways. While looking over this part of your property, check for:

• Any cracks or splinters in your decking material
• Rust forming anywhere on your deck
• Loose or unstable boards, especially as you step on them
• Flaws in deck railings
• The presence of mold or mildew on or under your deck

If you’re unsure whether your post-inspection findings indicate deck damage, consider contacting a professional inspector.

2. Exercise Caution When Power Washing

One potential way to cut down on deck maintenance time is with a power washer. While this tool can be a major source of help for outdoor deck cleaning, it’s sometimes easy to go overboard.

Avoid accidental damage by power washing your deck at a safe distance. Moving a power washer’s nozzle too close to your deck can damage it. You may also need to change the nozzle on your power washer if the stream is too abrasive for your deck.

Be sure to give your deck ample time to dry after washing it. Trying to stain or seal a wet deck won’t go well and could leave you financing an emergency deck clean-up.

3. Staining and Sealing

North Carolina is a beautiful state. However, as visitors and residents know, the Tar Heel State is notorious for its rainy springs and downright hot summers. Thankfully, knowing how to maintain a deck means not worrying about every rainy or sunny day.

Staining and sealing your deck provide a one-two punch to weather and seasonally-related deck damage. If you’re new to deck maintenance, wondering where to start is understandable. Always make sure you stain a deck before sealing it.

Staining a deck may sound like the last thing you want to do. However, this type of staining is a good thing. Staining helps bring out the color of your deck’s materials. If not, you may notice your deck’s color fading with time.

After giving your deck staining liquid significant time to dry, you’re ready to seal it. Applying deck sealant means using a liquid made to seep into your decking materials. As this penetration occurs, deck sealant acts as a shield that can withstand UV rays, moisture, and other deck-related dangers.

It’s also recommended to avoid using paint as a deck or patio sealant. Initially, painted decks look nice. However, in a short period, painted deck areas quickly look distressed. This undesirable situation can leave you scrambling to scrape away the paint you recently applied to your deck.

4. Frequently Sweep Your Deck

Sweeping outdoors might seem like an unimportant task. However, it’s a vital activity for anyone interested in learning how to properly maintain their decks.

Regularly sweeping this part of your property is a must for proper deck maintenance. But you won’t want just any household broom for this task. Instead, purchase a broom with stiff bristles.

Daily or weekly deck sweeping removes dirt and debris. This beneficial type of outdoor deck cleaning prevents grime from accumulating on your deck’s surface. It also stops those pesky North Carolina leaves from piling up on your deck!

5. Don’t Ignore a Damaged Deck

A deck plank with a small chip or crack might not be an immediate cause for concern. However, it’s not advisable to ignore deck issues. As you know, deck-related problems won’t repair themselves. Exercising proper deck maintenance prevents minor problems from turning into major ones.

Besides structural-related issues, extensively damaged decks can also pose severe threats to the safety of yourself and anyone else on your deck.

6. Avoid Outdoor Deck Cleaning With Bleach

Bleach might be a suitable liquid for household cleaning or removing stains from clothes, but it shouldn’t touch your deck. Bleaching a deck may remove dirt. Unfortunately, it can also fade the coloring of your wood or composite deck. 

When choosing a cleaning product, make sure it’s designed and suitable for decks. If not, a simple cleaning could do more harm than good.

Trust Us to Construct Your Low-Maintenance Deck

Not all decks require extensive maintenance. In most cases, the difference between a low-maintenance and high-maintenance deck comes down to materials. Choosing low-maintenance decking materials ensures you have a great-looking deck without having to put in lots of extra time to maintain it.

Knowing how to maintain your deck helps protect the value of this property-related investment. Additionally, deck maintenance helps ensure you have an outdoor space that stays beautiful throughout the summer, winter, spring, and autumn. Choose a low-maintenance deck to minimize the time and effort required to keep it looking great.

Charlotte Deck Builders designs and constructs custom luxury hardscaping projects, including decks, patios, sunrooms, and more. Our skilled and experienced team specializes in decks, ensuring we can bring your ideas to life. Contact Charlotte Deck Builders for a consultation to learn how our materials mean little to no deck maintenance for homeowners.