Brandon, There are dozens of stain, sealer and paint products out there. In the 20 + years I have been a home owner, and the 10 or so years I have been a professional carpenter building decks, remodeling etc. The best products I have found are the class of oil based penetrating sealers and stain. I have been using Penofin on my deck since I installed it about 14 years ago. Other products that receive good reports are sikkens, cabots and some from Behr. I would avoid surface coatings,
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and water based products like Thompsons.
The Penofin product I use has a transoxide pigment and blocks 99% of the UV light that can damage wood. One of Penofin newest products is their Verde line which is their "zero" VOC green product. When spring finally comes around I'm going to give it a try on my Ipe deck...I have been using the hardwood formulation for years.
All of the following photos, by Kevin Stevens..KMS Woodworks
We recommend you let your deck dry for a minimum of four weeks after construction before we apply a penetrating sealer. The problem with new wood is that the grains are closed and the wood still contains natural chemicals called tannins and mill glaze. If left to nature, it would take 3-6 months for the grain to open and the natural chemicals to leach out. By using a combination of powerwashing and mill glaze remover, we can speed up this process. "One Time Wood Protector" is a good product.
The Penofin product I use has a transoxide pigment and blocks 99% of the UV light that can damage wood. One of Penofin newest products is their Verde line which is their "zero" VOC green product. When spring finally comes around I'm going to give it a try on my Ipe deck...I have been using the hardwood formulation for years.
All of the following photos, by Kevin Stevens..KMS Woodworks
Thanks for all the info.