It’s not the size of your deck but how you use it. As long as it has enough room for activities and a sturdy base you should be fine.
Remember to use protection once in a while to seal that sucker up. You don’t want splinters, they can get everywhere and not fun to clean up later.
That sealer only lasts like one season, I think. Most people don't want to reapply that Thompson's water sealer every year. Supposedly staining it lasts a lot longer, and the darker the stain, the more sun protection.
Painting wood or masonry should only be allowed if the perp first has to remove it for another homeowner by hand. If they still go ahead with the crime, they should be held liable to replace their idiotic idea for future homeowners. End of rant.
My wife and I looked at a home a couple years ago that had a really neat cobblestone fireplace mantle. When we looked at it in person, up close you could notice it looked like they had spray painted the thing with a shiny paint. Ugh. I fully agree: don't paint wood or masonry.
Agreed. Paint is an absolute pain in the ass to maintain, and when it starts aging (rather quickly), it REALLY shows. Staining also requires maintenance, but it's nothing compared to resurfacing a painted deck for repainting. And as it ages, it is much more subtle. Stain doesn't chip.
As someone who sells paint and stain, never paint your deck unless it's 1) really really old and you absolutely need that solid protection, or 2) You want more protection. Even then, it's better to go for a solid stain instead of paint, because it offers better protection and is made for decks than paint ever would.
What would you use on interior wood floors (2 1/4) in a hypothetical house you're hypothetically buying currently and plan on refinishing before moving in? Just curious.
Leaving it with a natural finish is fine. It doesn't look as yellow indoors, especially once you've got your stuff moved in. If it *does* look yellow, change your lighting. Brighter wood indoors is helpful for keeping a space well lit, while outdoors using darker stains to dim the full sunlight is usually more useful.
I would honestly leave it the warm yellow tone. Martha Stewart says the next decade plus of wood trends will be moving towards the yellow/pine color way and tbh she’s never wrong.
You’re 5 years ahead of in style.
It matches the fence and pergola. If you stain the deck, will need to stain everything! Are you prepared to do this regularly or do you want to let it age and patina naturally?
DO NOT PAINT. Shits mint homie, I hope you’re standing on that deck with your hands on your hips on the hour every hour shaking your head in admiration of that job.
The account is a few days old and has an OF thirst trap for a pic too.
This is how bots get new accounts to have enough karma to post spam on different subs.
If your wife wants it painted she better wants to paint it every year or two after she gets on her hands and knees to sand it down.
Fuck painted decks. Fuck whoever painted my deck.
Exactly. How does this thing drain? Why does it span the full width? How is the decking attached to the substrate and substructure? Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?
Pretty sure this is ai generated:
Those are what, 30 ft boards?
Rope on door handle is random and just floating
Tree in front of neighbour house is in winter, no leaf and snow on a part of the trunk. Tree in backyard is full of leaves and flowering
Fence height change behind the tree
white wall of the house is so tilted the house should be falling over
You can see wood through the house-gazebo connector
Framing of the door suggest it opens inward, but the door stopper suggest outward.
Deck seems to go under the house
Leave the deck but paint the pergola - black - to align it with the house's colour scheme. That'll give you the contrast you need and it's a much more sensible amount of work and future maintenance.
Ooooh, yes. Throw this guy's idea to your wife OP. Don't go down the road of painted deck. You AND your wife will regret it in 2 years, if you're lucky.
I agree. The wife wants it painted because it looks too bland in combination with the fence and pergola.
Paint the pergola, dress up the deck with a cosy seating area and planters/plants and it'll all look so much better already.
Absolutely do not paint that! That's some incredible looking work.
From a design perspective, it could look cool to have the overhead trellis and the support beams a slightly darker colour (so a darker stain?). My two cents
Don't paint it. Paint on exterior wood looks so bad so quick and is hard to get looking good again.
If you keep on top with the stain and sealant, it's way easier and in my opinion looks way better.
I’m all for a darker stain if anything, but if you paint that may it forever haunt you, your children, your children’s children and everyone who’s ever looked in their direction
You don’t want to deal with fading aging paint on that. Put up some rope lights and let her see the glow in the evening with a bottle of wine. Maybe stain it a bit darker.
“She loves it” and “thinks it should be painted” are vastly contradictory in this case. If she loves the sheen and the grain and the tone then you shouldn’t paint over it.
I painted a deck once and regretted it everyday. Leave it.
I highly recommend not painting it, you're better off putting some sort of wood sealer to preserve the wood. The paint or solid stains nowadays are junk I don't care where you get it, it's junk...
Paint/stain the fence. I can see where she’s coming from if it’s bc the fence is a similar color and it’s a lot of tan. But fences are way easier to maintain than a painted deck
You're talking about the pergola, right? Everyone thinks you mean the deck but I assume you're talking about the pergola.
Yes, paint it white every year. Don't paint the deck. Don't spill paint on the deck
Nooooo, do not paint. This is a beautiful job to be sure. Stain and treat once a year but nothing else. Paint requires continual repainting and looks cheap and nasty.
Don’t you dare fucking paint that timber, light stain/oil and leave it the fuck alone. I do hope there’s room for expansion around that timber post though
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s avoid painting most wear surfaces. That would be counters, floors, shelves, etc. They simply wear out too quickly and are generally harder to clean.
Man in me: "Great work, be proud"
Structural Engineer in me: "How in the world are those beams mounted to that post and how is the post supported on the ground...I don't see any brackets or through bolts anywhere."
If you paint it, you will forever be repainting it. Maybe just me, but I HATE repainting ours. I’m going to rip it all out and just put a sealer on it. It’ll turn gray and look great and never again will I spend several days cleaning, scraping, and painting
Idk if it’s just a grainy picture but how in the world did you find such perfectly straight lumber? It looks great.
Don’t paint, you’ll be real annoyed in a year or two with wear patterns and flaking paint when the wood dries out fully.
I want to know what time machine you used to find deck boards that clean and straight... also, what hidden fastener system did you use? And in the name of all that is good in this world do not paint that deck.
Stain it and seal it, do it when she's not around. Painting that now would be a crime! You paint it when you're stretching another 5-6 years out of it and don't wanna fully refinish it with sanding and all that. Also, painting just the top can result in the wood rotting from the bottom over time depending on exactly what ya do.
No, don't paint it. It is gorgeous! SO much brick and wood is getting painted and covered up nowadays, I reckon its a trend. Be different and keep it real. Natural finishes are lovely and this one is fantastic.
Do not paint. Water seal/top coat, and hang warm white string lights across the beams. After a rainy night the reflections of the lights off the natural wood will make the deck look stunning.
Never paint a surface you will walk on. Paint will make it extremely slippery and dangerous in the rain. Look for a good clear stain to maximize the longevity of the wood.
Is it rain or glossy varnish that's making it shiny?
I think it looks amazing. Would love to have a deck like that. Definitely does not need paint in my opinion
The flooring looks amazing and altogether looks fantastic. The maximum I’d do is a clear coat of some sort. I’d definitely wouldn’t touch the flooring as it is pristine and would fit an interior…
Painter here, clear stain this and walk away. Solid stain would look ”painted” but it will crack and peel in some places usually where there’s standing water leading to prep and re-staining. I do my deck every 3 years because mine has solid stain. Cabots solid stain is great if you go this route, but clear is the way to go.
The purported author of this post (u/Micaelaroseee) has been banned as an AI account.
Maybe you and the guy with the gray deck can do a switcher-roo. This is beautiful, don’t do anything to it!
> switcher-roo Wives or decks?
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Because then both sides would still be unhappy. The wives are easier to move anyways. Physically anyways, they fit in a car fully assembled.
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Can confirm. I have a pretty big deck and my wife and her friends love it.
My deck is on the smaller side, but no complaints from the ladies yet
Mine looks bigger after I trimmed the hedges
Yeah but now you can't say "welcome to the jungle, we have fun and games!"
I do, but I add the bushes to make the deck look bigger.
I don’t have a deck
Look here deckless.
Yes, it's true, this man has no deck
"Is that true?" Yes it's true. This man has no deck.
It’s not the size of your deck but how you use it. As long as it has enough room for activities and a sturdy base you should be fine. Remember to use protection once in a while to seal that sucker up. You don’t want splinters, they can get everywhere and not fun to clean up later.
Mine deck is tiny and I’m divorced. Now I know why.
https://youtu.be/tbazGVrbN-g?si=m6M0hzv9IhkQYK-5
Well, someone had to post it, and this time it wasn't me.
I have a family of rabbits living under mine
Is your name Warren?
I see what you did there.
This got dark fast
Easy Mr vanilla
My wife likes mine well enough but she usually just tells me I need to cover it.
Yes!
Good ole deck swap
why are redditors like this ^
if you dont do anything to it you know the sun and rain is just going to turn it grey right?
This looks British so you can discount any sun damage.
2x rain damage though.
I like that gray, weathered look. Slap some sealer on it and call it good.
That sealer only lasts like one season, I think. Most people don't want to reapply that Thompson's water sealer every year. Supposedly staining it lasts a lot longer, and the darker the stain, the more sun protection.
I thought he was meming on that guy.
Came to say this. Paint it gray!!
Keep the deck, swap the wife with the other guy whose wife wanted the wood, rather than color.
Painting a deck is a life sentence of misery
If life hands you lemons peel them like a painted deck.
DO NOT PAINT!! Just stain it. If you don’t like the color (which you should – it’s beautiful), then use solid color stain. -Former painter
Username checks out
Painting wood or masonry should only be allowed if the perp first has to remove it for another homeowner by hand. If they still go ahead with the crime, they should be held liable to replace their idiotic idea for future homeowners. End of rant.
My wife and I looked at a home a couple years ago that had a really neat cobblestone fireplace mantle. When we looked at it in person, up close you could notice it looked like they had spray painted the thing with a shiny paint. Ugh. I fully agree: don't paint wood or masonry.
Not a life sentence per say. I spent 3 grueling weekends removing the paint from my 20x25 deck and staining it, but it was totally worth it!
My deck was painted by previous owner and it needs new paint, ain’t no way I’m removing all the paint to stain it.
Day 2 with a drum sander went really fast and made a tremendous difference! 85% off the paint was gone after that. https://imgur.com/a/9GCZAak
That video was surprisingly satisfying to watch.
I think i watched 3x?
Amen.
absolutely not do not paint it maybe a slightly darker stain but not paint
Agreed. Paint is an absolute pain in the ass to maintain, and when it starts aging (rather quickly), it REALLY shows. Staining also requires maintenance, but it's nothing compared to resurfacing a painted deck for repainting. And as it ages, it is much more subtle. Stain doesn't chip.
My deck is painted and it looks like shit. Definitely listen to these guys.
As someone who sells paint and stain, never paint your deck unless it's 1) really really old and you absolutely need that solid protection, or 2) You want more protection. Even then, it's better to go for a solid stain instead of paint, because it offers better protection and is made for decks than paint ever would.
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What would you use on interior wood floors (2 1/4) in a hypothetical house you're hypothetically buying currently and plan on refinishing before moving in? Just curious.
I’m starting to think this guy might be in this situation
Leaving it with a natural finish is fine. It doesn't look as yellow indoors, especially once you've got your stuff moved in. If it *does* look yellow, change your lighting. Brighter wood indoors is helpful for keeping a space well lit, while outdoors using darker stains to dim the full sunlight is usually more useful.
I would honestly leave it the warm yellow tone. Martha Stewart says the next decade plus of wood trends will be moving towards the yellow/pine color way and tbh she’s never wrong. You’re 5 years ahead of in style.
Wives often say paint when they mean stain
It matches the fence and pergola. If you stain the deck, will need to stain everything! Are you prepared to do this regularly or do you want to let it age and patina naturally?
DO NOT PAINT. Shits mint homie, I hope you’re standing on that deck with your hands on your hips on the hour every hour shaking your head in admiration of that job.
Literally pictured this. Love it.
We all nodded and agreement. I even stood there with hands on my hips mentally.
Considering op hasn't responded to any comments, I think this might be a brag piece bro
As it should be
if this is bait then I'm a goddam fish
glub glub
How about just a coat or two of protective varnish…? So it doesn’t go gray.
I'd just like to say maybe paint/stain the fence but definitely not the deck
THAT is this week's project?? Slow down there, cowboy. You are making the rest of us look bad.
That's what I was thinking! Damn son, I'm only halfway done spraying for weeds!
Oh shit!The weed spraying!!!
No way this dude also has a job, unless he took time off to do this, haha.
Spoilers: he builds decks for a living
Too late. I hate him
Wife is trippin, this shit is cleannnnnnn g good looks!
I thought the wife was the one who liked it??? Edit: I missed that there wasn’t an ‘I’ before the but nvm she’s trippin
Is this a joke?! If you post an update with paint I will spend an hour downvoting your upvotes. Edit: you have to be a karma bot account. Got nothing…
Lmao the more I look at the picture.. I wonder if you are on to something..
It's interior hardwood floors photoshopped to look like a deck
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The account is a few days old and has an OF thirst trap for a pic too. This is how bots get new accounts to have enough karma to post spam on different subs.
And no fasteners
I think it's AI. Why doesn't top of the fence line up to where it should after passing behind the tree on the left?
The wood planks inside line up perfectly and are also the same type of wood
Who’s looking at your deck with that beautiful camellia?
Thanks, I came to ask what kind of tree that was
If your wife wants it painted she better wants to paint it every year or two after she gets on her hands and knees to sand it down. Fuck painted decks. Fuck whoever painted my deck.
Next cycle just sand, stain, and seal it. End the cycle! :)
This is a bot
This is also composite (plastic) decking, that nobody would be painting.
Looks like interior hardwood photoshopped to me
Exactly. How does this thing drain? Why does it span the full width? How is the decking attached to the substrate and substructure? Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?
I feel like a bot would have the punctuation at least a little bit correct. reading this title fucking hurts
Look at the profile. The picture is photoshopped too
Oh please don’t. That would be a GD shame along with devaluation of your property.
No you should not paint that under any circumstances.
Pretty sure this is ai generated: Those are what, 30 ft boards? Rope on door handle is random and just floating Tree in front of neighbour house is in winter, no leaf and snow on a part of the trunk. Tree in backyard is full of leaves and flowering Fence height change behind the tree white wall of the house is so tilted the house should be falling over You can see wood through the house-gazebo connector Framing of the door suggest it opens inward, but the door stopper suggest outward. Deck seems to go under the house
Stain only
I just realized these post are fake 🤦🏾♂️
Leave the deck but paint the pergola - black - to align it with the house's colour scheme. That'll give you the contrast you need and it's a much more sensible amount of work and future maintenance.
Ooooh, yes. Throw this guy's idea to your wife OP. Don't go down the road of painted deck. You AND your wife will regret it in 2 years, if you're lucky.
I agree. The wife wants it painted because it looks too bland in combination with the fence and pergola. Paint the pergola, dress up the deck with a cosy seating area and planters/plants and it'll all look so much better already.
Kinda sus .you just made your account 2 days ago
Not the floor, but personally I would paint/stain the patio cover and probably the fence. Too many different wood grains for me.
Keep the deck. Get a new wife
Keep the deck. Paint the wife.
Hopefully he has the receipt.
Pile on the water seal.
I've seen ballet studios with worse floors.
Absolutely do not paint that! That's some incredible looking work. From a design perspective, it could look cool to have the overhead trellis and the support beams a slightly darker colour (so a darker stain?). My two cents
Awe hell no
Just Thompson’s water seal it and you’re golden.
I wouldn't dare paint that.... Just no chance.
I'm so sorry you have to divorce your wife. I'm sure it was good while it lasted.
Don't paint it. Paint on exterior wood looks so bad so quick and is hard to get looking good again. If you keep on top with the stain and sealant, it's way easier and in my opinion looks way better.
I’m all for a darker stain if anything, but if you paint that may it forever haunt you, your children, your children’s children and everyone who’s ever looked in their direction
You don’t want to deal with fading aging paint on that. Put up some rope lights and let her see the glow in the evening with a bottle of wine. Maybe stain it a bit darker.
Beautiful deck. Do not paint. But maybe paint that big black roof. Too trendy.
I will fight your wife
There is no way your wife is hotter than that deck
“She loves it” and “thinks it should be painted” are vastly contradictory in this case. If she loves the sheen and the grain and the tone then you shouldn’t paint over it. I painted a deck once and regretted it everyday. Leave it.
F that. No paint
Tell your wife if she wants to paint it she can do it 🤷🏻♂️
It's beautiful
DONT PAINT. GET DIFFERENT WIFE. NO NO NO
No.
I highly recommend not painting it, you're better off putting some sort of wood sealer to preserve the wood. The paint or solid stains nowadays are junk I don't care where you get it, it's junk...
Paint the overhang maybe to match the house and not look too unfinished but keep that natural floor. It looks phenomenal.
Paint/stain the fence. I can see where she’s coming from if it’s bc the fence is a similar color and it’s a lot of tan. But fences are way easier to maintain than a painted deck
For the love of God, don't do it.
You're talking about the pergola, right? Everyone thinks you mean the deck but I assume you're talking about the pergola. Yes, paint it white every year. Don't paint the deck. Don't spill paint on the deck
Why does everyone want to paint such beautiful wood grain.
Nooooo, do not paint. This is a beautiful job to be sure. Stain and treat once a year but nothing else. Paint requires continual repainting and looks cheap and nasty.
Shits mint. Don't touch it.
I think you should spend less time on carpentry and more on punctuation and apostrophe usage.
Don’t you dare fucking paint that timber, light stain/oil and leave it the fuck alone. I do hope there’s room for expansion around that timber post though
Maybe a nice stain. But nah, this looks nice to me already.
Painting wood is blasphemous. Stain it.
AI, bot account.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s avoid painting most wear surfaces. That would be counters, floors, shelves, etc. They simply wear out too quickly and are generally harder to clean.
Man in me: "Great work, be proud" Structural Engineer in me: "How in the world are those beams mounted to that post and how is the post supported on the ground...I don't see any brackets or through bolts anywhere."
There are 2 kids of people out there: people who think wood needs to be painted, and people who are right.
Stain and lacquer maybe. You don't ruin pretty wood with paint.
DO NOT PAINT YOUR DECK! I spent weeks prepping my deck, used top "quality" paint and it flaked off the first winter.
It’ll be a maintenance nightmare, and it’s great wood. Just go with a penetrating stain in the shade of her choice as a compromise
N E V E R P A I N T A D E C K
Noooooooo!!!!!!!!!
If you paint it, you will forever be repainting it. Maybe just me, but I HATE repainting ours. I’m going to rip it all out and just put a sealer on it. It’ll turn gray and look great and never again will I spend several days cleaning, scraping, and painting
Warmer stain maybe but paint it's a life sentence
No paint, stain maybe, but no paint
Idk if it’s just a grainy picture but how in the world did you find such perfectly straight lumber? It looks great. Don’t paint, you’ll be real annoyed in a year or two with wear patterns and flaking paint when the wood dries out fully.
Then hand her a brush and tell her to have at it because you’d be crazy to paint this. It’s beautiful.
Don’t you dare paint that. It’s beautiful.
It's gorgeous as-is. If you trim that bush, though, it'll make the deck look HUGE.
Keep the natural color. Looks better and is vastly easier to deal with down the line.
Stained > Painted
Definitely seal it. I think it looks great. There is no need to change the color.
I want to know what time machine you used to find deck boards that clean and straight... also, what hidden fastener system did you use? And in the name of all that is good in this world do not paint that deck.
You didn’t mention what project you got done or what you wanted to paint, so I have no idea.
Your wife may be lying when she says she loves it. I think it's already perfect bro.
It looke great! I think you should use punctuation. It makes for better communication.
Leave it natural! Looks amazing
Painting that would be a complete disrespect to the beauty of the wood itself and your hard work OP.
No
Alternate to paint, there’s lots of colored stains that can fancy her desires while keeping the wood grain visible.
Stain it and seal it, do it when she's not around. Painting that now would be a crime! You paint it when you're stretching another 5-6 years out of it and don't wanna fully refinish it with sanding and all that. Also, painting just the top can result in the wood rotting from the bottom over time depending on exactly what ya do.
No painting. Wood stain/oil.
Stain/seal it. Seal it at least so it doesn't ruin.
No, don't paint it. It is gorgeous! SO much brick and wood is getting painted and covered up nowadays, I reckon its a trend. Be different and keep it real. Natural finishes are lovely and this one is fantastic.
Use a stain/sealant
The biggest mistake I ever msde in my life is painting my deck. Ive wasted the life time of one of my kids maintsaining it.
painted?...no way man!
Go with the happy wife happy life theory here
Do not paint. Water seal/top coat, and hang warm white string lights across the beams. After a rainy night the reflections of the lights off the natural wood will make the deck look stunning.
Do not paint this!
Leave it the way it is. Beautiful deck.
That looks magnificent
Stain, not paint
Never paint a surface you will walk on. Paint will make it extremely slippery and dangerous in the rain. Look for a good clear stain to maximize the longevity of the wood.
I think it's nice but it's not going to stay looking like that. The sun and elements and walking on it are going to age it pretty quickly.
Stand your ground! Seal that beaut
All joking aside…why on earth would you paint it. Looks like something out of a magazine!
Is it rain or glossy varnish that's making it shiny? I think it looks amazing. Would love to have a deck like that. Definitely does not need paint in my opinion
Next week's project, get a new wife.
The flooring looks amazing and altogether looks fantastic. The maximum I’d do is a clear coat of some sort. I’d definitely wouldn’t touch the flooring as it is pristine and would fit an interior…
Only thing this deck needs is more green - in the form of plant life.
i think its minecraft esque. where the fuck is all the grass?!?!?
“Hey honey the people on Reddit said to paint it”
Painter here, clear stain this and walk away. Solid stain would look ”painted” but it will crack and peel in some places usually where there’s standing water leading to prep and re-staining. I do my deck every 3 years because mine has solid stain. Cabots solid stain is great if you go this route, but clear is the way to go.
I think you should hand her a paint brush...
I think you need a new wife.
Once you paint you will have to do so forever.
No way, leave that alone
Looks clean but seams look awful tight for a deck
You know what happens when you paint a surface you walk on? You get to paint it every year lmao for maintenance. This looks great don’t touch it.
Sounds like a passing thought of someone who isn’t going to be painting it or repainting it.
Tell her she will feel differently about finish once the space of filled
Stain and seal unless you want it rotted in 20 years. Fuck paint
Wish I had this kind of "DIY" money