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I moved to the PNW 10 years ago and thought the rotting decks everywhere were hilarious. Until I got my own of course. IDK why people keep building uncovered wo

I moved to the PNW 10 years ago and thought the rotting decks everywhere were hilarious. Until I got my own of course. IDK why people keep building uncovered wooden decks here. It's like they can't see what's happening to their neighbors's house. I think a lot of what has gone wrong here is the midcentuey California housing boom & bust pushed Cali builders here. WA state finally adopted some sensible building codes in 1997 (I think it was 97) and 2017 but everything before then has massive issues with water. Bad or inadequate flashing jobs, unprotected windows, doors and decks, inappropriate grade along houses, inadequate sewer and irrigation drainage. I could go on.

elihu 6y ago
I've heard a similar thing about what people who build houses on the Oregon coast think about the way people build houses further inland (or who move from inland and try to build on the coast). The coast gets more rain and stronger wind, so it's better if you think of it not as building a house but rather building a submarine. That's what I've heard, anyways. I also don't understand what the deal is with uncovered wooden decks in places that get significant rain. It seems like taunting nature to wreck your stuff.
- mindslight 6y ago
  I think decks are DIY magnets, so people may be expending more effort than sense - Decks tie into the house in a single place, and you can build as much of a foundation as you'd like. They require no special tools, and the wind ties effectively work as jigs that guide you through joining wood. You can demo and build a new one, without impinging on your living situation. All of the work is outside. If it falls apart, there is no pressing need to replace it.
StillBored 6y ago
I live in Austin, and there are plenty of rotting decks here too. But its mostly from three things, that incredibly shitty water based stain sealer which is 100% useless, the use of 1" deck boards, and/or the use of soft cedar. I replaced 2" rotten cedar which was resting on 20+ year old pressure treated (and sunk in concrete footers) decking where the structure looked like it was good for another 20+ years with 2x6 pressure treated structural lumber+yearly pressure wash+oil seal/stain put down at a gallon or so every 100 sqft with a roller. The wood is checked, but none of the checking has gone more than a 1/4 the way through and 15 years in (on the oldest version of this ive done), it looks about the same as it did at year 2. I don't see any indications it won't last another 15 years, there isn't a drop of rot anywhere. Its probably toxic as all get out, but I don't eat off it and outside of a week or two before the sun burns all the VOCs off I can't imagine its really out-gassing much. The biggest problem was that oil based stain/sealers were getting really hard to acquire for a few years, but even the big box places have it again if you look. Untreated pine (along with harder teak/mahogany/etc) was used in sailing ships for hundreds of years, in some of the worst enviroments. If you pay attention, a wood deck shouldn't really be any worse than wood siding on a house. Personally I think a large part of the problem has been those water based deck sealers/stains which despite claims of wood penetration are just thin coats on the top of the wood which don't flex/swell with the wood and quickly are doing absolutely nothing but creating a layer between the wood and the sealer for moisture/rot to form. Put another way, i've yet to see a case where the stuff won't peel off after a couple years. Its basically really bad exterior paint. OTOH, the oil based sealers are linseed/etc and soak in and bind with previous layers, so you can switch from a stain to a clear after a couple years to maintain a particular color.
- DubiousPusher 6y ago
  Oil based stain is the only way to go for sure. And cedar is definitely part of the problem. We purchased and refinished a Rainbow playset for my kid a couple years ago. We sanded out all the rot and old stain and used a very nice oil based stain. It held up much better but the cedar parts till needed constant maintenance. The redwood posts and beams it came with however looked new after a light sanding and staining and there was never an issue with them.

elihu 6y ago

I've heard a similar thing about what people who build houses on the Oregon coast think about the way people build houses further inland (or who move from inland and try to build on the coast). The coast gets more rain and stronger wind, so it's better if you think of it not as building a house but rather building a submarine. That's what I've heard, anyways. I also don't understand what the deal is with uncovered wooden decks in places that get significant rain. It seems like taunting nature to wreck your stuff.

mindslight 6y ago
I think decks are DIY magnets, so people may be expending more effort than sense - Decks tie into the house in a single place, and you can build as much of a foundation as you'd like. They require no special tools, and the wind ties effectively work as jigs that guide you through joining wood. You can demo and build a new one, without impinging on your living situation. All of the work is outside. If it falls apart, there is no pressing need to replace it.

StillBored 6y ago

I live in Austin, and there are plenty of rotting decks here too. But its mostly from three things, that incredibly shitty water based stain sealer which is 100% useless, the use of 1" deck boards, and/or the use of soft cedar. I replaced 2" rotten cedar which was resting on 20+ year old pressure treated (and sunk in concrete footers) decking where the structure looked like it was good for another 20+ years with 2x6 pressure treated structural lumber+yearly pressure wash+oil seal/stain put down at a gallon or so every 100 sqft with a roller. The wood is checked, but none of the checking has gone more than a 1/4 the way through and 15 years in (on the oldest version of this ive done), it looks about the same as it did at year 2. I don't see any indications it won't last another 15 years, there isn't a drop of rot anywhere. Its probably toxic as all get out, but I don't eat off it and outside of a week or two before the sun burns all the VOCs off I can't imagine its really out-gassing much. The biggest problem was that oil based stain/sealers were getting really hard to acquire for a few years, but even the big box places have it again if you look. Untreated pine (along with harder teak/mahogany/etc) was used in sailing ships for hundreds of years, in some of the worst enviroments. If you pay attention, a wood deck shouldn't really be any worse than wood siding on a house. Personally I think a large part of the problem has been those water based deck sealers/stains which despite claims of wood penetration are just thin coats on the top of the wood which don't flex/swell with the wood and quickly are doing absolutely nothing but creating a layer between the wood and the sealer for moisture/rot to form. Put another way, i've yet to see a case where the stuff won't peel off after a couple years. Its basically really bad exterior paint. OTOH, the oil based sealers are linseed/etc and soak in and bind with previous layers, so you can switch from a stain to a clear after a couple years to maintain a particular color.

DubiousPusher 6y ago
Oil based stain is the only way to go for sure. And cedar is definitely part of the problem. We purchased and refinished a Rainbow playset for my kid a couple years ago. We sanded out all the rot and old stain and used a very nice oil based stain. It held up much better but the cedar parts till needed constant maintenance. The redwood posts and beams it came with however looked new after a light sanding and staining and there was never an issue with them.