October 4, 2023
You would surely love to while away your time basking in the sunlight and enjoying the beautiful outdoor surrounding while seated on your Adirondack chair on your wooden deck. But your leisurely sightseeing usually gets interrupted by the sight of the faded deck boards littered with scratches and moss. Upon seeing your shabby deck, you would often resolve to refinish the deck, but only recently have you mustered enough willpower to indulge in the task.
So, you are now asking yourself: What should I use: a roller or a paintbrush? You’ve decided to use a roller, and now you are left with the last question: Which roller should I use?
Given the myriads of brands of paint rollers in the market today, choosing the right one will be a bit confusing. So, to zero in on the best paint roller, you need to know the essential factors that make a roller a great choice.
What Roller Would Be Great for Staining Fence & Deck?
You can apply deck stains in various ways. You can use, for example, a garden sprayer or a roller. These two tools, of course, are the most popular ways to apply deck stains. A pump-up sprayer is perfect for applying stains. Nevertheless, the roller will also provide you with a smooth finish for your deck.
When choosing a roller, you should go for a long-handled and smooth microfibre roller. The roller that you should use should be long enough to cover the width of the deck boards. It should be durable likewise.
Moreover, you should consider the nap size or the thickness and length of the fibers. You should also go for the proper length of the handle. Lastly, you should consider its capability of holding stains. If you’re hurrying to finish your project, the holding capability of the roller will play a critical role in your speed.
Recommended Rollers for Staining Deck & Fence
Given the myriads of roller brands and models in the market today, choosing the right paint roller will be a bit confusing. So, you need to know the following most recommended rollers likewise for staining in the market today to zero in on the right roller quickly:
1) Wagner 0530003 SMART Paint Roller
If you want to speed up the staining or painting process, you can check out the Wagner 0530003. It holds paint in its handle while providing you with a long reach. It also leaves less mess as compared to other paint rollers.
The good thing about this roller is that it doesn’t need any trays. The stick roller can hold a maximum of 12oz of paint in its handle. With this amount of paint, you can paint a maximum of seventy square foot area.
You only need to squeeze its trigger to feed paint onto the roller. You can use it with paints, and it is pretty easy to assemble. Cleanup is also easy. You only need to push the leftover paint in the handle onto the can. Then, remove the remaining paint with water to clean it.
Its cover is around 9 inches allowing you to cover more deck area. One downside of its larger cover is the need for brushes or smaller rollers to cover any crevice or area that can’t accommodate the large cover.
2) Bates Paint Roller
Bates Paint Roller comes in a complete set. It offers a high-quality roller that is meant to facilitate your painting. It’s also durable and can be cleaned quickly.
A thick nap characterizes this roller. Its synthetic filaments come with great designs for holding paint, saving you a lot of time and effort while painting. Moreover, its naps are one-half inch thick. This roller is very much affordable. It is also user-friendly.
It also comes with two roller frame sizes. It features a 4-inch long frame and a 9-inch one. It also comes with two roller covers to fit the two frames.
3) Precision Defined Self-Lock Paint Roller
This paint roller set is perfect if you want a paint roller for smooth rolling. It holds the paint well and spread it evenly on any surface. The result is a velvety finish that is great to look at. It also has another sterling feature—its automatic lock. This automatic lock ensures that this roller keeps itself in place while you paint. It is easy to lock by simply inserting the roller in place, and it locks itself. It is also easy to remove after use.
Its frames also feature a soft grip for comfortable gripping. For this reason, if you are engaged in a long painting task, you will still feel comfortable while holding its frame without straining your hands while you paint.
4) WDS Paint Roller Kit
This paint roller kit comes with everything you need to complete the painting or staining task at hand. It comes with two paint roller sizes that include a nine inches roller and smaller four inches one. It also comes with two roller covers to correspond to its two roller frames. Moreover, it comes with two brushes along with a tray (black).
The kit basically contains nine pieces that include everything you would need to jumpstart the deck staining process. It comes with two frames, four roller covers, two paintbrushes, and one roller tray. Besides, this kit is relatively simple and convenient to use. It is undoubtedly an excellent choice if you are going to refinish your deck.
5) Katzco Paint Roller
Another good option when it comes to paint rollers for refinishing is the Katzco Paint Roller. It is sturdy, and its cage can keep the roller cover from slipping. It is perfect for any 9-inch roller covers. It is comfortable to use, and its core is solvent resistant. Moreover, it exhibits smooth spinning action that works necessitates less effort on your part.
Its fibers are made of polyethylene fibers interwoven in a particular interlocking fashion. You will find this roller easy to use. Besides, you will find this roller paint satisfactorily.
The design of the roller is basic. All you need to accomplish the refinishing task is in the kit. This roller is also designed for comfort, and the whole set will not weigh down your hands, for it is only 5.6 ounces heavy.
Essential Factors to Consider When Choosing a Roller for Staining Decks
Staining your deck necessitates using the best roller. But to zero in on the best roller, you need to figure out the following essential factors to consider when choosing a roller for staining deck:
Rolling Length
The width of the roller will either speed up or slow down the staining process. The ideal width, of course, for staining deck boards is 6 inches wide, for most deck boards are around six inches wide. Nevertheless, you can still use rollers that are four-inch wide.
You can use a small brush to cover the narrow spots. But if the boards come in larger width, you should go for larger-sized rollers. You can find larger sizes of rollers ranging from 9 inches to 12 inches.
If you are a professional who is frequently engaged in painting or staining, you can always have various rollers at your disposal.
Materials
When choosing a roller, it is also important that your choice is made of durable materials, aside from being easy to use. The quality of materials used for such roller must be of high level. It will help, therefore, to check the rubber and foam’s quality before shelling out your money for a roller.
Nap Size
The nap pertains to the brush thickness or the fiber’s length. You can use quarter-inch naps to make smooth deck finishing. You can also use 3/8-inch naps if you want to put a bit of texture to the surface.
If you’re going to infuse a medium texture on the surface, you can use 3/4-inch naps. You can also go for a heavily textured finish using one-inch naps.
Handle Length
When staining decks, you would want a roller with the proper handle length to help you make the staining process less cumbersome. You would usually begin to stain the deck standing. So, you don’t want a handle that makes you arch your back too much. The ideal handle is something that makes you comfortably tackle the staining job.
Otherwise, you will end up with an aching back afterward. If you would stain the ceilings, however, it will help to choose something expandable. This expandable handle will let you reach out to the high ceilings with ease without necessitating a ladder.
Stain or Paint-holding Capability
Cheaper rollers may be advertised as capable of holding stains or paint well. Yet, they will quickly get damaged. So, you need to consider the roller’s quality. Can it hold enough paint without getting damaged? Is the material it is made of durable? It should also be capable of holding enough stains to complete each pass.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the Marks of the Roller Linger When the Stain Dry Out?
When you are refinishing a lighter-colored deck with a dark color stain, there is a big chance that the results will exhibit roller marks.
So, if ever you notice that roller marks are visible after the paint or stain dries up, it will help if you would make another application of the paint to ensure that the roller marks are done away with. You can also lightly sand the present coating to do away with drips and bumps.
Are Rollers My Best Option for Staining Deck?
Rollers, of course, are your best option when painting decks because they are easy to use. Nevertheless, you can also use pads, and pads also work well. Pads and rollers also have their advantages and disadvantages. But your choice all boils down to your preference.
How Many Coatings Would Be Needed for a Deck?
The deck is exposed to the harsh elements of nature. It is exposed to UV lights and rain. So, you need to ensure that the coats are enough to protect the deck from these harsh natural elements. The ideal number of coats for the deck is 2, but if you are not satisfied with two, you can add another coat to ensure that your deck is well protected.
Conclusion
There are a bunch of tools that you can use to stain decks, ranging from pads, brushes to rollers. So, it is but a bit confusing as to which among these tools you should use. Yet, among these tools, the most often preferred are the pads and rollers. These two tools, of course, offer a lot of benefits for those using them.
The rollers, of course, provide you with ease of use. Moreover, you can finish your staining job quickly with the use of rollers. So, if ever you decide to use the rollers, you might as well consider the abovementioned brands and models to ensure that you can get the best roller for your deck staining needs.
Jason is a 40-year-old woodworker, carpenter and author who have been involved in the woodworking and woodcraft industry with 17 years of experience. He is expertise in technical aspects, woodcraft and furniture building projects.