Adding a Deck
You’ve probably had a lot of long and leisurely summer evenings hanging out on your house’s deck or someone else’s, and you know how great it is. You can also strongly increase the value of your property by adding a deck to it.
According to Home Remodeling Magazine, if you sell a home that has a deck, you’ll get back around 80 percent of what you spent on adding it. You will also probably be more likely to sell the house if you have a nice patio with a deck.
People love decks. However, if you have a deck, you will need to make sure that the elements and various pests are not going to harm your investment.
Hazards for Decks
Wood rot is one of the biggest threats facing your deck. Decks are also frequently threatened by termites and similar bugs. Termites will actually form tunnels in the wood.
One of the worst parts about termite infestation is that it’s possible for them to destroy decks on a structural level. You might not mind a few partially weathered areas. However, with enough termite damage, a deck might collapse altogether.
Wood rot can be even worse than termites. Dry rot can start to spread throughout your deck. Usually, the dry rot will get established in wood that is damp. From there, it can spread to the healthier and drier pieces of wood. The fruiting fungus or spore growth can start to give everything away.
Wet rot and dry rot are actually different, and this is the sort of thing that can make the situation even more frustrating. Wet rot will only attract mold, which can still strongly damage the deck even though it’s not going to cause it to collapse. You might be able to smell something musty if mold is present. The deck boards might get a little weaker as well, which can be a more severe problem. There might be some visible fungal growth as well.
Keeping Decks Safe and Clean
The best thing that you can do when it comes to deck maintenance is cleaning it regularly. There are lots of great deck cleaners out there. You will be able to make the emerging mold, dirt, and mildew vanish when you clean your deck.
Many people will get their deck painted and sealed in order to avoid mold, dirt and mildew. You might have to renew the paint job each year however.
Painting and sealing a deck will make it look better in general, and this is something that you can keep in mind.
Deck Inspections
Getting a deck inspected each and every year will also make a big difference when you are trying to find a way to keep everything in good condition. You need to make sure that your deck is in good shape, and you won’t always be able to figure that out by only looking at it. If you clean the deck on a regular basis, you probably won’t need deck inspection too often. It’s all about maintaining the appropriate level of maintenance and care.
