DIY home guide: Summer
How to protect the value of your property, cut energy costs, avoid costly repairs, and spiff up your surroundings all summer.
Deck out the deck
Cost: $35 per can of stain, which covers 300 square feet.
Before you roll out the grill, prep your wood deck for a season of damaging sun and rain. Thoroughly clean it, wait a day or two for the wood to dry, and then apply a semitransparent stain, says Tim Carter, founder of AsktheBuilder.com.
This annual dose of prevention can help you stave off shelling out $10,000 for a new wood deck.
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Last updated January 28 2011: 5:22 PM ET
