On Tue, 17 Aug 2004 00:08:19 -0600, Scott wrote:

We have a 12' x 24' cedar deck that was built onto our house a
month ago. We want the contractor to apply a water seal to
the wood. He said he likes to use one with a "toner" for the
UV protection to inhibit greying of the cedar. We looked at
one he did, and the wood is noticeably darker in color. We
like the natural color of the cedar and the beauty of the wood
grain, so we're hesitant to cover it up with a "toner stain". He
said applying a clear water seal as often as once a year won't
inhibit the greying-- like a toner would. We live in Central
Minnesota, and the deck is on the east side of the house and
surrounded by trees on the east, north, and south side of the
deck...so there's not much direct sunlight on the deck. The
contractor says power washing would remove most of the
greying every year and make it look like new. This is our
first experience with cedar. Is there an alternative treatment
that would protect the deck from greying without staining the
wood and covering the beautiful wood look? The setting sun
highlights the cedar in such a beautiful golden color.

Thanks!
Scott

Scott

On our old deck we used Baere stain for the past 10-15 years and it
still rotted extensively. This year we had it torn down and a
replacement constructed with new pressure treated supporting structure
and all white cedar decking and rails. We too just loved the natural
look (especially the color when it was whet). Based on much research
we finally selected Sikkens Cetol SRD translucent stain. We selected
the Natural Cedar hue and boy it looks just great. And, according to
Consumers Reports, it one of the higher rated products.

Good luck.