Deck Painting & staining throughout Abington, MA.

Census data counts 63.2% of the town's housing units as single-family detached and another 7.6% as single-family attached, and 72.7% of occupied homes are owner-occupied. Attached homes in particular can belong to a condominium or homeowners association whose documents set deck colors or maintenance duties; an FAQ below covers that case.

What decides the finish is the wood, the sun and water the boards get, and the coating already on them. A stain that suits a sunny cedar deck can fail quickly on a shaded pressure-treated one.

Wood types

Pressure-treated pine is common on backyard decks. When new, it can hold enough moisture that stain won't soak in, so it needs a dry-out period before the first coat. A water test helps: drops that bead mean wait, drops that soak in mean it's ready.

Cedar resists rot naturally but grays in the sun; a penetrating oil or semi-transparent stain keeps its color. Fir is the traditional porch floor and is usually painted with a porch-and-floor enamel. Composite and PVC boards don't need stain, only cleaning, though some can be coated with products made for them.

Shade, water and mildew

A deck under tall trees or on the north side of a house dries slowly after rain and collects leaves and pollen. Those boards grow mildew and algae, turn slippery, and hold water against the finish. A deck in full sun has the opposite problem: ultraviolet light breaks down the stain and the wood checks and splinters.

Low-lying back yards and decks built close to the ground also trap moisture underneath, which shows up as cupped boards and rot at the joists. Fixing drainage or clearing debris from the gaps between boards does more for the finish than a second coat.

• Clean with a deck cleaner, and brighten if the wood is gray
• Strip failing film coatings rather than coating over them
• Replace split or rotted boards and reset raised nails or screws
• Apply stain to dry wood, including board ends and the first stair riser

Stain or paint

Semi-transparent stain soaks in and wears away gradually, so recoating is mostly cleaning and a fresh coat. Solid stain and paint sit on the surface; they hide worn wood and look uniform, but on walking surfaces they can peel where water sits and feet travel. Our paint vs. stain comparison lays out the trade-offs, and the post on deck stain through a New England winter covers freeze-thaw wear.

Railings and balusters are vertical and shed water, so a solid color there often lasts longer than on the floor. One option combines the two: a solid color on rails and a semi-transparent stain on the boards.

When to schedule

Stain needs several dry days, warm enough temperatures and no rain right after application. By mid-fall, heavy dew can keep boards wet until midday. An estimate can still happen now so the cleaning and staining are ready to go in spring. If the house needs work too, see exterior painting in Abington; for local notes, see our South Abington page.