How we waterproof a deck (the system, step by step)
We start with what the deck is made of. Our system goes over concrete, plywood (CDX) and suspended slabs. Wood decks get sanded, and we inspect every seam. Damaged concrete gets crack and spalling repair first. If the deck needs flashing at a wall or an edge, we install it. Then the rubberized membrane base coat goes down. That membrane is the waterproof layer, and it flexes with the deck instead of cracking. On top of it sits the decorative layer, where you pick colors, borders, flakes or stencils. A sealing top coat locks in the design and takes the daily wear.
Spring through fall is the season for this work. The deck has to be clean and dry when we start. The coating also has to cure without rain or snow landing on it. A deck takes 2 to 3 days to dry after the sealing top coat. The full job can run up to 6 days from the first day of prep. Applied and cured correctly, professional-grade deck coatings can last over 20 years. We can build a slip-resistant texture into the surface for wet stairs and splash areas. Tell us if the deck holds a hot tub or a grill, so we plan the layout around it.
Commercial waterproofing for balconies, walkways and stairs
The same systems go on commercial property. We waterproof exterior walkways, balconies, landings and stairwells for HOAs, apartment buildings, hotels and offices. Those surfaces carry foot traffic all day, and they sit directly over units and parking. When a walkway membrane fails, water tracks along the framing and shows up on somebody's ceiling. We check the substrate first and repair what is damaged. Then the rubberized membrane and top coat go over the whole run. Traffic-bearing coatings and slip-resistant textures matter more here. The surface is a walking path and a roof at the same time.
Work on an occupied building gets planned around the people in it. We stage the job in sections, so residents keep a way in and out. Property managers get dates for each section ahead of time, which lets them post notices for tenants. Cure time is the piece that cannot be rushed, so we schedule around the weather. Interior commercial floors run on a different system, shown on our commercial and industrial epoxy flooring page. A property with several buildings or phases can be priced and scheduled as one project.
What does waterproof deck coating cost in Utah?
Price starts with square footage and the shape of the deck. Substrate condition moves it next. Soft or delaminated plywood, open seams, spalled concrete and a failing old coating all add prep time. Access matters as well. An upper-floor balcony or a stairwell is slower to work than a ground-level patio. The design you choose adds steps, because extra colors, borders, flakes and stencils each take another pass. Flashing, drainage fixes and removal of an existing coating are priced when the deck needs them. Commercial jobs also price the staging and the schedule.
We come out and look at the deck before we price it. The visit is free, and you get a written price for the exact system we would use. Our service area runs the Wasatch Front, from Ogden south through Salt Lake County. That takes in Bountiful, Farmington, Kaysville and Layton, plus the towns between them. Decks in Park City sit under heavier snow, so that schedule tends to open later in spring. Call (801) 347-4518, Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm.