stain or paint screened porch?? (floor, color, oak, stained)

[trayandtom]

In our neighborhood here in North Carolina we have seen both done. We are trying to decide whether to paint the screened porch the color of the house trim or to stain it. My husband doesn't really like the option of letting the pressure treated wood go gray so we will be doing one of these options. Interested in hearing opinions/experiences both positive and negative. Thanks!

[JimRom]

Either way you will have maintenance to do to keep the wood from going bad. If you stain it, you'll also have to seal it. If you paint it, figure a coat of good primer and then 2 coats of paint, depending on what color and how well the paint covers.

I'm assuming this isn't a new construction. However, if it is new, you don't want to do anything to it for a couple of months, at least, in order to let the wood dry out. Either stain/seal or paint will not work well on wood that is fresh.

Another thing to consider, depending on how the wood was pressure treated it may not take stain evenly. Sometimes the chemicals used in the process can keep the stain from soaking in correctly.

Personally, I'd go with the painted look, to keep the aesthetic appeal of the house. But, that's my own personal taste.

[Debb J]

Originally Posted by JimRom

Personally, I'd go with the painted look, to keep the aesthetic appeal of the house. But, that's my own personal taste.

Mine too.

We chose a paint trim color instead of stain. We have banisters all around porches, decks and a terrace that is painted white. (It seems to go on and on and on.) I frequently use bleach to keep it all really pristine looking. When it finally has to have another coat of white paint, no matter how careful I am, a drop or two always ends up on the deck floor. I can just paint right over the "boo boo" with the floor paint and be done with it. Don't know how you'd correct paint spilled on a stained surface. This is one of the reasons we prefer paint over stain as well as thinking it looks fresher.

[bellalunatic]

Yes, staining pressure treated wood can really make it look a mess.
I'd go with porch paint too.

[Cattknap]

We painted our deck and used a neutral taupe/tan color that goes with the brick back of the house and looks good with our furniture. It is important to think about how your porch furniture/cushions, etc. are going to look against the deck color. I really like the look of a well-painted porch/deck.