Winter is almost upon us so it's time to make some final preparation to your patio and decking before the frost sets in and there are a lot of good reasons for you to do this. Home maintenance not only keeps your garden and surrounding area looking nice but it also helps to prevent any future repairs, or at least prevent them.

A prime example of this would be decking, leave your decking dirty and covered in leaves over the winter months and it will lead to accelerated corrosion and rotting of your timber deck board and in the long term you will have to replace your boards up to two years earlier than you would if you prepared and protected them in readiness for the winter.

Preparation of the boards is a simple job and should be done towards the end of August, any further into September and the boards will already be starting to shrink as a result of the Winter chill beginning. First sweep down the boards with a stiff brush removing all of the top layer of dirt and general rubbish, next concentrate on areas with stubborn stains. Use a stiff wire brush for these areas using a circular motion to ease off the layer of grime. Finally using a bucket of warm soapy water, wash down the decking area ensuring it is clean and free of all debris.

Should I use a jetwash or powerwash? In short, yes that is quite acceptable but it is important to note that you must be careful not to damage any of the boards due to the high power nature of the pressure washer. It is possible using this method to bring up small pieces of board in particular where they have been screwed down, disallowing rot and infestation to enter the board leaving it highly susceptible to future damage and thus a need to be replaced.

Once you are satisfied with your cleaning you can leave the deck to dry in what is left of the summer sun and relax in the knowledge that your deck should now be in a position to last the winter without damage from the frost on cold weather.

If you have the time, it is also worthwhile noting that wooden fence panels should be treated in a similar fashion in particular because of the brittle nature of the wood used in the manufacturer of such fencing. Due to the contact they have with the soil and earth this also leaves them open to attack from mites and other wood eating creatures. The onset of green mold is also a major factor and this should be removed from all fencing panels before the Winter months.

As with a lot of things, prevention is nine tenths of the cure and a little hard work in prepping up your garden before the big frost will undoubtedly save you a great deal of time in the long run. It also means that you can have the satisfaction of hibernating in front of your warm open fire safe in the knowledge that your garden i clean and tidy and should remain that way till it's time to roll out the barbecue and patio furniture and once again enjoy the summer sun.