If you’re looking for the best decking oil, then what I’m about to show you will be everything you need to know…
Here’s what it’s all about…
The best deck oil would have to be H2Oil Timber…
It’s such a great decking oil…
But with that said…
Before we continue on, if you commit to reading this guide, I am going to help you choose the best decking oil for you but what you need to realise is…
There is no “Best Deck Oil”…
There’s only the best decking oil for you…
Honestly, there’s a bunch of really great decking oils available on the market and to simply tell you that one is better than the other would be a complete lie…
But what I can do for you is, list out the best of the best and give you a really full proof way of choosing the right one for you…
Sound good?
Ok, let’s get into it…
Three of the best decking oil brands on the market…
The truth is, there’s so many great decking oils that you can buy…
But my aim here is to give you just three of the best…
I don’t want to give you endless options and confuse you…
That’s why I’ve decided to show you 3 of the best decking oils from the ones that I’ve used
I know that if you choose one of the following, you’ve got yourself a great quality deck oil…
So here they are…
3 of the best decking oils money can buy…
The best water based decking oil…
The best oil based decking oil…
The best alternative to Intergrain decking oil
Ok, so if you choose either one of these 3 decking oils, you can’t go wrong…
But let me get into a little more detail on each of these and then help you decide which one’s right for you…
Hey! Do you have a question?
I know you’re busy reading all about decking oils but if there’s something you’re struggling to find answers for, why don’t you just ask me?
Yep, I can be your personal deck consultant…
Intergrain Ultra Deck
Intergrain Ultra Deck is my go to decking oil…
It’s the perfect balance between price and quality…
Put another way, Intergrain sits in the mid range of decking oil…
That’s what makes it so great…
You can get a good quality deck oil without paying the crazy prices of the higher end brands…
You’re not going to break the bank when you purchase Intergrain…
You can get 1 litre for $55.40 and 10 litres for $275…
But you also know that you aren’t getting some cheap, rubbish oil that’s going to peel off in a couple of months…
What I really love about Intergrain Ultra Deck is that you can get it at any Bunnings…
If you don’t think that’s important, you need to think again…
The ability to get more deck oil when you need it is one of the critical factors you need to consider when deciding which decking oil to use…
You’ll definitely need more in about 6 to 12 months when you apply your maintenance coat…
Don’t fall into the trap where you think you’ll get 5 years from your deck oil…
It’s not gonna happen…
And don’t think you can just apply any ol’ deck oil on top of your current coat…
Nope, it needs to be the same oil from the same company or your deck will peel…
That’s why Intergrain is one of the best…
Did I mention that they also have 16 different colours to choose from?
Most of the recommended decking oil brands online only have 5 to 6 different colours…
With the 16 colours that intergrain offers, you’ll definitely find a colour that you love…
You can get all 16 colours in sample pots to try out on your deck before you commit to any one colour…
A sample pot will set you back $18 per pot…
Not bad considering that a 4 litre can of stain is $154…
It’s much cheaper to buy 2 or 3 different colour sample pots for around $100 and be sure you get a colour you love…
Anyway…
Intergrain is definitely one of the best deck oils on the market, but they aren’t the only one, so let’s look at the next company…
Cutek CD50
The next deck oil we’re gonna take a look at is Cutek CD50…
Now this oil is one of the more expensive decking oils on the market…
Some people compare the price of Cutek to any other brand and have a small heart attack…
The thing is, quality costs more…
So if you want one of the highest quality decking oils then Cutek is for you…
You can pick up a 10 litre tin for $330.00 whereas intergrain will set you back $275.00
What you need to know about Cutek is that all of their deck oils are clear…
So you can protect your deck but allow the sun to turn it into that beautiful silver colour…
But if you want to keep it more of a natural timber colour, you’ll need to add a toner…
You have 16 colours to choose from but it will push your price up to $363.30…
In the scheme of things, it’s really not that much more for one of the highest quality decking oils you can get your hands on…
It’s less than $100 more…
But if you need 20 litres, it’ll be $200 more and that may be stretching the budget a little too much for some…
In all honesty, if you want the best oil based decking oil, Cutek is the one you want…
What you have to remember with oil based decking oils compared to water based is that it’s actually much easier to apply and get an even coat…
Oil based takes longer to dry so you won’t get those nasty lap marks from where you stop and start on each board…
Water based is less forgiving…
Do you wanna know something else that sets Cutek apart from the water based deck oils?
Cutek will never Peel…
You see, Cutek is oil based…
And oil based will soak deeper into the decking board than water based…
Water based oils do soak into the surface but their main protection is the film they form on the surface of your decking…
This surface film is what peels when your deck hasn’t been prepared properly or hasn’t been maintained…
You don’t get the film on the surface with Cutek so it will never peel…
But don’t think this means it is better and will last longer…
No, it simply means that it will fade rather than peel…
However, there is a benefit to fading rather than peeling…
Once you notice your Cutek decking oil starting to “lighten up” and fade, you simply clean it with Cutek QuickClean and give it another coat of decking oil…
It’s as easy as that…
Cutek sounds great right?
Why on Earth would you use any other decking oil if this one’s the best?
Well, Cutek is one of the best decking oils but it’s far from perfect…
Most deck oil companies have switched their product from oil based to water based because of the environmental impact…
Oil based is not as safe for the environment as water based is…
But more than that, from a user perspective…
Cutek will take a couple of days to dry before you can apply a second coat…
So if you apply a coat and 8 hours later your deck gets wet from rain or the evening moisture, your deck oil could be ruined…
You’ll have blotchy water marks all over your decking…
The only way to fix it is to strip it off and start again…
A water based oil like Intergrain only takes around 2 hours to dry…
So if you apply a coat and then it rains 2 hours later, your deck oil should be fine…
When you live in an area with crazy weather where it can be hot and then rain without warning, this could be a real problem for you…
Can you see why there’s no one best decking oil?
Alright then…
How about we look at another great deck oil…
H2 Oil Timber
H2Oil Timber is one of those deck oils that most people have never heard of…
That’s only because they aren’t in the big hardware stores like Bunnings…
But H2Oil is a real contender in the hunt for the best deck oil…
I’ve personally used this deck oil and I can tell you it really is a great decking oil…
One of the benefits to H2Oil over a brand like Intergrain is the finished colour of your decking…
I’ve had a ton of complaints from customers that don’t like the “Orange” tint to the Intergrain natural deck oil…
Or that when you get an Intergrain oil that has a colour added, you can’t see the timber grain and it looks more like paint…
Ok, first things first…
Intergrain natural is a semi transparent deck oil which means you can see the timber grain through the oil…
Their coloured oils are more of a solid deck oil which means they block out the grain…
Most people don’t like the look of the solid oils…
You would use a solid oil when you have an old and damaged deck that needs to be covered up…
H2 oil timber is a semi transparent decking oil so when you add a colour to it, you get the beautiful colour that you want but you also get to see the natural beauty of the timber grain coming through…
It looks like this…
See how you can see to timber grain through the oil?
That’s the magic of a high quality semitransparent deck stain…
And the natural toner will block out the UV…
But if you don’t like the natural colour, there’s a bunch of different colours to choose from…
H2 Oil comes in 11 different colours
You can contact the supplier, Aqualis, they will send a range of free samples to try…
This is another great benefit over the other deck oil companies…
You could spend up to $100 to test the colours of other brands but I’ve personally had a rep from Aqualis send me 4 sample colours for free…
You can grab yourself a 4 litre tub for $134.89 or 10 litre tub for $279.69 which is right in the price range of the other better deck oil brands…
One difference that I’ve seen with other deck oils is that you can get H2 Oil in gloss or matt…
So you can choose between a glossy “piano finish’ decking or a less shiny, matt finish…
A 4 litre can of matt costs $144.91…
Whereas, a 10 litre can of matt is $294.02…
I personally think this is a great option to have…
It’s an option that most other deck oils don’t give you…
That’s why H2 Oil is one of the best deck oils available…
How to choose which is the best deck oil for you…
I don’t mean to blow my own horn but I’m just gonna do it anyway…
This next section is the single best way to work out which is the best deck oil…
And I’m the only “Expert” on the internet who’s sharing this priceless information…
You can thank me later…
I take bank deposits or cash…
I’m not fussy…
Anyway, back to finding the elusive best decking oil…
For any one deck oil to be considered the best option for you, it needs to tick a few boxes…
The first one is…
Does the deck oil fit within your budget?
Don’t think for one moment that just because a decking oil is expensive, that it is better than a cheaper brand…
The harsh truth about decking oil is that no matter which brand you select…
No matter how well you prepare your decking…
And no matter how well you look after your deck…
That deck oil is coming off…
No matter what!!
And it could happen as soon as 6 months…
Even with the most expensive, best rated oil brand in existence…
I’ve been doing this a long time now and I’ve sanded off some of the best decking oils money can buy…
And in every case, the homeowner is so disappointed with how long the oil lasted before it peeled or faded…
Everytime!!
The problem isn’t with the oil or how it was applied…
No, the problem is with you not being told the truth about ongoing decking maintenance and how long you can expect your deck oil to last…
So, I’m here to tell you that I’ve seen cheap Cabots decking oil last for 18 months and I’ve seen expensive Cutek deck oil last only 6 months…
And vice versa…
It all depends on how much weather your deck is exposed to and the amount of foot traffic that pounds down on it each day…
So while I do recommend getting the most expensive decking oil you can afford, don’t break the bank thinking it will make much of a difference in the long run…
The best decking oil is one that fits within your budget…
You can still get great results with a cheaper decking oil…
But there’s still something else you need to consider…
Can you easily get more decking oil when you need it?
This one is criticall…
If you have the ability to get a great price on some cheap deck oil from a small company but you’ve never really heard of them before…
And even worse than that…
If you can only get it from their factory in one location, this could be a real problem…
Let me explain something to you…
Most people don’t realise that the key to a deck that lasts for years without peeling and fading is that you have to apply a maintenance coat…
And you most likely have to apply this coat every 6 to 12 months before any damage occurs to the coating on your deck…
So the moment you notice any type of fading happening on your deck, you need to apply a maintenance coat of deck oil, straight away…
And that will usually happen between 6 to 12 months after you oil your deck…
But you can’t go and get whatever is on sale at the hardware store…
One of the rules to oiling your deck is that when you apply a maintenance coat, you will need to use the exact same oil as you did before…
Each deck oil brand uses a different formula and they’re not designed to bond together…
So if you start mixing different decking oils, your deck will peel within a couple of months…
The harsh reality is, If you can’t get the exact same deck oil, you’ll need to strip it off and start again…
Even if you follow all of the rules of oiling a deck, if you change over form the current oil that is on your deck, the new oil won’t bond to the surface properly…
That’s why it is so important when selecting a deck oil, that you get an oil that is from a well known brand, so you can be confident that they will still be around the next time you need to oil your deck again…
Does that make sense?
Make sure you can always get more deck oil because you’re gonna need it…
If you’re not sure you can, then it’s definitely not the best decking oil for you…
The best decking oil is the one that looks great on your deck…
When it;’s all said and done, the best decking oil for you is the one that looks fantastic on your deck…
You don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on decking oil to end up hating the colour of your deck…
So before you commit to any one oil, you need to get some samples of the ones you like the best and then try them on your actual decking…
You can’t rely on the colour charts that the companies provide…
They’re a good place to start, but the final decision should be based on actually taking a paint brush and applying 2 coats of deck stain to your timber deck so you can see how the colour will look on your timber…
Trust me, all decking oil will look different based on the batch of timber that was used…
Let me show you what I mean…
This is a Merbua deck with 3 coats of Intergrain Natural decking oil…
And this is a completely different deck that is also built with Merbau timber and has 3 coats of Intergrain Natural deck oil…
And this is what the colour chart showed the colour to look like on Merbau…
The proof is right there…
Three very different colours from the exact same oil on the exact same timber species…
That’s why you gotta test the colour on your deck…
You’ve got to purchase a sample pot and actually apply the oil to a small test section on your deck…
It’s the only way to be sure that you’ll like the finished colour of your deck…
Don’t worry though…
Once you test 2 or 3 different oils on your deck, they will sand off in 30 seconds like they were never there…
It takes 7 days for a decking oil to cure properly…
So a hand held sander will remove your colour samples without any hassles…
And you’ll know exactly how your deck will look before you apply hundreds of dollars worth of decking oil to your deck…
This way you can avoid going through this whole process only to find out that you hate the colour…
Never gonna happen if you follow my advice…
Now it’s time to go out there and choose the best deck oil for you…
Well, what are you waiting for?
Go get those colour samples and get to choosing…
I’ll see you on our next adventure…
Peace,
Jason…
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FAQ’s
The best decking oil would have to be Intergrain Ultradeck for water based oils and Cutek CD50 for oil based decking oils…
The decking oil that lasts the longest would have to be a water based deck oil. Water based oils forms a film on the surface of your deck and will last longer than oil based deck oils…
At a minimum, you will need 2 coats of decking oil. Water based oils will need 2 to 3 coats whereas oil based deck oils will need only 2…
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