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Maintenance6 min read
The Honest Deck Maintenance Schedule (Composite, Cedar & PT)
What deck maintenance actually looks like across composite, cedar and pressure-treated builds — month by month and year by year.
Most "deck maintenance" articles read like a religious calendar — clean monthly, seal annually, sand bi-annually. The reality is much simpler. Here's what you actually need to do, broken down by material.
Composite decking
- Spring: One wash with warm soapy water and a soft-bristle brush. That's it.
- Mid-summer: Spot-clean any food spills or bird droppings within a day or two
- Fall: Clear leaves so they don't stain the boards over winter
- Winter: Plastic shovel only — never metal. Avoid rock salt; use calcium chloride if needed
Cedar decks
- Year 1: Let the cedar acclimate for 6–12 months before staining
- Year 1–2: Apply a UV-blocking semi-transparent stain to lock in the colour
- Every 2–3 years: Clean and re-stain. Cedar that's not maintained turns silver — beautiful to some, neglected-looking to others
- Annual: Check for any nail/screw pops, especially around perimeter boards
Pressure-treated decks
- Year 1: Wait 6 months before sealing — fresh PT is still drying out
- Every 2–3 years: Pressure wash, light sand, apply solid or semi-transparent stain/sealer
- Every 7–10 years: Inspect for rot at posts and ledger; replace any soft boards
Mistakes that destroy decks
- Power washing too aggressively (rips up wood fibres, causes splintering)
- Using deck cleaner with chlorine bleach (degrades wood and metal hardware)
- Leaving leaves and snow piled against the house ledger — that's how rot starts
- Planters with no saucers sitting directly on boards (traps moisture)