The Signs It’s Time to Restore Your Deck

For years your backyard deck has been a lot like Old Faithful, i.e., reliable. It’s there when you need it in spring, summer, and perhaps fall, and waits patiently for your return during the cold winter months. But even if you’re extra careful about how you treat your wood deck, Mother Nature is a harsh mama. Every season in New England brings new worries for wood decks – leaves, scorching sun, downpours, and months of ice and snow.

If yours is an older house, there’s a good chance your wood deck has seen better years. Full wood deck refinishing and restoration can take care of most issues but is it time? Here are some very good reasons you might want to put refinishing a deck at the top of your to-do list sooner rather than later:

1. Restoring a wood deck before major damage happens costs less than replacing a wood deck, and refinishing your deck will cost a LOT less.

2. New England deck restoration is eco friendly. The greenest deck will always be the one that’s already built. If there is still life left in your wood deck, restoring it makes a lot of sense.

3. Major problems like severe structural issues can’t be undone but sometimes you can halt deck failure in its tracks by replacing just a few boards. Wood doesn’t deteriorate overnight, which means that the maintenance you do now may let you put off deck replacement for many years.

4. You’ve found rot. A quick inspection will show you where rot has set in. All it takes is a Philips screwdriver – use the tip to poke beams, into the joists between boards, and post brackets. There’s more than likely rot anywhere you feel “give”.

5. Warping floor boards, loose pieces, shaky rails, and splintering are all good reasons to look into restoring your wood deck. These are the kinds of minor problems that if addressed quickly, won’t turn into bigger issues later on.

6. Your wood deck simply looks terrible. Maybe there is peeling paint or the wood looks dry and faded – in either case, deck restoration or deck refinishing can restore the beauty of your old deck and make it look like new.

When isn’t it a good time to refinish a deck? Simply put, when the ledger is bad. Solid beams and joists and good looks aren’t much use when you should be worrying about a rotting ledger board. Similarly if any of your wood deck’s framing is bad, that needs to be addressed before you can even begin to think about restoring or refinishing a wood deck.

Is your MA, NH, or New England deck ready for those spring and summertime barbecues? We can breathe new life into even the most weather-beaten wooden deck with expert deck refinishing and restoration. Call our team at 978-546-6843 or email to discuss the details of refinishing a deck and a free estimate. You’ll be barbecuing in no time!

Categorised in: Decks