- 1). Crawl underneath the deck and use a hand-held spray mister to squirt a small amount of water in the underside of the deck, directly onto the wood. Watch to see which wood easily soaks up water; note which planks are soaking up the water, and mark each one with a pencil for future reference.
- 2). Spray or brush on a commercially available deck cleaner over each marked plank, and scrub the wood with a hand-held bristle brush. This cleans the wood and will allow the sealant to better penetrate the belly of the wood to attain better water resistance. Repair any cracks or splits on the wooden planks, using wood putty and a putty knife.
- 3). Spray or brush on an oil- or water-based sealant. Which type you use is basically a matter of preference, as the cost is about the same per container, but the general consensus is that oil-based deck sealants will last a little while longer than water-based sealants. Sealant can be applied using a paint roller or a paint sprayer; regardless, make sure you apply even coats across the entire surface of the board to make sure the board is properly sealed. Follow these steps to seal every board you marked until the deck is properly sealed.
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