Red Deck Transformed to Dark Walnut & Cream in Mississauga

The deck: a red that had run its course

This wraparound deck in Mississauga runs the full width of the house and around the bay, which is a lot of surface to be the wrong colour. It had been coated years ago in a red solid stain, floor and railings alike. By the time we saw it the red had chalked and faded, was flaking in the traffic lanes, and had worn to grey wood between the boards. The owners did not want red back. They wanted the floor dark and the railings light, a look that would pick up the white window trim rather than compete with the brick.

Taking the floor back to bare wood

A colour change from a solid stain only works if the old coating comes off entirely; any red left in the grain would bleed through a darker finish and keep the surface from absorbing it. We removed the red solid stain from the whole floor and sanded the boards to clean, bright wood before any finish went on. On a deck restoration like this the preparation is most of the labour, and it is what makes the new colour even from the sliding door to the far railing.

Dark walnut oil stain on the floor

The deck boards were finished in a dark walnut oil-based penetrating stain. Oil goes into the wood rather than forming a film, so it will not peel the way the red solid did, and the grain and knots still show through the dark colour. The after photo was taken with the stain freshly applied and still curing, which is why a few boards read glossier than the rest; it dries to an even low sheen within a day or two.

Cream railings with stained caps

The railings were the second half of the transformation. The posts and pickets were prepped, primed where the old red had worn through, and painted in a warm cream exterior enamel, while the top caps were sanded and stained brown to tie back to the floor. The two-tone railing lifts the whole deck: the pale pickets frame the dark floor, the brown caps echo the walnut boards, and the cream picks up the window frames and soffits on the house. See our railings page for more on refinishing and replacing deck railings.

The result

From a faded red box to a dark-floored, cream-railed deck that looks designed rather than inherited. Going forward the floor needs a wash and a maintenance coat of oil every couple of years, and the railings a wipe-down.

Deck colour changes and railing painting in Mississauga

UCO Construction Group restores, stains and repaints decks and railings across Mississauga, Oakville, Etobicoke, Brampton and the rest of the GTA. If your deck is the wrong colour or the old stain is failing, see our deck staining and restoration service and get in touch for a free on-site estimate.