A Pretty Life In The Suburbs

So yesterday I showed you how we revived our old wooden patio set with a new coat of paint.  What a fantastic change!  But we couldn’t put a fabulously revived patio set out on to a terrible looking deck, so part 2 of our deck makeover took place!  So back to painting we went…

Today, I want to show you how we revived our platform deck.  Again, another amazing transformation with paint!  When we first moved into our home 6 years ago, our deck was so small, and never saw one ounce of sunshine.  So right away we tore down the railings and added a platform deck that extends out into our yard to reach the sun.  It’s low enough to the ground that we don’t need railings, which is exactly what I was going for.  I love the openness of our deck!  Then right after we built the deck we painted it.  BUT in our haste to get it painted we didn’t prep the wood properly and by the end of the summer most of the stain had rubbed off.  Such a disappointment to see after many hours of painting!  :(  Never again.  This time we wanted to do this right, and so we consulted the team at Home Depot.

We tackled the deck in 3 stages:
1.  Stripping
2.  Cleaning
3.  Painting

This was a big job, but we managed to get it done over a weekend, and it was worth every bead of sweat!  I love this deck.  The colour is exactly what I had envisioned for it – dark but not too dark – you can still see the grain of the wood underneath, and if we did everything right, we shouldn’t have to paint again for at least 10 years.  I’m crossing my fingers for that !

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So come have a look!

BEFORE:

Very very sad indeed.  Splotchy.  Sad.  I hang my head in shame.  ;)

AFTER:

Fab!  Clean.  Sleek.  Love.

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Here’s what we did:

Supplies we used:

• Garden Hose
• 3 Paint Pad Deck Stain Applicators (we used Shur Line Paint Pad Applicators)
• Large Deck Brush for touch ups
• Plastic sheeting to protect your grass/surrounding area
• Behr Premium Wood Stain & Finish Stripper
• Behr Premium All-in-One Wood Cleaner
• Behr Premium Semi-Transparent Weather Proofing Wood Stain in Cordovan Brown

Our deck makeover process:  With advice from the trusted folks at Home Depot!  ;)

Step 1:  Stripping

• First we cleaned our deck off by spraying it with the garden hose.   We were told NOT to use a pressure washer.
• Then we let the deck dry overnight.
• The next day, using the garden hose, we saturated the grass surrounding the deck with water, as per the instructions on the stripper & cleaner bottles.  Then we laid down some plastic sheeting over top the grass to catch drips.
• Because our deck is treated wood, and it has some remnants of paint from our last application, we used a paint stripper to get it ready for painting.  We applied Behr Premium Wood Stain & Finish Stripper, and we followed the directions on the can very strictly.  A couple of years ago we skipped this step, and let me tell you what a mistake this was!  The paint did not stay applied, and basically peeled off by the end of the summer.  So we made sure to strip the wood this time.
• For all of our applications of strippers, cleaners and paint, we used a Paint Pad Applicator (as mentioned above), which is essentially a rectangular flat sponge-like applicator that makes applying these liquids a cinch!
• For the stripper, just follow the instructions on the jug.  The length of time this has to sit all depends on how much paint there is from before, but can vary anywhere from 5-45 minutes.  We had to add extra stripper to a couple of spots and do a little extra scrubbing.
• When our deck was stripped, we moved on to the cleaning.

Step 2:  Cleaning

• To clean the deck, again we used the paint pad applicator to brush on the wood cleaner.  We used Behr Premium All-in-One Wood Cleaner.  Again, we followed the instructions on the jug.
• After the deck was cleaned, we let it dry overnight.  NOTE: with this cleaning system you have to paint your deck within 24 hours after cleaning it.

Step 3:  Painting

• Using a fresh pad applicator, we painted the deck with Behr Premium Semi-Transparent Weather Proofing Wood Stain in Cordovan Brown.
• While my husband applied the paint with the applicator, I followed behind him closely with my large deck paint brush, touching up and smoothing out paint drips and puddles.  I also made sure to paint in between the deck boards with this brush as we moved along.
• We wanted our deck dark, so we ended up applying 2 coats of paint.  (letting the deck dry between applications)
• We had to let our deck cure for 36 hours.

Note:  If you need extra instruction, Young House Love did a great post on how they did their deck.  It was from this post that I was inspired to use the paint pad applicators.  Let me tell you how amazing these things are!  Honestly, I think we were able to complete the deck transformation in less than half the time it would have taken if we had just used brushes!

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I’m SO happy with the deck now.  This paint completely refreshed  and rejuvenated our deck.  It looks brand new!  Yay!

So here’s what it looks like with my newly painted furniture….Oh, I should also note that the little table in the above photo was also painted with the deck stain.  I thought about painting it the bright colour, but I thought it would be too much.  Instead I opted to paint it the same colour as the deck, and I’m really happy I did!

Whew.  We’re almost there.  Now it’s just adding flowers and pretty stuff…I can’t wait to show you how the deck all comes together!  Stay tuned!

If you are interested in the first 2 posts of our deck transformation, check out these links here:
1.  Fixing Rattan Furniture
2.  Reviving Old Wood Furniture with a coat of paint 

Sharing with The 36th Avenue, The Frugal Girls, Blissful & Domestic, Tatertots & Jello