Caring for Cedar: Decks & Exterior Woodwork

Cedar is the material of choice for Toronto decks, fences and cladding for good reason — it’s naturally resistant to rot and insects, it’s dimensionally stable, and it smells like summer. But cedar left completely alone will weather from warm honey to silver-grey and, without any protection, eventually check and degrade. A little seasonal care keeps it beautiful and structurally sound for decades. Here’s how to look after it.

Decide on the look you want

The first decision is whether you want to keep cedar’s warm tone or let it silver. Both are legitimate. Left untreated, cedar weathers to an even grey that many people love — but that greying is UV breaking down the surface, so even a silvered deck benefits from a clear water-repellent to slow moisture damage. To keep the warm colour, you’ll need a penetrating oil or stain with UV protection, reapplied periodically. What you should not do is nothing at all on a horizontal surface like a deck, where standing water and sun do the most damage.

Clean before you coat

Any finish is only as good as the surface under it. Once a year — spring is ideal in Toronto, once the freeze-thaw is done — give cedar a proper clean. Sweep off debris, clear the gaps between deck boards where leaves and grit trap moisture, and wash with a cleaner made for wood. Avoid heavy pressure-washing, which is easy to overdo; cedar is soft, and a strong tip will gouge the grain and leave a furry surface. A gentle wash, a soft brush and a garden hose are almost always enough. Let it dry for a couple of days before you apply anything.

Cedar doesn’t fail from age — it fails from water that couldn’t drain and a finish that was never refreshed. Keep the gaps clear and the coat current, and cedar will outlast almost anything else in your yard.

Oiling and re-coating

For a warm, protected finish, a penetrating cedar oil or semi-transparent stain is the workhorse. It soaks in rather than forming a film, so it won’t peel the way a solid paint or varnish will — which matters enormously on a deck, where a peeling film finish becomes a sanding nightmare. Apply in dry, mild weather, out of direct hot sun, working with the grain and wiping back any excess. Horizontal surfaces that take sun and foot traffic — deck boards, railing caps — need re-coating more often than vertical cedar siding, which can go years between coats. Plan on refreshing a deck every one to three years depending on exposure.

Siding, fences and pergolas

Vertical cedar has a far easier life than a deck because water sheds off it and it takes no foot traffic. Cedar siding and cladding can hold a finish for several years, and even left to silver it will last a very long time if it was installed with proper drainage and a rain screen behind it. Fences and pergolas sit in between — the horizontal tops of posts and beams are the vulnerable spots, so pay attention to end grain, which drinks up water. A dab of end-grain sealer on cut ends at installation does more for longevity than anything you’ll do later.

Watch the fasteners and the framing

Cedar itself resists rot, but the structure holding it up may not get the same attention. Once a year, walk your deck and check for loose boards, popped fasteners, and any softness around posts and ledger connections — the points where a deck attaches to the house are the ones that matter most for safety. Use only stainless or hot-dipped galvanised fasteners with cedar; ordinary steel reacts with the wood’s natural tannins and leaves black streaks. If anything feels spongy or a railing moves, don’t wait on it.

Whether you’re maintaining existing cedar or building new, the details at installation determine how easy the next twenty years of care will be. If you’re planning a deck, patio or fence, talk to us — we build them to drain and to last. And for the woodwork inside your home, our guide to caring for hardwood and custom woodwork is the indoor companion to this one.