Deck Cleaning In Melbourne

Deck cleaning is quoted by square metre, and the biggest single price driver is whether an existing coating has to be stripped off first. A deck that was cleaned and oiled a couple of years ago needs a wash, a neutralising rinse and a maintenance coat, which is the cheapest end of the work. A deck left for years with a flaking, patchy old coat needs stripping, heavier cleaning and often sanding before any oil can go on. Stairs, balustrade, screening and pergola posts are quoted as part of the scope if you want them included. Send photos and rough dimensions to 0430 392 100.

In most cases yes, because the grey is a degraded surface layer of timber rather than dirt, and it can be chemically lifted and removed to expose sound wood underneath. A deck cleaner opens up and releases that oxidised layer, a neutralising or brightening rinse restores the natural colour rather than leaving the boards bleached, and a sand is added where boards have furred or splintered. What cannot be reversed is genuine rot, structural movement or boards that have cupped badly, and we will tell you honestly if that is what we are looking at rather than take the job anyway.

The cleaning stage is same day, and the deck can generally be walked on lightly once it has dried off. Coating is the part that needs patience. The timber must be dry right through before oil goes on, which in Melbourne usually means a clear day or two after the wash rather than the same afternoon, and once oiled most decking products want a further day or so before normal foot traffic and considerably longer before furniture goes back on. Rushing the dry-out is the most common cause of a coat that peels within a season. We will give you the actual timeline for your product when we quote.

Yes, and cleaning without re-oiling is usually a false economy on timber. Once a deck has been cleaned, the surface is open and unprotected, so leaving it bare means ultraviolet light starts breaking down the fibres again immediately and you are back to grey within a season or two. The coat is applied along the boards and worked into the end grain at the joins, which is where water gets into a deck first. How many coats the timber takes depends on how thirsty it is, so the quote covers coverage rather than assuming one pass. Composite decking does not need oiling and is not coated.

A timber deck in Melbourne's south east generally wants a clean and a maintenance coat every 12 to 24 months, and the position of the deck matters more than the calendar. Decks facing south, sitting under tea tree or eucalypt canopy, or built low to the ground with poor airflow underneath, cycle fastest and often need annual attention. An exposed north-facing deck may hold up for two years but takes more ultraviolet damage when it does go. The practical signal is grip: when a deck starts feeling slippery underfoot after rain, mould has colonised the surface layer and it is due, regardless of how it looks.

Yes. Composite boards do not need oiling and will not go grey the way timber does, but they are far from maintenance free, because mould and algae grow readily in the board grooves and along shaded edges, and ground-in dirt dulls the surface. Composite is cleaned with the appropriate detergent at low pressure and worked along the grooves, since aggressive pressure scratches the surface, marks the embossed grain and can leave permanent heat or wand marks that no amount of later cleaning will remove. Manufacturer guidance varies by brand, so tell us which product your deck is when you enquire on 0430 392 100.