We have hired a company to refinish our deck. When they sent us a proposal, they specified two coats of their sealant. When workers came, they acted all surprised when I requested that they come again to put the second coat. I had to talk on the phone to the "manager" who tried to convince me that I do not need two coats, that it was a mistake etc. Their sealant, upon close examination, appears to be an oil based stain diluted with solvent such as mineral spirits. They said that second coat of that product will not penetrate and the deck will forever remain oily.
My general and limited woodworking experience suggests that for a 20 year old and dry weathered wood, it will absorb an additional coat. I requested that they leave a little bit of their sealant and tried applying it again today, and alas, it was absorbed by the wood after I wiped off the excess. I am sure that a second coat will make the treatment last longer.
So I do want a second coat. Any thoughts on my decision making process?
The color that they applied is called california cedar, but is more reminiscent of baby s*it. That's to say that it is brown and not very transparent. But it looks not so bad and it was our choice.
What I am thinking about however, is VARNISHING the deck on top of coating. Both the treatment and varnish would be oil based. I will thusly benefit from their sanding of the deck, and their treatment will allow me to use less varnish. I tried varnishing one rail with captain's spar urethane, and it looked frankly pretty good. Has anyone varnished a weathered deck? Is that a crazy idea? Maybe I should varnish rails only?
Thanks!
i