Refresh Your Deck On A Budget With These 5 Affordable Flooring Ideas

Is your backyard deck looking faded and worn? When the weather warms up, you want to be able to fully enjoy your outdoor living space. But reflooring a deck can be expensive, with materials like natural wood costing upwards of $30 per square foot installed.

Thankfully, you don't have to break the bank to give your deck a makeover. There are several budget-friendly flooring options that transform the look of your space for a fraction of the cost of traditional decking.

Wood-Look Composite Deck Tiles

Composite deck tiles give you the appearance of real hardwood without all the maintenance. Composite is made from a blend of recycled plastic and wood fibers or sawdust. The combination makes for a highly durable and weather-resistant material that stands up to years of sun, rain, snow, and foot traffic without rotting, splintering, or cupping like natural wood.

Composite deck tiles come in a variety of colors and realistic wood grain patterns. The rich tones resist fading better than painted or stained wood. Installation takes just a weekend using the interlocking tiles' built-in connectors; no tools, nails, or glue needed. Just lay the tiles directly over your existing deck boards or frame.

Composite tiles are more affordable than replacing your entire deck with comparable composite boards. Prices often start around $3 per square foot. For a 10' x 12' deck, composite tile flooring would cost $360. The tiles typically carry warranties of 10 to 25 years, paying for themselves over time compared to repeated staining and sealing of wood decks.

Benefits of Composite Deck Tiles

• Durable plastic/wood blend resists weathering
• Mimic look of natural hardwood or cedar
• Interlocking tiles for easy DIY installation
• No staining, sealing, splintering like real wood
• Costs less than full composite decking replacement

Concrete Pavers

Concrete pavers offer the upscale look of natural stone, brick, or tile for less money. Premade concrete pavers come molded and textured to emulate high-end paving materials at a budget-friendly price point. Their compressive strength makes them highly durable, outlasting poured concrete or flagstone when used as deck flooring.

With styles ranging from brick shapes to hexagons, large squares, circles, and interlocking patterns, concrete pavers bring versatile design options to your deck's look. Choosing varying colors and laying patterns allows you to create decorative interest underfoot.

Though concrete has a heavy weight, its solidity gives pavers excellent traction even when wet. The textured surface provides grip to prevent slipping on an outdoor deck. A patio paver subbase laid beneath the pavers provides proper drainage under the flooring.

Concrete pavers cost just $3 to $6 per square foot on average. Landscape supply stores may have remnants for even deeper discounts. With DIY installation, you can give your deck a stylish facelift at a fraction of natural stone's price tag.

Benefits of Concrete Pavers

• Mimic look of slate, bluestone, brick
• Priced 60-70% less than natural stone
• Premade styles for easy installation
• Durable and slip-resistant
• Design options with shapes, colors, and patterns

Rubber Deck Tiles

For the softest feel underfoot, rubber deck tiles are the way to go. Interlocking recycled rubber tiles provide a cushioned, bouncy surface that's gentle on your feet, knees, back, and any items dropped on the deck.

Thanks to the grippy texture of rubber, the tiles are naturally slip-resistant, providing superb traction even when wet. By lowering sound transmission, rubber tiles also help dampen noise from people walking across the deck or moving furniture.

Rubber deck tiles simply click together over your existing frame or boards, much like composite deck tiles. And at $2 to $4 per square foot installed, they cost about the same as composite or plastic decking but with added comfort and safety perks.

Choosing softer, resilient rubber floor tiles allows you to enjoy your deck barefoot while protecting against injuries from slipping, tripping hazards, and hard surfaces. For young children at play or older adults less steady on their feet, rubber tiles provide peace of mind.

Benefits of Rubber Deck Tiles

• Cushioned surface, gentle on feet and legs
• Unmatched slip resistance when wet
• Noise reduction from footsteps, furniture
• Easy interlocking tile installation
• Affordable cost for added comfort

Stain and Seal Existing Deck

Sometimes a basic maintenance approach is the most budget-friendly option for renewing your deck. Rather than replacing deck boards, consider simply cleaning them up and applying new semi-transparent deck stain in a rich tone.

Unlike paint, semi-transparent stains allow the beauty of the natural wood grain to show through. The pigmented stain soaks into the wood to provide protection from moisture, mold, mildew, and UV rays to prevent future cracking, cupping, and rotting of boards.

Pick a stain with added sealant or water repellent to guard your deck from rainstorms and sprinklers. The right product choices revive the wood's surface while allowing the texture and slip resistance of real wood to come through.

Make sure to properly prep and clean your deck before staining. Use a power washer or wood cleaner to strip off built-up dirt, grime, mold, and flaking prior finish. Proper prep ensures the new stain adheres and seals fully.

At approximately $1 to $3 per square foot, staining offers big visual impact for a small price. With an afternoon of elbow grease, you can imbue new life into your existing deck.

Tips for Staining a Deck

• Choose semi-transparent stain to enhance wood grain
• Look for sealant-added products for better protection
• Thoroughly clean deck first with power washing
• Allow wood to fully dry before applying stain
• Use a brush and back-brush for best penetration

Power Wash and Paint Deck Boards

For a barebones deck makeover on a shoestring budget, consider power washing the floor then painting it a fresh new color. This ultra-affordable option brings dramatic change without replacing any of the actual decking.

First, thoroughly clean the deck with a power washer if possible. This blasts away built-up dirt, mud, mildew stains, and any loose cracking wood fibers or splinters. Allow the deck to fully dry after intense cleaning.

Next, use exterior deck paint in your color of choice to coat the floorboards. Solid colors work best for full coverage compared to stains. Look for mold- and mildew-resistant paint. Add textured paint for extra traction.

For artistic flair, consider painting the deck boards alternating colors, in stripes or color blocks, or using stencils to create patterns. Polyurethane spray adds extra protection over decorative paint.

Properly prepped and painted, your deck takes on new life for the cost of some cleaning supplies, brushes, and a couple gallons of paint. Don't demolish it, freshen it up!

Tips for Painting a Deck

• Power wash thoroughly first
• Allow to dry fully before painting
• Use mold/mildew-resistant exterior paint
• Add texture paint for better traction
• Get creative with patterns, stripes, stencils

Don't resign yourself to having a worn-out eyesore for a deck when warmer weather hits. Simple upgrades like composite tiles, pavers, rubber flooring, restaining, or repainting can provide an almost instant face-lift at very wallet-friendly prices.

All of these affordable deck flooring ideas allow you to tackle the project yourself over a weekend. Get your backyard oasis ready for fun in the sun again this year - without draining your bank account!