Porch Makeover Progress (Plus, Two More Projects Added To The List)

With the remaining time I had left yesterday, I made a decision to deal with the porch boards. Just a few weeks in the past, I had significantly thought-about fully redoing this porch and swapping them out for a composite materials like Trex. However for now, I’ve determined to sand and paint them. The very fact is that whereas these boards had been wanting actually tough and fairly ugly for the time being, they’re cedar. And cedar is a fairly robust, weather-resistant wooden.

And whereas it doesn’t price as a lot as a product like Trex, it wasn’t low cost. What made the porch look so unhealthy isn’t that the boards had been rotting and falling aside. It’s that the final end I used was sporting off and looking out very patchy and worn.

Even the areas on the sides, the place it appears to be like absolutely the worst, was simply the earlier stain sporting off. the boards themselves are nonetheless in nice situation.

So, seeing that I’ve so many different initiatives that I need to do, and so many different issues I need to spend my cash on, I made a decision that tearing up a superbly good cedar porch and changing it with Trex actually isn’t one of the best use of my money and time. As an alternative, I took a few hours to sand the boards down utilizing 80-grit sanding discs on my handheld rotary sander.

As soon as that previous stain was sanded off, the boards seemed nice.

In actual fact, they seemed so good that I had a second the place I struggled with the concept of portray them.

However after going again over the professionals and cons of portray vs. re-staining the boards, I’ve determined to maintain with my authentic concept of portray them. I do love the pure wooden look of the boards. I like the wooden grain and the knots that give it that pure wooden look. And when it’s painted, I’ll lose all of that. The porch can be one strong, darkish brown shade.

However I additionally know that if I re-stain it, I’ll be again out right here in a 12 months or two re-sanding and re-staining/sealing this entrance porch yet again. After which I’ll should repeat that once more, and once more, and once more, yearly or two, if I need to hold it wanting good. I’d like one thing that’s a lot decrease upkeep, and I’ve excessive hopes that the Behr Porch & Patio Paint will give me a for much longer lasting end.

Whereas I used to be engaged on this and going up and down the steps, I noticed that if I’m going to color the porch, I’ll additionally want to color the stained wooden portion of the handrails. And whereas I used to be inspecting the handrails, I seen that I’ve a unfastened handrail.

The put up is safe, however this one space the place the handrail attaches to the put up isn’t safe. It shifts about 1/4-inch each time I seize it. Since it is a security situation, this may should be repaired sooner somewhat than later.

And since I’ll be redoing that with PVC boards, I assumed that possibly I ought to go forward and substitute these rotting boards on the columns with PVC boards as nicely.

Sure, I might restore them and paint them for now, however why hold kicking this will down the street after I understand it must be accomplished. The wooden on all three columns is rotting, and since I’m in “entrance porch makeover” mode proper now, I’ll as nicely go forward and substitute these. It might prolong the time I would like on these initiatives by two or three days, however at the very least it will likely be accomplished for good, and I received’t should waste time repairing this proper now solely to have to return again to this challenge sooner or later.

Plus, it’ll look a lot nicer if it’s all accomplished correctly, and it’s all accomplished on the identical time.