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Category: Maintenance

  • Should you shovel your deck? Yes, here’s how not to wreck it

    The Deck Journal / Maintenance

    Should you shovel your deck? Yes, here’s how not to wreck it

    MK Mike Kowalski, Founder
    Jun 10, 2026 · 4 min read
    Person shoveling snow off a deck

    Yes, shovel it. Leaving a foot of lake-effect snow to sit and slowly melt keeps your boards saturated for weeks longer than they need to be, and that moisture is exactly what drives rot and finish failure over time.

    Use a shovel with a plastic or rubber edge, never metal, and lift rather than scrape wherever you can. Metal edges will chew through stain and gouge composite caps. Push snow off the edge of the deck rather than piling it against the house or the railing posts.

    Skip rock salt entirely. It accelerates finish breakdown on wood and can discolor some composite lines. If you need ice melt on a genuinely icy surface, use a calcium chloride product labeled safe for wood and composite decking.

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  • The WNY deck maintenance calendar (print this one)

    The Deck Journal / Maintenance

    The WNY deck maintenance calendar (print this one)

    MK Mike Kowalski, Founder
    Jun 25, 2026 · 6 min read
    Freshly stained deck with built-in bench overlooking a pool

    Most deck-maintenance guides are written for climates that don’t have lake-effect snow sitting on the boards for four months a year. Here’s a calendar built around what actually happens in WNY.

    Spring (April–May): Once the snow’s gone, sweep off winter debris, check for any boards or balusters that loosened over the freeze–thaw cycle, and give the whole deck a look for soft spots near the ledger.

    Summer (June–August): This is the staining window, 50–85°F and dry for 48 hours straight, which in Buffalo means picking your week carefully. Wood decks on a 2–3 year cycle should get their coat here.

    Fall (September–October): Clear gutters and downspouts above the deck before leaf season buries the drainage, and do a final hardware check before the ground freezes.

    Winter (November–March): Shovel with a plastic-edged shovel, never metal, and never use rock salt on wood or most composite, since it accelerates finish breakdown. A calcium-based ice melt is the safer call.

    Want your number, not a ballpark?