How Many Years Should a Wooden Deck Last?
Your choice of wood as the decking material for your new deck is not a peculiar one. Many homeowners prefer wooden decking for its warm, tactile feel and variety of hues that appeal to a wide range of tastes. As the only renewable building material, choosing wood for your decking is also good for the environment. Lumber also uses much less energy to mill than it takes to produce other building materials. With that said, deck durability is a genuine concern with people who choose wood as their decking material. How well can it withstand sun and moisture damage? Just how long does a wood deck last? What Is The Life Expectancy of a Wood Deck? Your wooden deck’s life expectancy is a function of the type of wood you choose, the quality of the deck’s construction, its maintenance, and how well you protect it from moisture and sun damage. By choosing Jay Fencing as your contractor for the wood deck project, you can be confident your deck will be well made, secure, and will spot a design that catches the eye. As a decking material, wood is fairly long-lasting, especially if it’s pressure treated, which is what we recommend. With regular maintenance, we can give your wood deck a life expectancy of up to 15 years. For how well it boosts your property’s curb appeal and expands its livable space, that represents a fair return on your investment. It’s also worth mentioning that wood decking comes in a range of options, all of which come with their unique qualities. That does mean, too, that some types of wood aren’t strong enough to use as decking material. You have to consider your choices carefully. What Is The Best Wood for Decking? Wood’s aesthetic qualities are undoubted. But for its suitability as a decking material, the type of wood you choose has to pass the durability test. Unless pressure-treated, softwoods are prone to rot and sun bleaching that you will not enjoy your deck for long before it falls apart. After pressure-treated softwoods, which is the most popular, redwood and cedar are your two most viable decking options. Redwood is a durable, good looking decking material that will keep its shape, maintain its looks, and stay safe to use for up to 25 years. It is stable, does not warp, and makes a great option. The only wrinkle is it doesn’t come cheap. In terms of maintenance, with the periodic reapplication of a sealer and regular cleaning, redwood will last the longest. Cedar, on the other hand, isn’t as hardy. Technically a softwood, the wood tends to splinter and is not as strong as redwood. But its natural resistance to rot is a redeeming quality. As soft as it is, cedar won’t do well as your main decking material. However, if you use it for the guard rails that don’t have to support a lot of weight, it offers a good way to bring down the overall cost of your deck, especially if you are using the pricier redwood. When Should I Replace My Wooden Deck? With proper care and maintenance, you can enjoy long and reliable service from your wooden deck. But it will not last forever. At some point, you will have to replace the deck, either because of a tired, weathered look or weakening structural strength. It is possible to extend your wooden deck’s life by replacing worn boards with new ones. That said, your deck is only as strong as the structure that supports it. For this reason, take care to regularly inspect your deck for structural damage on the posts and guard rails. Signs that a wood deck’s best days are behind it include wood rot, noticeable damage and excessive wear, loose boards, rusted hardware, and loose railings. And even without noticeable damage or structural instability, after 15 years of consistent use, your deck will eventually start to look its age. That will be a good time to invest in a new wood deck. Jay Fencing is an experienced contractor for decks and other outdoor wooden structures. We have completed many projects throughout Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph, Mississauga, Toronto, Hamilton and all of Southern Ontario. We are excited you are considering adding a wood deck to your property and are happy to guide you through the many deck design and construction options available. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Pergolas Make The Perfect Father’s Day Gift For The Outdoorsy Dad
Pergolas Make The Perfect Father’s Day Gift For The Outdoorsy Dad It’s father’s day, the one day of the year specially marked to celebrate the relationship between fathers and their children. And the best way to honor and toast this special day is with a gift. As always, we want our gifts to important people in our lives to be thoughtful and special. Often, we overthink it and wait until the last minute to buy the gift. But if your father is the outdoorsy type (all the fathers we know are), we have the perfect gift to save father’s day for you. A pergola will make the perfect father’s day gift. Pergolas Are The Perfect Excuse To Spend Time Outdoors As we get older, we naturally get contemplative and frequently prefer the peace and serenity of the outdoors. Fathers in particular often escape to the quiet seclusion of their backyards. This makes a pergola the ideal gift for an outdoorsy father. Help him entertain like a boss A pergola will give your dad some outdoor living space and the perfect opportunity to show off cherished tools. Think of that grill he loves to bring out when he invites his mates over. Add a few chairs and cushions for comfortable seating, and he has something akin to an outdoor man cave. With an investment in a few more braai tools and furniture, your dad’s pergola will be his own kitchen, where he can call the shots. A sheltered space from which to enjoy his garden On the days he just wants to sit and enjoy his drink without company, your pergola gift will be the place your father thinks to escape to. Does your father have a green thumb? We will assume the answer is yes. Of which you will know he enjoys nothing more than tending his green patch. If he is retired, you bet he spends most of his time out there nursing seedlings, planting, pulling weeds, pruning, trellising his plants, and fighting pests. In between all the grunt work, which we are sure is anything but that for him, your father is seating somewhere comfortable enjoying the fruit of his sweat. Why not give him a space he can enjoy sitting in? As far as gift ideas for one who enjoys the outdoors go, pergolas are the bees’ knees. A pergola is a relatively affordable gift to spoil your dad with. If you choose Jay’s Fencing as your contractor, it is very quick to build, too. We can have it up in a few hours. To surprise him, create a distraction by taking your dad out for a meal at his favorite restaurant. If he assumes it, let him believe the meal treat is his father’s day gift. He will want to appear grateful and take his time enjoying the meal. All the while we are finessing his real gift. But, what if he already has a pergola at his home? What To Gift A Father Who Already Owns A Pergola? Thankfully, there are many things you can do to dress up and furnish the pergola to suit your dad’s tastes and improve its functionality. You can dress it up to add more shade and make it more livable. If it’s looking dated, sanding, staining, and resealing it will give it a new lease of life. Basically, though, you want to update it to make it more inviting and feel like home. Cool the pergola with latticed wooden curtains Adding timber lattice curtains will bring a bit more privacy and add shade to the pergola without blocking the view of the garden. It isn’t too pretty to make the space less manly than your father may prefer. If your dad chooses to, the latticed sides will also provide a perfect trellis on which to train climbing plants he may want to grow to add even more shade to the pergola. Fastening a removable awning is another cool idea that adds shade and cools down the pergola in the hot summer heat. Add more seating space with a swing bench Help your dad reminisce about his childhood days, perhaps with his grandkids for company, by outfitting his pergola with a swing wooden bench. A good woodshop can fashion one with chains. A swing bench provides comfortable seating for him to enjoy some company, or to lose himself in a good book if he prefers that. It is a playful yet thoughtful gift that your old man will appreciate. Light it up for night use If he likes to entertain, adding some lighting (a rustic chandelier is a fun idea) and a dining table will turn your outdoorsy dad’s pergola into an alfresco sanctuary. It will allow him to host intimate dinners outside. We can think of many other ways to add shade, function, and style and make your father’s pergola the perfect nook for lounging and entertaining. Plants, for example, add life to any space, so hanging a few planters around the pergola is always a thoughtful idea. Gift Your Dad Something He Will Actually Use Your father will likely receive a lot of gifts from all the loved ones in his life. Some of these gifts will inevitably not be used that much. But yours will be because he can’t ignore it. It is right there in his face every time he steps out of the house. Pergolas are bang on trend as well. They are an easy way to accent your backyard and expand your father’s living space and a great way to add value and beauty to any property. For a dad who loves to cozy up in his backyard, especially in this age of social distancing, a pergola makes a fabulous present to gift and celebrate your dad this father’s day. Now that you have the perfect father’s day gift idea, who will build this pergola? Jay’s Fencing is an experienced designer and builder of pergolas, arbors, and other outdoor
How To Restore Your Wooden Fence After Toronto’s Brutal Winter
How’s your wooden fence looking after the winter season we have just had in Toronto? Hopefully, not too bad. Snow has the effect of making even ordinary landscapes look serene and beautiful. But for your wooden fences, it hardly ever feels like a winter wonderland, even with all your winter preparation efforts. The steep dip in temperature and the eventual thawing warps wood, causing it to shed that protective seal you had wisely protected it with. The wooden fence that emerges after winter often looks grey, tired, and old. This year’s winter was especially brutal. It was early, too. Not since 1951 has Toronto received its first heavy snowfall that early in the season. So now that it’s spring, how can you revive your wooden fence to look its best again? How To Restore Your Snow-Battered Wooden Fence Even though spring comes with rain in Toronto, it is now warm enough to give your fence the attention it desperately needs. Here are some fencing tips to help renew your wooden fence and bring back its rich, warm glow: 1. Check the fence’s stability Before you start any restoration work, it is important to first check the stability of the fence. The freezing of the ground can cause the soil to shift, which makes the fence’s posts loose and unstable. Excessive moisture can also cause the posts footing to rot. The rot isn’t easy to spot if you don’t physically test the strength of the fence. As any fencing expert will tell you, if the posts aren’t strong, the whole fence is unsafe. After you test all posts, you should be able to see which ones are shaky and which ones need to be repaired. As you sink new ones, ensure they are deep enough to get past the frost line. Only then can you be sure the posts will not loosen when the soil shifts again next winter. 2. Give the fence a good power wash Looking at your wooden fence’s tired, grey appearance, you may doubt it will ever look as good as it did before winter. But it will. After making sure the fence is stable, take out your power washer and give the fence a thorough clean. Power washing will remove any mold, dirt, and grime that may have built up as well as strip away dead cells. What you want is to strip the wood down to the fresh layer underneath. 3. Replace rusted nails and tighten loose boards With the fence clean and well dried, check to see if the power wash hasn’t exposed any rusted nails or made some boards loose. Replace the rusted nails. If there are any broken boards or battens, glue and tighten them. 4. Protect the fence with a wood preservative Now it’s time to protect the wood with a good wood preservative. Apply several coats of the preservative, paying particular attention to the base of the posts, which is the one part of your fence that’s most prone to rot. 5. Seal the wood with an oil stain Staining your fence will ensure the wood looks freshly restored for longer. If you want the wood to look as natural as possible, with its natural grain showing through, choose a semi-transparent oil seal. Remember, without added protection, the sun is going to bleach the wood’s natural colors before long. So choose a stain that has an ultraviolet inhibitor. It also helps if the sealer has mildew protection. Work the sealer into all the corners and board joints. Any spots you leave unsealed exposes the wood to moisture damage and discoloration. Wooden Fencing Requires Regular Maintenance Your wooden fence should now be looking as good as new. But, being wood, you will still need to regularly maintain it to fix issues before they compromise the fence’s stability and good looks. If the fence restoration and maintenance job is too demanding for you, or you just don’t have the time, remember Jay’s Fencing is here for you. At Jay’s Fencing, we are experts at installing, maintaining, and repairing all types of fences, including vinyl and chain-link fences. Contact us for a free consultation.