Avoid Costly Winter Deck Restoration with This Simple Process
Winter: is there any time of the year more potentially damaging to your beautiful deck? The bitter cold temperatures and excessive snow can seriously damage and warp your deck boards, and thanks to that pesky groundhog it looks like winter will be around for a few more weeks. Nevertheless, there is still hope for your deck without costly deck restoration. Avoiding expensive winter deck restoration is a three-part process that any home owner should be able to handle.
Pre-Winter Preparation
I know what your thinking, now they tell us this!, but I have a sneaking suspicion that there will be another winter eventually. A few months before winter hits, you need to start preparing your deck for the cold. Pre-winter deck preparation is a relatively simple process that shouldn’t take you more than a few hours on a weekend afternoon.
Prepare your deck for winter by performing the following steps:
- Clean deck with with a bleach-free cleaner to remove excessive dirt
- Hand-scrub boards with a revitalizer to restore its natural shine
- Remove and store furniture, to avoid creating snow-heavy items
Weather-blocking finish will protect your deck from the heavy moisture of winter and protect it from cold-related warping. High-quality deck restoration companies should have plenty of products for you to use. This step is key in avoiding high priced deck restoration.
Avoid Over-Shoveling
During the frigid winter months, there’s little you can do to preserve the strength of your deck beyond shoveling snow. However, while removing snow from your deck can help remove excess weight and moisture from your boards, too much shoveling can actually cause serious deck damage.
Over-shoveling can contribute to deck damage in the following ways:
- Shovel impact physically damaging the deck wood
- Scraping off protective weather-enamel
- Exposing weakened boards to more moisture
- Giving boards more freedom to warp
The key to shoveling your deck is moderation. Limit your shoveling to exit routes and if the snow gets higher than the railing. And never, ever use a metal shovel or ice chipper on your beautiful wooden deck boards.
After-Melt Deck Inspection
Once winter is gone and all the snow has melted off your deck, take an hour to seriously inspect the surface of your deck. Look for any signs of minor damage and repair them as soon as possible.
Signs of deck damage include:
- Small chips in the wood or the enamel
- Slightly uneven board surface
- Splinters or rough sections of wood
- Stains
- Curling at any board edges
If you follow these steps and treat your deck with care, then there is no reason that your winter will end in a costly deck restoration. Before you know it you’ll be enjoying the spring breeze while grilling on your deck. But if you do find some minor damages do not worry; Repairing small deck damage will help your deck look as good as new, year in and year out.
However, if these minor problems turn into major issues, you should contact us as soon as possible for the best deck restoration products on the market.
