How to change Deck colour?

[Tracylee]

Hi, I have sanded my deck & painted on Ultradeck timber oil Merbau, 3 times but I am not happy with the colour which I find too red.  What can I paint over to get a deeper rich colour?

 

[MitchellMc]

Hi @Tracylee,

I'm not aware of any products that could be applied over the top to deepen the colour. After three coats of oil, you've really reached the saturation point of the timber, and any additional coats will build up on the surface and could potentially cause a failure in the coatings. 

After 12 months of natural weathering, you could consider switching to the spotted gum in the UltraDeck range, which has a more brown appearance and lacks the red colouring typically associated with Merbau. This would take care of the colouring hue but wouldn't necessarily address the deepness of colour. For that, you'll likely be better off with their range of decking stains.

If you can't live with the current colour, then you could strip it all back out of the timber with Cabot's New Deck Prep and start again.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[Tracylee]

Thanks @MitchellMc.

Could I use a colour stain now? 

[MitchellMc]

Unfortunately, the timber is now fully filled with oil, so the stain won't be able to penetrate sufficiently, @Tracylee. If it can't, it will sit on the surface and wash away, potentially ruining the look of the deck with a mottled and blotchy appearance.

Just so you know, you might not personally like the colour, but to me, your deck looks amazing, and I've seen a lot of decks in my time.

Mitchell 

[Tracylee]

Thank you again Mitchell, it does look good when the shade is on it, guess it's just when the sun is on it that I don't like the colour. I will have to just leave it as is & just luv it, thank you

[scottjepp]

It is possible to darken the stain by mixing black Japan stain into any other colour/shade and it will make it a darker hue, too much and it'll just be black so testing is very important, use off cuts to test different mixes before applying to the whole deck and hoping it works. Other than that, applying multiple coats can deepen the opacity of the stain, otherwise, there's not alot you can do because merbau is already very dark and red with ALOT of tannins.

[EricL]

Hello @scottjepp 

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's wonderful to have you join us.

Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience with the community. Let me tag @Tracylee to make them aware of your recommendation.

Were keen to hear more about all your projects and plans around the house and garden. Please feel free to reach out whenever you need assistance or would like to share a project with the community.

Eric