Are you the proud owner of a beautiful wooden terrace surrounding a swimming pool, overlooking a garden or laid out on a balcony and you are wondering how to treat it to keep it in good condition? Perhaps you are wondering why you should treat a wooden deck or how to maintain a wooden deck?
We will explain the advantages of treating a wooden deck, why it is essential, when is the right time to do it and which products to use to maintain your wooden deck.
There are three main reasons why a deck should be treated. Firstly, it prevents the greying of the wood or the thinning of the wood that occurs with the ageing of your wooden deck. Secondly, it prevents the formation of mould and mildew and the blackening caused by humidity and the weather. Finally, it keeps the structure of the wood in good condition for a long time.
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF TREATING YOUR WOODEN DECK?
The treatment of a wooden deck is recommended simply to enhance the natural appearance and to preserve the structural qualities of the wood over the long term. Treating a wooden terrace floor quickly after installation also makes it easier to maintain over time without having to resort to major renovation work such as sanding.
WHY SHOULD I TREAT MY WOODEN DECK?
There are three classic symptoms of premature ageing if the wood of a terrace floor is not treated: greying (or greying of natural wood), mould growth and cracking.
FIRST REASON: TO FIGHT AGAINST THE GREYING OF THE WOOD
After 3 months of exposure, on a terrace made of Douglas Pine, Larch, Autoclaved Pine, or exotic woods (such as Ipe or Teak), a lightening of the initial shade or a dulling of the colour will generally begin to be observed, which will gradually lead to a greying of the natural wood (or greying). The UV rays of the sun degrade the lignin on the surface of the wood and are the main cause of this change in colour. You will find your wooden deck grey again. To preserve the original colour, you should treat your wooden deck as soon as you notice these changes in appearance. One of the benefits of treating a wooden deck is to prevent the wood from turning grey.
SECOND REASON: TO PREVENT BLACKENING AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF MILDEW
On untreated wood that has been exposed to the weather and frequent humidification, the development of "black spots" on the surface is almost always observed. This is the development of mould or fungi. Don't worry, the deterioration is only cosmetic since these bacteria remain on the surface and do not damage the structure of the wood. But that's no reason to let them settle, otherwise they will proliferate and transform your beautiful wood-coloured deck into a black surface with a heterogeneous appearance. Here too, treating your wooden deck beforehand will prevent the formation of these biological organisms. If the blackening of your wood deck has already set in, then there are cleaning and sanitizing products available to repair the damage..
Third reason: to keep the structure of the wood in good condition for a long time.
Untreated, unprotected raw wood exposed to the weather undergoes significant mechanical deformation due to the alternating cycles of rain and sunlight. In fact, during a rainy episode, the wood is subjected to a strong increase in its humidity level, it becomes waterlogged, which causes it to swell. Then when the weather becomes drier, the moisture content of the wood decreases and the wood shrinks.
This alternation of swelling - shrinkage is the cause of crack formation and surface cracking. In the case of pine terraces, this phenomenon is observed on average from 6 months after installation if the wood remains rough. This type of wear will worsen over time if the wood is not treated and will weaken the structure.
WHEN SHOULD I TREAT MY WOODEN DECK?
To avoid all these inconveniences and to avoid having to carry out major renovation work, the ideal solution is to treat your outdoor wooden deck the day after installation or at the latest 3 to 6 months afterwards.
As we saw earlier, after 3 months of exposure, the colour of softwoods such as Douglas Pine, Larch or autoclaved pines begins to fade or lighten. The colour will tend towards grey a few weeks or months later. After 6 months, dimensional variations resulting in repeated deformation will cause cracks, surface cracking or tiling to appear.
Exotic woods, such as Ipe or Teak, are much more resistant to weathering. There is little risk of cracks forming before a few years. The advantage of treating them lies in the fact that they retain their beautiful original colour and make maintenance easier over time.
WHICH PRODUCTS SHOULD BE USED TO TREAT A WOODEN DECK?
Many products are available on the market to treat and maintain a wooden deck. By following a few care tips for a wooden deck, you will be able to see more clearly. At Anova Bois, with a concern for technical performance and simplicity of application and maintenance, we have developed top-of-the-range treatment products that protect wood from water and sun.
To treat a wooden deck, we advise you to apply a saturator. Wood deck saturator is a product that strongly impregnates the wood, providing nourishing and protective properties to the wood. The wood, thus treated, is protected from damage caused by water.
In addition, our saturators contain anti-UV pigments that protect the wood from the sun's rays and from changes in colour. The saturator is the ideal product to protect your wooden deck from UV rays and to prevent greying of your wooden deck.
To facilitate its application, the saturator has a fluid texture that makes it easy to apply. It dries quickly and does not require wiping.
Finally, since it works by penetration and does not form a hard film on the surface of the wood, the saturator is easy to maintain. Maintenance will be simple as there is no need to sand the surface.
These advantages make it the ideal product for the treatment of a wooden terrace. To find out more about the application of a deck saturator, you can consult our guide How to maintain a wooden terrace ?
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WHICH PRODUCTS SHOULD BE USED TO RENOVATE A WOODEN DECK?
Maybe your wooden deck has already undergone a natural greying of the wood, maybe your deck is blackened by humidity. In that case, you need to renovate your wooden deck. To do this, apply a degreaser to lighten the wood. We recommend the Degreaser DG105 . The degreaser allows you to clean your wooden terrace by removing the grey tint of the wood. Then, use a terrace saturator to avoid finding your terrace grey in the future. The maintenance of a wooden deck is regular, you will need to apply saturator to your deck regularly, approximately every two years (the duration varies according to the species of your wood). We recommend the Terrace Wood Saturator ST600 for local woods, or the Exotic Wood Saturator SBE600 for the treatment of an exotic wood deck .
