Learning how to stain deck spindles is usually the part of the job that everyone dreads. You've got the main deck floor finished, it looks great, and then you realize you have about eighty individual wooden sticks to coat by hand. It's tedious, it's a bit of a back-breaker, and if you don't have a plan, you'll end up with drips everywhere. But honestly, if you get the technique down, it's not that bad, and the result makes your entire outdoor space look brand new.
The thing about spindles—or balusters, if you want to be fancy—is that they have a lot of surface area in a very awkward configuration. You're dealing with corners, crevices, and the dreaded "back side" that you can't quite see. If you're ready to tackle this, let's break down the process so you don't lose your mind halfway through.
Preparation is Half the Battle
You might be tempted to just pop a can of stain and start brushing, but please don't do that. Raw wood or old, weathered wood needs to be prepped if you want the stain to actually stick and stay looking good for more than a few months.
First, give the deck a good cleaning. You can use a specialized deck cleaner or a mild oxygen bleach solution. If there's mold or mildew, you've got to kill it now, or it'll just grow under your new stain. A pressure washer is helpful here, but be careful. If you get too close to the wood, you'll "fuzz" the grain or even gouge the spindles. If the wood looks like it's growing hair after you wash it, you've gone too hard.
Once it's clean, let it dry. This is the part where people get impatient. The wood needs to be bone dry—usually 24 to 48 hours of clear weather. If you trap moisture inside the wood with a fresh coat of stain, it'll peel or turn black.
Finally, give the spindles a light sand. You don't need to spend hours on each one, but a quick pass with 60 to 80 grit sandpaper will open up the pores of the wood. It also helps smooth out any of those "hairs" left over from washing. Wipe off the dust with a tack cloth or a damp rag, and you're finally ready to stain.
Choosing the Right Tools
The tool you choose will basically determine how much you hate your life during this project. Most people grab a standard 2-inch paintbrush and call it a day, but that's the slow way.
The Staining Mitt
If you want to move fast, get a staining mitt. It looks like a fuzzy oven mitt with a plastic liner inside to keep your hand dry. You literally dip your hand into the stain and grab the spindle, sliding your hand up and down. It covers three sides at once and gets into all the nooks. It's messy, but it's incredibly fast.
Mini Rollers
A small, 4-inch "hot dog" roller with a thick nap can also work wonders. It's great for the flat faces of the spindles. You'll still need a small brush to catch the drips and hit the corners where the spindle meets the railing, but the roller does the heavy lifting.
The Brush
Even if you use a mitt or a roller, you still need a good quality synthetic or natural bristle brush (depending on if your stain is water or oil-based). Brushes are essential for "back-brushing"—which is just a fancy way of saying you're smoothing out the excess stain to make sure it's even.
The Actual Process of How to Stain Deck Spindles
Now that you're prepped and armed, it's time to start. The golden rule of staining anything vertical is to work from the top down.
Start by staining the top rail, then move to the spindles, and do the bottom rail last. Why? Because stain is thin. It's going to drip. If you start at the bottom and work up, you'll be constantly dripping fresh stain onto your finished work, creating dark streaks that are hard to fix.
When you're working on the spindles, do one or two at a time. Apply the stain liberally but don't let it puddle. If you're using a brush, use long, vertical strokes. If you're using a mitt, make sure you aren't squeezing so hard that the stain runs down the wood like a waterfall.
Catching the Drips
This is the most important part of how to stain deck spindles. After you finish a section of three or four spindles, go back and look at the bottom where the spindle meets the lower rail. You'll almost certainly see a "bead" of stain forming there. Take your brush and wipe that away immediately. If those beads dry, they look like ugly, dark plastic blobs.
Dealing with the Floor
Unless you're also staining the deck floor the exact same color at the exact same time, you need to protect it. Use some cardboard or a drop cloth. Plastic is okay, but stain tends to puddle on plastic and then you'll step in it and track it across your yard. Cardboard is great because it absorbs the drips.
Timing and Weather
You really want to check the forecast before you commit to this. Ideally, you want a string of two or three days with no rain and temperatures between 50 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
Direct sunlight is actually your enemy here. If the wood is hot to the touch, the stain will dry too fast—sometimes before it even has a chance to soak in. This leads to "lap marks," which are those ugly dark lines where two sections of stain overlapped. If you can, follow the shade around the house. Work on the north side in the morning and the south side later in the afternoon.
Pick Your Product Wisely
Not all stains are created equal. You generally have three choices: transparent, semi-transparent, and solid.
- Transparent/Clear: These show all the wood grain but offer the least UV protection. You'll be doing this again in a year.
- Semi-Transparent: This is the sweet spot for most people. It adds color and protects the wood but still lets the natural beauty of the grain show through.
- Solid: This looks like paint. It's great for old, ugly wood because it covers up imperfections, but it's prone to peeling if the wood wasn't prepped perfectly.
If you're wondering how to stain deck spindles so they last the longest, go with a high-quality oil-based semi-transparent stain. Oil-based products soak deep into the fibers and don't just sit on the surface like a film. This means when it eventually wears out, it just fades instead of peeling off in flakes.
A Few Pro Tips for Success
One trick that professionals use is to have a "dry" brush handy. This is a brush that has no stain on it. Use it to go over the work you just did to soak up any excess. It helps ensure a perfectly even finish.
Also, don't forget the "hidden" sides. It's easy to miss the side of the spindle that faces away from the deck. Every once in a while, walk around to the outside of the deck (or lean over the rail safely!) to make sure you didn't leave any "holidays"—that's painter-speak for missed spots.
Lastly, take your time. It's a repetitive job, and it's easy to get sloppy around the fortieth spindle. Listen to a podcast, take breaks, and keep an eye on your technique. When you're done, your deck is going to look incredible, and you'll have the satisfaction of knowing you did it right. Plus, you won't have to think about how to stain deck spindles again for a good few years!