I have approximately 320 feet of cedar 8 ft board-on-board fence enclosing my backyard. It looks fairly new and was just re-stained 2 1/2 years ago when a bad hail storm came through. I've only lived in the house 3 1/2 years so I don't know now how old the fence actually is. However, I'm dreading the day I have to replace it so I want to make sure I keep up on maintenance to prolong it's life. Other than re-staining, is there any other maintenance? I've read online that you should re-stain every 5 - 7 years. Is that accurate?

I have about 5,120 square feet (320 ft long x 8 ft tall x 2 sides) of fence to re-stain. The below stain which was used but it was done by a contractor since insurance was paying so I don't know how many gallons it took. I'm assuming the 125 sf cover listed below is for a new fence as I'm sure it didn't take ~ 8 five gallon containers to complete the re-stain. Anyone know the coverage for re-stain?

https://www.homedepot.com/p/READY-SEAL-5-gal-Mahogany-Exterior-Wood-Stain-and-Sealer-530/204675344

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5 gal. Mahogany Exterior Wood Stain and Sealer - $158.00
Approximately 125 sq. ft. per gallon

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The only stain I'd use is TWP.

Kelly-Moore paints carries it in store.

They have a dealer locator on their website at www.usetwp.com

It's easy to google them and accidentally end up on one of their online distributor websites.

Yep definitely TWP oil based stain. We normally will pressure wash our fence to get all the old stain and mildew off then let dry and then reapply stain with a cheap yard sprayer. Then just toss when done.

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cheap yard sprayer

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What type of cheap sprayer do you use? Home Depot rents the commercial sprayers for about $100/day.

PlanoAg98 said:

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cheap yard sprayer

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What type of cheap sprayer do you use? Home Depot rents the commercial sprayers for about $100/day.

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Pretty sure he's referring to a garden sprayer...like this

PlanoAg98 said:

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cheap yard sprayer

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What type of cheap sprayer do you use? Home Depot rents the commercial sprayers for about $100/day.

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If you're going to rent a sprayer for $100/day from Home Depot, you might think about buying the following HVLP sprayer from Home Depot of ~$160...it's a good quality unit as I recently purchased one to paint trim for our home rennovation and plan to use it for restaining our decking and wood fences. I was impressed with how good it works and how easy it is to clean the unit after use!



FLEXiO 3000 HVLP Paint Sprayer

You can also find them via Amazon, E-bay, etc for a lower price.

Either way, if you're going to restain every 3-5 years, it's a great investment versus rental...

Yes exactly like the one posted. We have used them numerous times over the years on both the cedar fence and a cedar swing we have.

When I had a contractor stain my fence, he cleaned it with a chemical (maybe was just bleach?) and said not to pressure wash. Any opinions on this?

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said not to pressure wash. Any opinions on this?

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I've heard a water/bleach mixture is best. My contractor sprayed it with the water/bleach and then came back with the pressure washer. As long as you use the pressure washer on a low setting it should be fine IMO.

Sorry to piggie back this thread but I purchased a home two years ago. This summer will be my third summer in it and I was thinking about staining the fence. From what I can tell the fence was never stained in the first place. So my question is can it even be stained?

The ugly grey weathered look is just not attractive.

TexDill15 said:

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Sorry to piggie back this thread but I purchased a home two years ago. This summer will be my third summer in it and I was thinking about staining the fence. From what I can tell the fence was never stained in the first place. So my question is can it even be stained?

The ugly grey weathered look is just not attractive.

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yes, you'll need to clean it first to get that gray off. Pressure wash it or do the bleach\water then pressure wash it to get it clean. Then stain it.

That weathered gray look is nicer than having to keep up with stain, IMO.

Check out Lifetime brand stain. Helps it gray, stay gray, and impede rot/aging.

Do you guys work with neighbors when re-staining a fence? I'm looking to do mine here in the next month or so, but was curious if I should try to involve neighbors. Obviously if we both did each side of our fence, it would help the longevity of the planks. I was also just thinking that by me spraying one side, it may make their side look worse due to overspray, etc.

Thoughts on this?