Terrace board coating types: oil, varnish and paint. How to process a larch decking board on the street: impregnation and painting of the floor on the terrace The better to cover the veranda

WPC decking decking is an option for those buyers who value their time, money and do not really like to constantly repair and tint something. However, they also ask questions about changing the appearance of a polymer board.

We are somehow used to painting wooden flooring: once every few years, country romance with brushes, brushes, wood primer (or without it), the smell of paints and varnishes ... For some, this reminds of childhood, someone likes to regularly change shades and interiors, and for someone - this is a real punishment because of the fuss, waste of time and money, chemical stench and dubious results.

We answer the main question of our article: yes, it is possible to paint a WPC terrace board, BUT IT IS NOT NEEDED!

You shouldn't do this for the following reasons:

Reason #1 - Loss of Warranty

Manufacturers give guarantees for their products - from 2-3 to 25 years - subject to proper operation. All operating features are usually listed in the instructions for use, warranty booklet or product brochure. The vast majority of manufacturers directly say that WPC terraces do not need coloring. And in the warranty documents, as a rule, it is said that the painted composite board is not subject to exchange. If there is no such item, but it is mentioned in the recommendations, then the seller or manufacturer has every right to refuse warranty service.

Reason number 2 - low degree of adhesion

WPC is poorly exposed to the staining process, as it has low adhesion. Adhesion is the ability of a material to adhere strongly to a painted surface. This definition is given by most reference books. If the adhesion is high, then the paint lays down easily, adheres well to the surface and stays on it for a long time: it does not crack, does not chip off without objective reasons. If the adhesion is low, then the paint will not adhere to it well, stains or unpainted areas may remain during the staining process. When dry, the paint can quickly peel off, and the surface will look, to put it mildly, not in the best way.

Is your decision to paint your composite terrace still unsettled? Then study the building recommendations for the technology of painting complex surfaces. Here are the most common ones:

Clean the surface from dust and dirt,
Degrease the surface with special compounds (or alcohol solution), if necessary,
Apply one or more coats of primer suitable for the surface. For WPC, a primer for complex surfaces is most likely suitable. Salespeople at home improvement stores know what they're talking about and will help you make the right choice.
After the primer has dried, apply the paint with a brush or roller. If necessary, repeat the procedure after the paint has dried.

Reason #3 - Extra Cost of High Quality Primer and Paint

Primers and paints for low-adhesion surfaces are expensive because they are expensive to manufacture. Special binders, oils, solvents and other constituent substances are distributed in a certain proportion for the best result on each specific surface. For example, there are primers and paints for furniture with an old varnish coating, for ceramic tiles, glass, even laminate. Although who came up with the idea to paint the laminate? Is it just to create a special design pattern. In this case, the laminate also loses its warranty.

Reason number 4 - a dubious result in case of violation of staining technologies

If you do not follow the coloring technology or use the wrong paint, the result can be very deplorable: peeling paint, streaks, wasted time and spoiled mood.

But not all is lost here either. The terrace can be cleaned of paint with a metal brush or a grinder with an appropriate nozzle, that is, a brushing process can be carried out. This should be done carefully, with gentle movements, so as not to completely spoil the terrace board. There are some nuances here:

The brush cleans the fibers from the surface with paint,

The grinder is quite aggressive

When brushing, small particles fly into the air, so you need to work in a mask, glasses and gloves,

Even brushing and sanding do not guarantee the excellent appearance of the flooring after unsuccessful staining.

Remember that WPC (deck board) was designed as a low maintenance finish, so it does not need to be painted. And it is better not to experiment. And if you really want to somehow enliven the terrace, get bright chairs, make a backlight or sew round American-style poufs. This is much easier than painting the composite. And much more interesting.

Having decided to cover any open area of the house or backyard with a special coating in the form of a terraced board, many owners are wondering how to protect such a surface from the destructive influence of environmental factors. The article will discuss how to cover the terrace board in order to increase its service life and maintain aesthetics.

Wood flooring processing

Today there is a huge variety of substances designed to improve the performance of wood elements in the construction of outdoor floors.

In the article we are talking about a specific floor covering - a terrace board. This material is not natural wood, but it must also be protected from moisture, sunlight and wind.

Using the substances in question can improve the aesthetics and service life of the coating. These substances include oil, various impregnations and paints and varnishes. Before covering the decking board with one of these substances, you need to familiarize yourself with their characteristics and features, which are described later in the article.

It is important to take this information seriously if the owner wants the floors in his house to be beautiful, and they would not be ashamed to publish them in a photo on social networks or present them to guests.

Impregnation for decking

Even though the terrace board itself is extremely resistant to various types of impact, it still needs to be treated with substances in order to improve the protective characteristics.

The main sources that slowly damage such a coating:

biological: rodents, mold, fungus, insects, etc.;
natural: temperature fluctuations and their limit values, intense precipitation, icing, deformation and rapid aging of wood coatings;
mechanical: impact, scratching, wiping during operation, etc.

You can do all the flooring work yourself. In this case, it is necessary to use various impregnations. Antiseptic agents can become protection against biological factors.

There are two main types of such funds:

indelible - solutions based on oils;
washable - water-based.

Most often, antiseptic treatment of decking occurs at the production stage. In addition, no one forbids the use of impregnations, since there is no limit to increasing the reliability of the floor covering. The service life of such a coating can also be increased significantly.

It is very important to know that different parts of the deck board are covered with different types of impregnation:

the end sides must be treated with wax emulsion impregnations, since these areas are most susceptible to moisture, which means that resistance to this factor must be increased;
antiseptics are intended for the bottom of the board, since it is there that direct contact with the base occurs and the risk of fungus formation or insect reproduction is high;
on the front side, it is best to apply decking oil or paints and varnishes.

Selection and application of oils

If there are doubts about what treatment to perform directly on the front side of the coating, then you will have to choose between varnish and oils.

Consider the main advantages of oil impregnation:

the degree of protection against moisture increases and the process of cleaning the coating is facilitated;
oil does an excellent job of protecting against dirt;
the oil layer does not peel off and does not blister, unlike the lacquer one, therefore you can carry out the coating yourself without any special conditions;
the active ingredients contained in the composition of the oil effectively combat cracking and drying of wood, which are inevitable in the fresh air;
the oil very well highlights the naturalness of the wood in the composition of the decking, and does not hide the natural texture, like paint and varnish coatings. Therefore, before painting the wooden floor on the terrace, think about the aesthetics of the result if you want to show guests in the future or post beautiful wood floors in a photo on social networks, and not primitive painted ones (read: "");
The oil is excellent at blocking UV rays.

It is best to use modern oil formulations to cover decking boards. They are universal protection of the coating from the processes of decay, the negative effects of moisture and pollution.

Varieties of oil compositions

Before treating the floor on an open terrace with an oil composition, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the main types of such substances.

You can apply any composition on your own, and today there are several varieties of oils:

having the effect of toning;
containing in its composition natural wax components;
with antibacterial effect;
eliminate the sliding effect.

It is possible to increase the strength characteristics of the surface with the help of wax oils. If you want to give the coating an original shade and prevent the formation of mold, it is recommended to use oils with an antibacterial effect and tinting.

In the cold season, it will be more practical to use oils that eliminate the slip effect, which will definitely manifest itself when the humidity rises. Among other things, such a coating will receive the effect of moisture repellency.

There are natural and synthetic oils. Indoors, of course, you can use natural compounds, but their protective effect is weaker than that of artificial ones.

In street conditions, their use becomes impractical. However, from a design point of view, natural oils are more attractive, as they give the coating an original shine.

Use of oils

There is a certain sequence of actions that can be performed independently to process the coverage:

Boards must be free of dust and debris.
It is necessary to apply the oil composition with a roller, brush or sponge. Processing must be subjected to the end and back of the board. Before and during the application of decking, the oil should be stirred vigorously to achieve uniformity.
It is important to carefully study the instructions for using oil impregnation, since sometimes the manufacturer requires re-applying the composition a few hours after the first procedure.
Laying of treated boards can be carried out approximately one week after treatment, so that the treated wood has time to reach its maximum condition.

Lacquering on deck boards

Decking varnish, which is currently available in two main varieties, will help increase the service life and facilitate the care of the floor covering:

yacht varnish;
facade varnish.

Any of these types can be applied independently, but before covering the wooden floors on the terrace open to the influence of natural factors, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the pros and cons of each of the varieties of varnish.

Yacht varnish gives the coating the highest wear resistance and hardness. They can be used very effectively inside the house, but they are not suitable for the street because such a coating will not last more than one year.

The disadvantage of this composition arose because the varnish does not tolerate the natural deformation of wood, having poor elasticity. Before treating a decking board with a yacht varnish in outdoor conditions, it is worthwhile to understand that the coating will soon peel off and crack.

Such a composition cannot be restored, since its restoration implies a complete cleaning of the coating and applying varnish again. This process requires a significant amount of effort and time.

Facade varnish has the best characteristics, and in particular, it has the same elasticity that is required for outdoor use.

The disadvantage of such compositions is excessive softness, which does not contribute to increased wear resistance during operation. In this case, cleaning the coating is unacceptable, because a soft varnish will clog any grinder in just a few of its revolutions.

Decking boards

Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that the varnish coating is not very suitable for processing terrace boards.

An alternative agent for treating such a coating is decking paint, which can also be applied on its own.

You can use the following types of paints:

Based on oils and alkyds. Cheap formulations that allow reapplication over existing oil paint. Such compositions do not possess reliability and long service life.
Water-based based on acrylic components. This type of paint is applied perfectly to the wood coating and gives them additional protection from various natural factors. It is important that the purchased composition is initially ready for wood processing and does not require its preparation using complex technology. Cleaning the coating treated with such paints is very simple: a simple wet cleaning is enough.
Polyurethane. If the owner wants to increase the wear resistance of the coating, then this type of paint is ideal. The strength of this composition increases the characteristics of the boards and protects them from wiping during operation. The duration of operation in this case can be increased by a period of about 10 years.
Latex. An excellent composition, well adhering to the surface, odorless and serving for a very long time. It is said that latex paint creates the effect of "breathing" wood.

Based on this description, you need to choose for yourself in advance how to paint the floor on the terrace, taking into account the parameters of the room in a particular house.

Operation of the treated decking board

Based on the descriptions that are presented in this article, it is possible to clearly determine how to cover the floor of the terrace open to the influence of natural factors.

In addition to how to process the coating, you need to take care of it so that the positive effects are not lost over time:

monthly, the floor should be washed with soapy water, which is important to completely wash to prevent the formation of stains;
boards should always be swept and cleaned from fallen leaves and dirt;
the seams between the boards must be cleaned of debris clogged in them, as this will significantly improve air circulation under the coating;
scratches can be avoided if furniture and household appliances are provided with rubber footrests during transportation.

When cleaning the surface of the decking board, it is best to follow the following recommendations:

snow and ice can be removed with calcium chloride or rock salt, a plastic shovel and brush. As soon as the products have been applied and the result has been achieved, it is recommended to rinse the surface additionally;
rust spots on the surface can be removed with acids;
stubborn dirt can be removed by making an effort and scrubbing with an ordinary soapy solution and a stiff brush;
greasy stains on the floor can be cleaned with chemicals or hot water;
wine, berry, chalk and ink stains are removed with hot soapy water or bleach diluted in the correct proportion;
stains from cigarette butts, paints or acids can be removed by sanding the surface of the board;
Prevention of scratches on the coating can be done by regularly grinding the floor surface.

Outcome

This article describes in detail the main tools for processing wood materials and specifically decking. If there are certain difficulties with this procedure or there is no desire to perform it, then you can always turn to specialists.

Professional companies will not only process the coating, but also select the means for processing on their own, based on the conditions presented by the client.

The choice of flooring is always dictated primarily by the conditions in which it is to be used. Therefore, when deciding how to cover the floor on the terrace, it is necessary to keep in mind the nature of this room, which is a kind of buffer zone between the living rooms and the street.

Even the covered terrace experiences all the natural influences

What qualities should the coating have?

Terraces are covered and open, located on the ground or on the foundation. Sometimes for the winter or in bad weather they are closed with sliding or soft windows, other decorative enclosing structures.

But these are, as a rule, unheated rooms in which they walk in street shoes. Therefore, the terraced floor experiences all the hardships of our harsh climate and considerable mechanical stress. Based on these conditions, it is possible to determine the basic requirements for coverage.

Deciding, how to cover the terrace, you should focus on materials with the following characteristics:

High frost resistance and low water absorption. Any material is destroyed in the cold if water gets into its pores and freezes;

The floor covering must be able to withstand frost easily.

Abrasion resistance. Usually the terrace is the most passable place in the house along with the porch and hallway. The floor material must have a 4 or 5 wear resistance class;

Strength. A coating that experiences constant mechanical and atmospheric loads must withstand them without loss of strength, otherwise it will have to be changed frequently.

note. This requirement applies not only to the flooring itself, but also to the base on which it is laid.

Moisture resistance. Under the influence of moisture, the material should not rot, swell and deform;

Anti-slip properties. They are a guarantee of safe movement of people, especially in the winter season.

Additional requirements include resistance to fading under the influence of sunlight, ease of cleaning the surface from dirt, maintainability, affordable price. Decorative qualities are also important - color, texture, shape of the flooring elements. But when choosing what to make the floor on the terrace from, one should not give them a primary role.

The design of the terrace is a matter of individual preferences, but it is better to stick to a single style.

Suitable materials

Consider materials whose properties meet the listed requirements. It is clear that such popular coatings as laminate, linoleum or carpet do not apply to them. But there are many others.

Option 1 - natural wood

Until recently, edged or tongue-and-groove board was the most common material for laying polo in both residential and non-residential premises. If you needed a budget floor on the veranda, what to make it from if not from boards?

Wooden boards still have not lost their relevance due to their natural origin, magnificent appearance and pleasant tactile sensations when touched.

But natural wood needs mandatory processing before making flooring - they must be impregnated with flame retardant and antibacterial compounds. These solutions protect wood from decay, damage by insects and fungi, and reduce the ability to ignite.

Advice. When choosing how to cover the boards on an open terrace, you should pay attention to the degree of resistance of the impregnation and its suitability for outdoor work. To give the wood a noble look, tinted compositions can be used.

Now, in addition to the usual planed boards, advanced materials are also used for flooring.

Terrace (or deck) board, which is made only from solid wood species, most often from larch. It is very dense, not afraid of moisture and insects, does not rot and does not lose its external gloss for a long time. As a rule, the outer surface of the decking board is provided with longitudinal grooves to prevent slipping.

Terrace board from a larch

On our site you can find the most popular - from construction companies represented at the exhibition of houses "Low-Rise Country".

Heat treated wood, subjected to heating to high temperatures in special installations. Temperature treatment gives high strength and moisture resistance even to such species as pine and birch.

antiseptic board, previously dried and impregnated with antifungal drugs under pressure in special autoclaves. Such impregnation significantly increases the life of the floor, allowing you not to think every year how to cover the boards on the terrace.

For laying a wooden floor on a terrace, boards without interlocks are used, with smooth ends and rounded edges. They are laid on logs with a thickness of 15 cm or more, laid at intervals of 50-60 cm. So that moisture does not linger on the surface, small gaps are left between the boards. Wooden logs are also treated with impregnation before installation.

The device of a wooden flooring from a terrace board

The method of fastening the flooring depends on the type of material. Ordinary boards are fixed with galvanized self-tapping screws with a deepening of the cap into the wood. To fix the deck board, special clips are used that provide hidden installation.

Option 2 - WPC decking (decking)

WPC is a wood-polymer composite or “liquid wood”. The material that serves as a raw material for the production of decking is obtained from crushed woodworking waste and binder polymer additives. The ratio of these two components can be different, and the more in the composition of the tree, the more natural the finished product looks.

Outwardly very similar to a wooden board, decking surpasses it in many performance characteristics:

it is devoid of natural wood defects - knots, cracks, blue, etc .;

the composite material is not afraid of moisture, therefore, it does not need to be processed throughout the life of the coating;

it is easy to care for him;

it is easy to install;

you can choose boards of any color to support the color scheme of the terrace design;

The range is not limited to wood-effect products.

On our website you can find contacts of construction companies that . You can directly communicate with representatives by visiting the exhibition of houses "Low-Rise Country".

in addition to the main flooring elements, it is possible to purchase related materials: logs, end caps, decorative corners, and even railings and balusters for decorating the terrace.

If you need to decide how to cover the floor on a wooden terrace in order to maintain a single “wooden” style, while saving yourself from the extra hassle associated with caring for a natural coating, it is unlikely that you will be able to find something better than a WPC decking board.

The boards are attached to the logs with special plastic or metal clips. If necessary, they can be sawn and drilled like ordinary wood.

Video description

The installation process is shown in more detail in the video:

Option 3 - ceramics

Ceramics is a generalized concept of several types of coatings suitable for flooring. If we talk about the floor on the veranda, from which it is better to make flooring in such a specific room, then this category includes special ceramic tiles for outdoor use, porcelain stoneware and clinker tiles:

Ceramic tile must be cold hardy. In order not to be mistaken, you need to look at the product labeling and find the icon indicating frost resistance - a snowflake. It is also important to pay attention to the abrasion class (4 or 5), the type of surface (not glazed) and the area of application.

Product labeling tells everything about their characteristics.

Porcelain stoneware in its composition contains fine fractions of granite, which makes it very durable and wear-resistant. Like ceramic tiles, it has a huge range of colors and can imitate various natural materials. Porcelain tiles with a rough, unpolished surface are suitable for the terrace.

Clinker tiles(clinker brick, clinker pavers) is characterized by absolute moisture resistance and, as a result, the highest frost resistance. This is an ideal material for paving not only outdoor terraces, but also sidewalks, parking lots on the site. The palette of shades is wide - from white to terracotta.

The basis for laying a heavy ceramic coating should be a reinforced concrete slab or monolithic concrete, leveled with a cement screed. Installation is carried out only on frost-resistant glue for outdoor use.

Useful advice. Since the “weak” point of tile coatings are the seams, which are destroyed by freezing moisture, it is desirable to create a slight slope for precipitation to drain when laying them.

The advantages of ceramics, in addition to strength and durability, include resistance to fading, ease of cleaning and maintainability without replacing the entire coating.

Option 4 - concrete

When choosing how to cover a terrace on the street, open to the sun, snow and rain, one cannot but recall the classic concrete coating. The durability and strength of this material is practically unrivaled, besides, it is much cheaper than other options.

To create a floor, you can use different forms of concrete:

The most economical option is to decorate the surface when pouring the screed by drawing a barely set solution with arbitrary lines or a pre-designed pattern. You can also lightly drown river pebbles, shells, broken ceramic tiles or shards in it, creating a mosaic pattern. To give the desired shade, color is added to the solution during mixing.

It is convenient to use stamps to create a picture

Concrete large-sized and paving slabs, which are produced in a variety of shapes and sizes. They can imitate ceramics, natural stone, brick. There is a large selection of tiles with different designs and surface colors, which allows you to create carpets with repeating ornaments or multi-colored patterns from them.

Pouring concrete into preformed molds is also an inexpensive solution for a deck floor. But it will take a lot of time, as you will have to wait for the solution to solidify in the form before moving it to the next section.

Homemade concrete pavers

Like ceramic, damaged concrete tiles can be replaced without compromising the integrity of the rest of the coating.

Concrete flooring is ideal for terraces on the ground. For its device, it is enough to make a crushed stone pillow and a cement-sand base. When laying on a solid concrete slab raised on a foundation, cement-sand mortar or frost-resistant tile adhesive is used for gluing.

Video description

How original the floor of paving slabs can turn out, and how it fits, you can see on the video

Option 5 - natural stone

Natural materials are always a priority, but not always affordable. However, it is not necessary to cover the floor of the terrace with marble; there are other equally spectacular rocks. But they, like tiles, must be correctly chosen, given the resistance to abrasion and moisture resistance.

When deciding how to cover the floor on a veranda protected from the weather by walls and a roof, you can stop at limestone or sandstone. But for open areas it is better to use harder rocks - basalt, granite, shale.

This finish makes the transition from the house to the garden very harmonious, uniting the terrace with the surrounding landscape. Natural stone, even very shabby, does not lose its noble appearance and always looks impressive. But in the sun it gets very hot.

Like concrete tiles, stone can be laid on a sand cushion with crushed stone preparation, or on a concrete slab. In the first case, the thickness of stone slabs must be at least 3 cm, and thin stone tiles can be used for laying on a solid base.

Option 6 - rubber tiles

One of the most modern materials for flooring that is resistant to any aggressive influences is the so-called rubber floor. It is made from rubber or rubber crumb and is available in the form of rolled coatings, tiles and modules.

Rubber tile design examples

Such a floor is not afraid of frost, moisture, aggressive liquids, it is warm and resilient, and the variety of design and color solutions is endless. But it cannot be laid near fireplaces or outdoor stoves, which are often equipped with outdoor terraces.

Video description

It can be laid both on a sandy base and on a hard one, with gluing on a special mastic. More on video:

Conclusion

Now you know almost everything about the floor for the terrace: what is better to make, what requirements it must meet, what kind of care this or that material will require. It remains to choose the coverage that best suits your needs.

Terrace boards are made from different materials - natural wood or wood-polymer composite. In the latter case, due to the content of polymers, the product does not require a finish coat. Boards made of natural wood are treated with compounds that protect the material from external influences. Among such means of protection it is worth mentioning decking oil, varnishes and paints. Each of these means of protection has its own positive and negative qualities that must be considered when choosing them.

Ways of processing a terrace board made of natural wood

The most reliable treatment for terrace decking is three-phase protection:

the ends of the board during installation are treated with a special wax emulsion, since these places are most vulnerable to moisture (building liquid wax can be used instead of the emulsion);
from the back wood can be damaged by insects and microorganisms that cause rotting and mold formation, so antiseptic impregnations are used (they are oil-based and water-based);
the most important of larch and other types of wood is made on the front side of the product (for this, cold or hot oil is applied to the surface, varnishing or painting of the decking is carried out).

To decide how to cover a wooden floor on an open veranda, you need to study the advantages, features and variety of finish coatings that are applied from the front side.

Oil Benefits

Many owners of terraces and verandas are wondering why cover the board with oil if it can be painted or varnished? But the last two coatings quickly wear out and crack under the influence of external factors. If the peeling film of the protective coating no longer covers the wood and does not protect it from moisture and the sun, then the decking quickly deteriorates and loses its attractiveness. In addition, oil for decking made of larch or other species allows the wood to breathe, which cannot be said about varnish and paint. As a result, the material does not crack, last longer and retain its attractiveness.

Advantages of decking oil:

it is a good protection against moisture;
reduces the degree of surface contamination;
the coating does not peel off, does not crack and is not covered with bubbles;
reliable protection against drying and cracking of wood;
oil emphasizes the beauty of the natural texture of the material;
protects against the negative effects of ultraviolet rays.

Advice! Before processing a larch decking board, pay attention to the opinion of experienced craftsmen. They recommend using oil Osmo. So larch wood will be protected from pollution, deformation and decay.

Types of oils for decking

Even decking that has been impregnated needs additional oil treatment. On sale there are products for various purposes:

Products with colorant to give the surface a certain shade.
Oils with natural wax, which are applied hot to protect wood and better absorption into the material.
Special formulations with antibacterial additives, such as Tikkurila decking oil.
Products with anti-slip effect.

To give the surface extra strength, buy formulations with the addition of wax. If you do not know how to paint a decking board on an open veranda or garden path, then it is better to treat them with mixtures with an anti-slip effect. Due to the content of water-repellent components, they increase the durability of the coating.

Board varnishing

If painting a terrace board creates a completely opaque layer on the surface that hides the beauty of the material, then varnish allows you to get a strong, wear-resistant, durable and transparent coating. The varnish does not hide the beauty of the texture of the material, so the terrace or veranda looks natural and natural.

Lacquer decking has the following advantages:

aesthetic appeal of the surface;
the applied protective layer facilitates the care of the board and requires regular updating;
high protection against moisture and drying;
surface wear resistance.

Disadvantages of varnish:

varnish firmly clogs all the pores of wood, so the material cannot breathe;
under a dense varnish layer, the natural beauty of the tree is slightly lost;
fragility of the coating;
during operation, the varnish cracks and wears off, so it needs to be re-applied (in this case, the entire surface will have to be sanded to remove the old varnish layer);
the impossibility of local repair (lacquer cannot be applied to certain areas of the floor, since places with layers will be visible, it will be necessary to grind and apply a new coating on the entire surface).

Types of varnishes for outdoor boards

For terrace decking laid outdoors, the following types of varnishes are suitable:

Yacht varnish. These are polyurethane-alkyd compounds or alkyd-based mixtures. The main advantage of these compositions is increased hardness and wear resistance. If you cover a board that will be used outdoors with yacht varnish, then it will not last more than one season, as it will crack due to deformation expansions and contractions of wood. This is due to the low elasticity of the varnish. It very quickly exfoliates from the base when used outdoors.
Facade varnish. It includes alkyd-acrylic and acrylic compounds. These elastic mixtures do not crack or flake off when the wood is deformed. However, they are quite soft, so they do not increase the wear resistance of the terrace decking. Another disadvantage of facade varnish is that it is very difficult to sand off, since the soft material clogs the abrasive wheel of the grinder very quickly.

Important! Lacquers make it easier to care for the terrace board and prolong its service life.

Paints on wood

Terrace board paint is no less in demand than varnish or oil. Its advantages are as follows:

simplicity and ease of application;
creates a durable finish layer;
reliably protects the material from moisture and sunlight;
increases the wear resistance of the surface;
aesthetic appeal.

The disadvantages of paints for terrace decking include the fact that they hide the natural beauty of the material and the surface loses its natural look. Paint wears out quickly and cracks.

Types and selection rules

The following types of paint compositions are suitable for outdoor terrace coatings:

Alkyd and oil paints allow you to save money and are suitable if the floor was previously covered with an oil composition. These are reliable, but short-lived coatings.
Water-based mixtures on the basis of acrylic components provide good adhesion to the wooden base and give increased resistance of the material to external weather influences. The composition is already ready for use. When thickened, the mixture is simply diluted with water.
For increased wear resistance of the floor, polyurethane paints. These abrasion-resistant and durable finishes extend the life of your board for decades.
latex paints adhere well to the base, odorless, very durable. The most important advantage of latex mixtures is that they allow the wood to breathe.

What type of coating to choose for a terrace board?

Experienced craftsmen advise owners of private houses to use special oil to cover the decking. It is a universal durable material with a high degree of protection. Oil is considered an environmentally friendly product. It is safe for human health, since only oils of natural origin are used in the composition.

Among the benefits that speak in favor of the oil, it is worth mentioning the following:

the board becomes matte and natural shine, the beauty of the texture is emphasized;
material does not crack and does not dry out under oil, since it can "breathe", that is, absorb and release moisture;
due to the presence of special additives it is easy to buy tinting oil, wax formulations or mixtures to reduce surface slip.

The oil guarantees a high degree of UV protection. Contaminants from decking covered with oil are easily washed off with water pressure. At any temperature, the coating retains high elasticity. Oils with colorants emphasize the structure of wood, and the material looks more expensive and respectable.