Have you ever passed by a store and noticed the color on a poster wasn’t quite right? Or perhaps the color of your car has lost its shine after a few years. What you see are the effect of the sun’s ultra-violet rays.

The same ultra-violet rays that cause car paint and posters to fade also cause your decking to turn gray over time. In exotic hardwoods like our Brazilian decking, the fading occurs only on the surface.

In woods like pine or cedar, the fading can cause the wood fibers to deteriorate, which leads to cracks and eventually broken boards. As for plastic decking such as composite or PVC, the color fading caused by ultra-violet rays is permanent.

So how do you restore your Brazilian hardwood deck? Well, it depends how much regular maintenance you’ve done. Here are a few methods to bring back the color of your faded deck:

Method 1 – Start with the simplest of approaches and test a small amount of Ipe Oil on part of your deck. Sometimes applying a coat of Ipe Oil is enough to bring back the color. If this didn’t work, move on to the next method.

Method 2 – Use DeckWise Cleaner and Brightener. Wet your deck with a garden hose and apply the dissolved solution (follow the instructions on the back of each product) using a bristle broom to agitate the surface. Rinse with a garden hose, and once the surface is dry apply a new coat of Ipe Oil. Now your deck should look as good as new!

If your deck refuses to look new, give these methods a shot.

Method 3 – Using a pressure washer with a wide angle fan tip nozzle, wash your deck straight down the length of each board. This keeps you from stamping a pattern into the board or raising the grain of the wood and causing splinters. If pressure washing didn’t achieve the original finish, there’s one more thing you can try.

Method 4 –Sand your deck, starting with an 80 grit sand paper on an orbital sander and finishing with 100 grit sand paper. Once you’re done, vacuum your deck, or rinse it well with water to remove any dust and apply Ipe Oil. This should bring it back to the beautiful deck of years past!

We hope this helps you get your deck back to the color you want! Bookmark this page if you wish to share these deck maintenance tips with others, and don’t forget to give us a call if you have any questions or shoot us an email at info@advantagelumber.coml