DIY decking job complete, stain, oil or both

TonyTurbo78 · 17 Apr 2019 at 15:14

hi guys.

I’ve just completed laying down decking in our back garden, I want to keep the wood looking light and natural. Do I need a light colour stain then oil, or can I just get a light colour oil for protection. Any recommendations or pictures of your decking with certain products for colour references please.

200sols · 17 Apr 2019 at 15:35

Oil. Stain will peel eventually and then its a nightmare.

Mahonyy · 17 Apr 2019 at 15:55

Oil, this year I used Ronseal Ultimate Protection Decking Oil and much better than screwfix no nonse oil I used last year

Psycho Sonny · 17 Apr 2019 at 17:18

you need to rip it all up and replace it with composite stuff with 30 year guarantee which doesn't need anything doing to it.

TonyTurbo78 · 18 Apr 2019 at 16:24

Cheers guys.

Thanks Psycho not after I busted a gut laying it haha.

Psycho Sonny · 19 Apr 2019 at 10:14

TonyTurbo78 said:
Cheers guys.

Thanks Psycho not after I busted a gut laying it haha.

You are going to be busting your gut every year several times a year from now on maintaining it.

Oil is what everyone will recommend as it won't peel however it needs to be done at least twice every year to keep on top of it. So long as you know what you are in for then it's all good. Most people just leave them to rot or don't do enough so they eventually fall apart.

You want to oil it when it's completely dried out. Then oil it a few times over 2-3 days so it's soaked all the oil up. Best to use small amounts but apply over and over again than slap it on in one go.

TonyTurbo78 · 19 Apr 2019 at 16:06

Psycho Sonny said:
You are going to be busting your gut every year several times a year from now on maintaining it.

Oil is what everyone will recommend as it won't peel however it needs to be done at least twice every year to keep on top of it. So long as you know what you are in for then it's all good. Most people just leave them to rot or don't do enough so they eventually fall apart.

You want to oil it when it's completely dried out. Then oil it a few times over 2-3 days so it's soaked all the oil up. Best to use small amounts but apply over and over again than slap it on in one go.

Thanks mate I've no problem maintaining it.

Orionaut · 19 Apr 2019 at 19:58

Psycho Sonny said:
you need to rip it all up and replace it with composite stuff with 30 year guarantee which doesn't need anything doing to it.

Serious question. Can you sand composite decking when it gets damaged or scruffy?

I have no idea about decking, but I have a friend who had a composite door a couple of years ago and the thing is, the beauty really is only skin deep!

At least solid timber can be refurbished if it gets a bit tired.

Maccapacca · 19 Apr 2019 at 20:49

Psycho Sonny said:
you need to rip it all up and replace it with composite stuff with 30 year guarantee which doesn't need anything doing to it.

It'll still need scrubbing to remove the moss and algae. It'll still be slippery.

All decking is horrible.

Maccapacca · 19 Apr 2019 at 20:51

Orionaut said:
At least solid timber can be refurbished if it gets a bit tired.

It can't really unless you have smooth timbers then it'll be slippery as hell.

Of you use the grooved side then sanding the top will be awful, you'd have to sand all the grooves as well.

Or if you have proper non slip decking then it has two or three flint inserts that stop people slipping over but then it's so much money you may as well have nice stone.

Hedge · 19 Apr 2019 at 20:59

Smooth decking isnt slippery is it? They use smooth decking allover america and in most holiday resorts ive been to.

The grooves dont actually add grip, they just provide a place for algae and crap to develop.

Orionaut · 19 Apr 2019 at 21:27

Maccapacca said:
It can't really unless you have smooth timbers then it'll be slippery as hell.

Of you use the grooved side then sanding the top will be awful, you'd have to sand all the grooves as well.

Or if you have proper non slip decking then it has two or three flint inserts that stop people slipping over but then it's so much money you may as well have nice stone.

You can sand off 0.5mm of timber, grooves will still be there.

Sand off 0.5mm of plastic and you will be down to the white stuff. No comparison.

Or maybe the decking composite is wood colored all the way through so you can do so and get away with it

All i do know is that the doors arent One scratch and all you can see is the white underlay and the damage is not easy to get rid of..

As I said I dont know, that is why I am asking.

Mark A · 19 Apr 2019 at 23:40

If you sand the timber you will be removing a lot of the tanalith, as it only soaks in a few mm, which would probably lead to it rotting sooner than it would have. You can buy oil that has an aggregate mixed in to make timber decking non slip, but I have no idea how long that will last. I'd imagine not very long if the deck is high traffic.

The composite decking I have fitted in the past is the same colour all the way through, so i'd imagine scratches wouldn't be seen, but I don't think it's designed to be sanded down. It was designed for domestic and commercial use and has a 25 year guarantee against rot etc and thats with 0 maintenance. It was also reversible and was fixed in place with little clips, so in theory you could reverse the decking if it started to look tatty 10 years down the line.

Composite doors are a totally different material (grp) and decking is a mix of recycled wood and recycled plastic. You can get repair kits to fix scratches in composite doors.

Orionaut · 20 Apr 2019 at 05:01

Mark A said:
You can get repair kits to fix scratches in composite doors.

I dont suppose you have a link handy?

Oh, And PS

Pretty much the best timber preservative is Waste Motor Oil

It stinks a bit to begin with, but the smell soon wears off. and you can have any colour you like as long as it is black

On the plus side, it is free, essentially non-toxic, and timber treated with it will stay rot-free until Judgement Day (and maybe even longer than that

!)

I have some fence panels I painted with WMO 20 years ago and they still look like I did them yesterday!

Psycho Sonny · 20 Apr 2019 at 09:05

Orionaut said:
Serious question. Can you sand composite decking when it gets damaged or scruffy?

I have no idea about decking, but I have a friend who had a composite door a couple of years ago and the thing is, the beauty really is only skin deep!

At least solid timber can be refurbished if it gets a bit tired.

Its built to withstand high heels, etc.

You can also buy commercial grade stuff for a bit more and it will last forever.

Psycho Sonny · 20 Apr 2019 at 09:23

Maccapacca said:
It'll still need scrubbing to remove the moss and algae. It'll still be slippery.

All decking is horrible.

Its built to be non slip

Maccapacca · 20 Apr 2019 at 19:07

Psycho Sonny said:
Its built to be non slip

With the right maintenance. Like cleaning scrubbing or jetwashing.

Maccapacca · 20 Apr 2019 at 19:10

Psycho Sonny said:
Its built to withstand high heels, etc.

You can also buy commercial grade stuff for a bit more and it will last forever.

I can name one high profile multi million attraction that has composite decking where the right combination of heel area and weight means they go through the composite decking. It's the hollow stuff. Load of rubbish.

DIY decking job complete, stain, oil or both

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