To prepare for winter, treat your wood right

Cleaning and sealing the wood helps keep it looking good.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The cool autumn air serves as a reminder that it's time to seal decks and fences.
"Fall is our busiest time," says Dave Sullivan, owner of Wood Re New, an outdoor wood cleaning and preservation company. "People are looking ahead to winter."
The cold, snowy season is damaging to untreated exterior wood. Any time wood gets wet, it swells. When it dries, it contracts. And when it freezes, it starts splitting open and nails start to pop out.
Having a deck treated professionally can cost between $400 and $600. Prices vary depending on the deck's style, the wood's condition, the height and other factors. Fence sealing can be more expensive. The cost ranges from $500 to $1,000, depending on the intricacy and length of the fence.
To clean and seal exterior wood yourself, prepare to spend a little more than $50 for cleaning supplies, a spray applicator, sealer and bristle brush at the hardware store.
One suggestion
If you want to get the wood especially clean, you might want to consider a power washer, which can be rented for about $60 a day at equipment rental companies, or purchased starting about $200. "People aren't always confident about using a power washer, which gets the wood cleanest," Sullivan says. "They can gouge wood with one."
Exterior wood turns gray from dirt and the weather. When it's cleaned and sealed, the more vibrant brown color returns. People should treat their decks and fences about every 18 months to keep them looking good and to prevent mold, which rots wood, Sullivan says. Cleaning and treating wood is usually a two-day process, he says.
Stan Hendricks, assistant manager at Strasser Hardware in Kansas City, Kan., gives this advice about cleaning and sealing exterior wood: Aim for a warm day. You want it to be 50 degrees or warmer at night, and you don't want it to rain for 24 hours after you do the work.
"This is the perfect time to do it because there's not as much rain as in the spring," Hendricks says. People can typically work on their decks and fences from now until November.