Hi Four Season Nursery & Landscaping! We used Rustoleum paint, but in hindsight we think that an opaque high quality exterior stain, like Cabot or Sherwin Williams, would have been a better choice. Repainting and re-staining wood pieces are usually necessary after a a number of seasons because of being exposed to the elements to some degree. When stain is originally applied to wood, it usually just needs a light sanding before re-staining. But, paint can need scraping along with sanding ...»