Updating and Remodeling Our Patio and Porch

** Product was received for this review and DIY home improvement project **

While many people look to buy brand new homes, hubby and I purchased an older home that has a lot of charm. The previous owners built the home and lived in it all of their lives. The home was built in the late 1960’s and over the years the previous home owners did very little to modernize it over the years.

We moved into our new home 4 years after we purchased it. During those 4 years we did various interior home remodeling projects. We ripped down walls, removed carpet, added 2 new bathrooms, new hardwood & tiled floors, installed new carpeting and all kinds of things.

Now that we are living in the home…we are continuing with our various home remodeling projects. Right now we are focused a lot on the exterior and wanted to remodel our front porch and a patio. Both of these are on the front of the house but yet…are separate outdoor living areas.

The reason we wanted to do this now is because in late September we are getting new siding, windows, shutters and a new roof. This means that our porch pillars, painting, etc. all needed to be done now before the house gets painted.

We had seen the commercials on TV for the Behr Deckover paint and then did some research online about the product. We were super excited that Behr sent us 4 gallons of the Behr Deckover for our remodeling project. Now, let me tell you a little bit about this product.

The Behr Deckover is a multi-product that will bring new life to wood and/or concrete. In our case, we used it on old concrete. It is a 100% acrylic formula that will fill cracks & splinters (up to 1/4″) to create a smooth finish. It comes in 54 different colors and once applied, your finish will be slip-resistant. You can use it on decks, railings, patios, porches, composite decks, pool decks and walkways. One gallon will cover 75 square feet.

We read the directions and had to go out and purchase the BEHR PREMIUM NO. 991 Concrete & Masonry Cleaner & Etcher to clean and etch uncoated concrete. You need to do that and let it dry for a day or two…so make sure you do it over a nice weather weekend. Hubby then used painter’s tape to mark off areas that we didn’t want to get paint on (ie. the house siding).

We then got busy using the Behr Deckover with a paint brush and going around the perimeter first. You will need 2 coats…at least we did. Once the perimeter was done, we used a long handled paint roller to do the interior sections on both the patio and front porch. Again, we did two coats so we did the painting over a weekend, leaving each coat dry fully overnight. If you are using painter’s tape to mark off areas, don’t remove it for a day or two AFTER you are completely done and peel up the tape carefully.

Regarding the Behr Deckover product itself…it is fantastic! It had very little odor to it and we experienced NO clumping of the paint at all. It has a really nice consistency to it and was really easy to work with. In addition, it took 2 hours to completely dry between each coat since we were working on our project during 85 degree days. We have bought a LOT of paint during the past 4 years and let me tell you…the Behr products are fantastic!!!

Once we had the cement surfaces finished on the patio and the front porch we decided to completely replace the wooden porch/patio pillars with new ones. Hubby built them himself and then we painted each one with 2 coats of exterior white paint. We didn’t like the “look” of that old red brick bottom on each pillar so we decided to paint those completely white with exterior white paint too. Now for those…we did have to use 3 coats of paint to completely “phase out” that old ugly red brick color! Again, this part of our new project took us about 2 1/2 weeks to complete. It was a lot of hard work but we are pleased with the results.

The very top photo in this post shows our smaller porch almost completely done. Hubby needs to finish some of the white paint trim work at the top of each porch pillar but other than that, it is almost done. The photo right above this paragraph shows how nice the Behr Deckover looks! It looks clean and fresh…you can NO longer see those aging cracks and stains on the cement! You can also see the red brick foundations on those pillars are now clean & white! We love it!

Next up…the house gets new siding which will be done in a khaki sand color, new windows which will be white and I am not sure on my new window shutter color just yet. We are going for a coastal looking modern exterior and are pretty excited to get it done later next month.

Once it is done…I will share a lot more before and after photos here on our Two Classy Chics blog. In the meantime, if you are looking to update & modernize your deck, patio or porch…we highly suggest you check out the Behr Deckover! Matter of fact, we will be picking up more to do our back patio next Spring when we enclose that and turn it into a small Florida sun room!

Disclaimer: Shelly has personally reviewed the product listed above. Shelly has not received any monetary compensation for her review. Shelly did receive a free product to try out so she could evaluate and use it for her review. Her thoughts & opinions in this review are unbiased & honest and your opinions may differ. Please read our Terms of Service & Disclaimer Policy before entering our giveaways. Thanks!