Just finishing installing a 1000 sqf red cedar deck at my house and I always had it in the back of my head that I would give it a quick sand when I was finished to remove the burrs and pencil marks, and then seal it with a Behr waterproof finish.
Anyway I had a friend over that refinishes floors and asked him if he was interested in giving it a quick sand, since he has the equipment and figured it would only take 1-2 hrs, he said that the cedar shouldn't be sanded or sealed. Thoughts?
If you want it to continue to look new, you will have to seal it periodically. Otherwise you can let it weather, it will last a long time, and perhaps power wash it down once a year or so (but be careful of the pressure you use).
Is it exposed to the weather? If you want it to last, look good, not splinter, crack, and rot, then yes. I dont now about the Behr, but use a good penetrating oil stain. And yes you will need to re-stain it every 2-4 years. You don't need to sand it, unless there are spots you want to fix. All you need to do is look at decks that haven't been stained, they look like crap after a few years, I've had both.
If you want it to go silver, then do nothing.
I built a 12 x 16 cedar deck this summer. Used Superdeck Brightener, then sanded it, then used Superdeck single coat Transparent Stain to seal it. Water is beading on the planks.
It looks fantastic.
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