The product was gifted as part of an instagram collaboration with Ronseal (click here to see it) but I decided to do this blog post myself as I struggled to find other reviews on the topic of white stains for decking. Words and views are my own. Links may be affiliate, read privacy policy for further info.
I love the calm and relaxing vibes that comes from white flooring as you may know from the previous blog post about “How I painted my living room flooring in white” Therefore I was curious if I could also stain my small little garden decking in a white colour.
If you are interested to find out how this garden came back from hell, check this blog article on how we renovated it last year here.
AFTER - An Easy Update with White Wash Stain BEFORE - natural wood decking
It has been difficult to find the right paint here in the UK, I guess it is not a very mainstream colour and perhaps people think that rainy days means you cannot have a white decking, but Iād like to disagree if it makes you happy do it!
Getting Inspired
In terms of inspiration I have come across some white decking and felt in love with the idea of having my own.
@ThreeBirdRenovation have made from “white decking”, kind of their design signature. I came across a few of their design a few years ago and loved it. It has that cool kids cafe on the beach vibes. Sure, they do live in sunny Australia, but if I have a good waterproof stain, perhaps It could be feasible to reproduce this look for an outdoor london patio in rainy England I thought?
Living in the city, I need a place to retrieve, contemplate and forget it all so I thought this type of soft colour would bring a feeling of peacefulness to the garden. I already painted the fence in a soft colour (Muted Clay from Cuprinol, click to shop) and so a white deck is a nice extension to the soft hues choice.
Stain/Paint or Replace?
I decided to stain the decking because it still has a few years of life ahead even though it is quite old, but there are now materials alternative to wood that are more modern and durable and require little to no maintenance and perhaps in the future we will have a look at that. I have in mind Composite Wood. Check this article for a comparison Wood Decking VS Composite Wood Decking.
My Own Experience - How to use the product
Tools and material needed:
- White Wash Stain - Click to shop
- Large brush to clean the dust from the planks as you go along - click to shop
- Small roller (to stain) - click to shop
- Small paint brush to stain the angles. - click to shop
Last year, I used a Decking Stripper (click to shop) to remove old oil stain and paint and let the decking weathered because at the time I didnāt know what to do with it.
Therefore this year I only had to do the following:
(You donāt necessarily need to strip your decking, it will depend on the condition of your decking, mine is old and was in poor condition, this staining is probably the last thing we do before eventually having to replace it in a few years, so check product tin for explanation or ask at your DIY shop.)
- Check the weather forecast for 4-5 days with no upcoming rain.
- Clean the decking with a Pressure Washer.
- Let the deck dry for 2 days.
- Proceeded with staining the decking
- Wait about 3 hours between coats.
- Let it dry for one day before moving furniture. Then repeat the proccess under the moved furniture.
- Oh, an important tip is to stir the Stain thoroughly every time you fetch more stain to ensure coverage consistency. I struggled a bit at the beginning but that is extremely important to do.
It took me 4 coats to get to my final desired look (opaque white) even if the pot recommends two coats. So if you want an opaque look, it will take a bit more work. Painting outside doesnāt feel too much of a chore to me as I put my headphones on and listen to an audiobook or podcast while I do it, it turned out to be pretty relaxing and if there is no rain forecasted there is really no reasons to rush it.
The Process
I am really pleased with the final look and I cannot wait for sunny days to lounge in my little garden oasis.
Marlene
