Decks are a very special part of your home. Some people look at their decks as a piece of fine furniture. Some people just try to keep them as long as they can. Decks have life cycles. The care of a deck varies on how old it is and how much money you want to spend. The longevity of a deck goes back to the first time you treat the wood. Depending on what you apply and how you apply your first coating will have a lot to do with how long your deck will live. The biggest mistake people make with decks is that they get tired of taking care of them. It becomes something you put off because you have other things you’d rather do. This becomes easy to ignore because you really do not see the damage that is taking place for quite a while. A new deck can cost $8,000.00 to $40,000 and it will last 10 years to twenty years. The trouble is when its rotted out it will cost double to replace. The walking surface and the supports are the most important parts to a deck and you should re-coat these yearly. The rest of the deck should hold up well and requires attention only every 5-7 years. Flat surfaces, on the deck, are quick and easy to care for. We find most people would not have a problem re-coating this part of the deck annual. The problem is that re-coating the flat surface gets put off because people don’t want to re-coat the pickets and handrail system, so they neglect their deck’s maintenance. I have seen people re-coat their deck every year for a couple years and just stop. They wait for the deck to cave in before calling a professional. We started to refinish a deck last summer and found it was mostly saw dust. If the home owner would have had a big party they may have given their guests a 12 foot drop on that sunny afternoon. This deck was maintained pretty well during its last four years, but prior to that it was not treated. It took $20,000 in repairs to make it safe again. Please call us to inspect your deck, we can offer options to help give your deck the life it deserves. Call Just Details Painting today and make an appointment to receive a free quote.