deck staining

[frankieromance]

how long should u wait to stain a deck? i heard u should wait about 3 months so the pressure treated wood gets acclimated to the outside elements.
do u need to use a primer first? i thought they make a stain that has a primer/sealer all in one.

[lefty]

frankieromance,

Read through the past few threads in this forum on the subject. The jury is still out, and nobody here has a definitive answer for you.

Me -- I'm on the left coast. PT lumber is used as mudsill, but if I get really picky, I can find enough to use as framing material for a deck -- posts, girders, and joists. To use it as the decking material itself?? NOT A CHANCE!! Why should I? What's available here is redwood and all of the various composites and vinyls.

Pricewise, there really isn't much of a difference. Redwood CH 2X6 is about $2.00 a linear foot. Compostites run between $2.00 and $2.50 a linear foot at 6" wide, and vinyl is about $2.60. That all works out to less than $1.50 per sq. ft. difference in price for the deck. Average deck of about 400 sq. ft., that's about a $600 difference. If I'm building a 400 sq. ft. deck, that's $8,000, give or take. $600 one way or the other isn't going to make or break the deal. (NOT IF THE CUSTOMER IS SMART!!)

[frankieromance]

guy what r u talking about? i asked a staining question. lol.

[marksr]

As lefty said you will find a lot of disagreement on how long to wait. There are products that claim they can be used imediatetly. I have always believed it is best to have the wood as dry as possible before applying any paint or sealer. PT wood can take anywhere from 3 months to a year to dry and weather enough to properly be coated. Generally when the wood is starting to loose its new color it is ready for stain/paint.

[Hellrazor]

Wait and stain it before winter sets in. The companies that tell you to stain instantly just want you to buy more stain.