When we bought our house, there was so much to do inside the house that working on the outside was just not an option. The time finally came to stain our weathered deck and create an outdoor space to enjoy. Below are the steps and supplies we used to tackle a deck renewal.

The first thing I did before tackling the project was research on how to do it right.

The deck had old stain that was coming off and we knew we needed a clean slate. In order to do this, we power washed the dirt and any flaking paint off.

Next, we applied paint stripper and got off as much of the previous stain as we could. We thought we might be able to move forward with staining the deck after this, but after seeing the condition of the wood and knowing that we wanted the stain to adhere well, we rented a deck sander from a local tool rental business. The sanding was pretty painless and Cody’s biggest suggestion is to swap out the sanding pads frequently to get the best results.

After the sanding was done, it was time to choose the stain color. This is where I made a mistake. I chose a tan color that ended up looking white on the deck. It looked awful! If I had done more research about good deck colors, I would have known to steer clear of light colors. Cody didn’t know that I chose the color, but he was not impressed. We used one can of stain and knew that we would have to start over.

I went back to Lowes and chose a different color…gray. We are super happy with the results because it is still light, but it doesn’t clash with the siding of our home or show every single speck of dirt.

Read the directions on the stains carefully. The stain we used requires three consecutive days of 55 degrees or higher and not staining in direct sunlight. A warm overcast day is ideal for application. We did get some moisture, but it did not affect the end result.

The original white color ended up acting as a primer for the gray. Two coats of stain was just right.

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I have included the outdoor dining table set we got, the rug and our new grill in the image links below, in case you are hoping to add these elements to your deck too.

Materials list:

Pressure Washer

Paint Stripper

Deck Sander (Rent it from a local tool rental business or home improvement store)

Deck Stain

Paint pan, paint roller and paint roller extender

Recap of Deck Renewal Process:

We have since enjoyed several small gatherings on our deck and lots of family dinners. The work was totally worth it. I hope you feel confident to work on your own deck renewal and make the deck another inviting space for you and others to enjoy for years to come!

Quick tip if you want to add a sandbox to your backyard–buy your sand from a landscape company. We bought a yard of play sand and it filled a very large sandbox. It was much less expensive than buying individual bags from a store. It was about $35 dollars for a yard of sand.