Should I prime my deck before painting ?
by
Donna
At the moment the railings are painted, not the deck floors. We live in Minnesota and the snow and salt we put down because of the ice, have taken it's toll on the painted areas.
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Always prime. Always. That said, Behr makes a paint and primer in one but when I used it, it dried so quick I couldn't go back and fix any little drips. If you are rolling it on that might not be a problem. Here is a link to their site so you can determine if they have a Deckover product that doesn't require primer. Hope that helps.
http://www.behr.com/consumer/products/wood-stains-finishes-cleaners-and-strippers/behr-premium-deckover
Definitely! When dealing with wood, you're dealing with a naturally porous material. The grain of the wood absorbs whatever you apply to it, and rarely is wood consistently porous with the same grain all the way through. Without priming, the wood will absorb the paint at different rates, resulting in an uneven paint finish. Priming fills in the small pores and grain of the wood, resulting in a flat surface that will not absorb extra paint or moisture from rain or spills, which can lead to mold and rotting. Priming also blocks internal oils, resins and stains from soaking up through the paint.
Deck over products are fairly new and have gotten many bad reviews. Main problen is they tend to crack and peel within two years. Removing them is a major problem. Some people had to replace parts if their decking because some could not be removed. BEHR has settled with many customers by refunding their purchase. I wouldn't use it.