Now that we’ve completed the majority of the prep work to replace the rotten deck boards, strip the deck of its previous coating and brighten the bare wood using a wood brightener, now it’s time to take the final measures to get the surface ready for a fresh coat of stain. While the deck looks ready to stain at this point, there are a few final steps that will make the finished product even that much nicer.

Today we’re going to thoroughly examine the deck surface before applying our coat of stain. We’re going to sand away some rough spots, use the router to ease some edges and then apply our stain to finish the job. So let’s get started.

Most professional deck refinishers will tell you they’ve never met a deck that didn’t need sanding before the finish coat was applied. And our deck is no different. Here is where a little extra effort can mean professional results in the end.

For example, in this area, the top surface of these deck boards that butt up to one aren’t even. One sticks up above the other, which could cause someone to trip. We’ll use our belt sander to level the surface so the two boards are flush.

Over here we see the same thing. It’s important to take some time to make sure all of these butt joints are flush with one another. We’ll start with a very coarse 40 grit sanding belt for quick removal of material, then we’ll work our way up to an 80 grit sanding belt which will smooth things out a bit. A light sanding with our random orbit sander and a 120 grit sanding disc will make our boards smooth.

In addition to high spots, we’ll also need to look for areas where the previous finish wasn’t entirely removed, as you see here. A light sanding with our belt sander will take care of it in no time. Also try to taper your sanding away from the problem areas to make them less noticeable, like I’m doing here. This will lead to a more uniform finish in the end.

I always like to blow off any remaining sawdust from sanding before I start staining. A quick shot with this leave blower will do the trick.

Now … finally … our deck is ready for staining. Just think about all the prep work we’ve done to this point. But it will all pay off when you see our final finish. So what are we waiting for?

The stain that we’ll be applying to our deck is a semi-transparent translucent oil stain that will provide some color, yet will still allow a lot of the wood grain to show through. Being an oil based stain, it will soak into the wood and provide protection from both moisture penetration and UV rays.

The type of stain you selected should be based on factors such as the type of wood your deck is made of, and the location of your deck and whether it’s mostly in the sun or the shade. You should also test it first on a similar type of deck board to check the color before applying it to your entire deck. Sometimes the colors we choose don’t look quite right when we apply them to the deck. You’re local independent home improvement retailer probably has a wood sample chart with various colors of stain and how it looks on common deck boards, such as cedar and pressure treated wood, as our deck is made of.

For more information, see our frequently asked questions specific to this video.

To apply the stain, we have several options. First, we could spray it on using our deck sprayer. We could also roll it on using our roller with a 3/8″ nap roller cover. We could also apply the stain using a lambswool mit or staining pads. While all of these methods have their pros and cons, we’re going with the slow and thorough approach, using a large china bristle brush. However, to save on back strain we’ll swap out our brush handle with this paint extension pole.

Plan on this step to take approximately an hour to cover 100 square feet of decking using this application method.

Now that we’re finished, we’ll make sure everyone stays off the deck for 24 hours before anyone walks on it.

There you have it. A deck that looks great and a surface that will look as good as new for the next several years. And all it took to bring our deck back to life was just a few hours over the course of a couple days. Time well spent if you ask me.

If you have questions about this or any other home improvement project, be sure to read our list of Frequently Asked Questions for this video. And be sure to print out our Project Instructions, which includes a Tools and Materials checklist, before visiting your local independent home improvement retailer. That’s where you’ll find all the products and helpful advice to complete your project. If you’re not sure where to find your local store, check out our Store Locator.

Good luck with your project and thanks for watching.