What is the difference between sealing and staining?
• When we use the term sealers, we are referring to a semi-transparent product designed to give your deck a warm, natural appearance. Sealers allow the natural grain of the wood to show through the color. When sealing the wood, weathering, shade lines, sun exposure and wood structure greatly affect the color and evenness of the sealer. It is not uncommon for there to be lighter and darker areas on the floor. Stains, on the other hand, are similar to paints and completely cover the wood surface. At Deck Finishings Unlimited, we only recommend using stains on the vertical surfaces of your deck. When stains are used on horizontal surfaces, like the floor of a deck, cracking and peeling usually occur within one year. A popular look for decks today involves using a stain on the railings and a sealer on the floor. The stain is usually tinted to match the trim of your house. We call this a two-tone deck.
When we use the term ‘sealers’, we are referring to a semi-transparent product designed to give your deck a warm natural appearance. Sealers allow the natural grain of the wood to show through the color. When sealing the wood, weathering, shade lines, sun exposure and wood structure greatly affect the color and evenness of the sealer. It is not uncommon for there to be lighter and darker color variations on the floor. Olympic and Total Wood Preservative (TWP) are two of the sealers we recommend. Solid base stains, on the other hand, are similar to paints and completely cover the wood surface. At Deck Detail, we only recommend using stains on the vertical surfaces of your deck. When stains are used on horizontal surfaces, like the floor of a deck, cracking and peeling usually occur within one year. A popular look for decks today involves using a stain on the railings and a sealer on the floor. The stain is usually tinted to match the trim of your house. We call this a two-tone deck.
