By Kathy Moran
Gazebos continue to increase in popularity. Well beyond the days when they functioned mainly as focal points in town parks, or strictly ornamental garden structures, they are now answering a higher calling. In fact, they're serving many new purposes.
Today, more people are equipping their gazebos with every comfort available, including electricity and plumbing, and using them as guesthouses, home offices, hobby rooms, studios, cottages, and just about anything else imaginable. Some are even installing hot tubs, and turning them into backyard spas. It's also becoming quite common for people to integrate gazebos with their decks. Indeed, this trend is so prevalent, that it has given rise to the term, gazebo deck.
Whether or not you're going to put a gazebo on your deck, you should inspect it occasionally, to make sure that it is structurally sound, and adequately weatherproofed, which will help it to stay it intact. If you can't remember the last time you stained and/or sealed it, you can test it quickly, by pouring a glass of water over the boards. If it beads up, the wood is water-repellent; but, if it's absorbed, the deck needs another treatment.
First, wash it thoroughly, either with a deck cleaner from a hardware store, or a solution of household bleach and water. If it's extremely dirty, you may need a high-pressure washer. Get one with an output of 750 to 1,000 psi, and you'll be able to do the job with plain water; just don't forget to put on your safety goggles.
Wearing a dust mask, use a sander, or sandpaper, to smooth rough areas, then sweep away the sawdust. Remove any sap stains completely, because they'll be even more noticeable when coated with clear sealer or semi-transparent stain. If you can't get them off with the sander and cleaning solution, try using mineral spirits.
Next, apply a clear or staining sealer with a brush, or a pump garden sprayer. While some think that a brush helps the sealer to get deeper into the wood, others argue that a sprayer is the quickest and easiest way to get the product between the deck boards. One drawback to a sprayer, however, is that you can use it only on windless days. Moreover, you'll need a brush anyway, to put a second coat onto the boards' coarser, more absorbent, ends, and to smooth out any pools of stain/sealer, lest they remain sticky for weeks, before starting to peel.
Once your deck is all safe and sound, the next step, of course, is to go to GazeboCreations.com, and customize your own treated pine, cedar, or vinyl gazebo.
At GazeboCreations.com, in a few, easy steps, you can select the material, size, and style that you want, then choose from dozens of options, including insulation, screens, storm windows, decorative railings, wiring, ceiling fans, built-in benches, cupolas, different kinds of flooring, and several types and colors of roofing.
GazeboCreations.com also has professional design consultants and customer service representatives who are always ready to assist you. To contact them, call 888-293-2339, or e-mail cs@gazebocreations.com.
Hazel Jennings
Tags: 888-293-2339, electricity;, Landscaping