How To Protect A Deck From Dog Urine? (The Best Way!)

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How Can You Protect Your Deck from Dog Urine?

The deck or the patio must surely be one of your favorite places to relax & enjoy the outdoors. But, if you have a pet dog (or dogs) you know that dog pee on the deck leaves stains & a lingering, obnoxious smell. Not pleasant! Is there a way you can protect your deck from dog urine?

To protect your deck, wood or concrete, from dog urine, the decking should be sealed. It becomes extremely difficult to get rid of the stain & smell of dog pee that penetrates porous unsealed decking.

If you were to ask a 100 people, “how to protect a deck from dog urine?” 99 are going to say “train your dog”. Great advice but not something you did not know. 

Dogs can hold their pee for hours when inside the house, but can’t hold it for a second once they get out. Maybe they understand the difference between indoors & outdoors. Maybe for them, the deck is outdoors. Who knows?

The reality is that even a well trained dog can have accidents or may not be feeling well. Train your pet dog for sure, but also take adequate steps to protect your deck from deck urine.

In this post I will explain why dog urine can damage wood or concrete decks and how to protect the deck from dog urine.

Does Dog Pee Damage Wood?

95% of dog pee is pure water. The balance 5% consists of several chemicals such as urea, creatinine, uric acid, carbohydrates, enzymes, various salts, ammonia, etc.

Urea is pretty harmless as it is colorless, odorless, highly soluble in water and practically non-toxic.

The uric acid in dog urine is damaging as it is acidic. The uric acid also contains insoluble salts, which

Can even ‘burn’ the tannins in wood, causing black stains around the affected areas.

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The insoluble salts in uric acid form colorless crystals when the urine dries. These crystals are invisible to the naked eye, till they start collecting dust. 

This is when the dog pee stain appears.

The ammonia and bacterial action, as the urine dries, are responsible for the strong obnoxious dog pee odor.

Will Dog Urine Hurt Concrete?

Yes, dog urine will certainly hurt concrete. Here is why.

Concrete may appear to be rock solid, but in reality it is full of pores. The pores are formed during the curing phase. Concrete cures when water reacts with the cement to form a crystalline lattice.

Excess water and entrapped air finds its way up and exits from the surface. This process leaves behind a lot of pores. Once concrete cures the pores become the chink in its armor. Water can seep into these pores and weaken the concrete from within.

Concrete surfaces disintegrate by a process called scaling. Water within the concrete expands and contracts as the temperature changes. This puts physical pressure on the cement causing it to break down into dust.

Water seepage into the concrete pores can also result in the corrosion of the steel reinforcement bars and a reduction in the tensile strength of the concrete. Corrosion will be expedited if acids and other corroding chemicals are part of the water penetration.

Remember, dog urine is 95% water. The balance includes uric acid and salts. When dog urine penetrates the concrete pores along with components like uric acid & salts, it can be quite detrimental to the concrete deck.

Uric acid crystals bond tightly to the concrete deep within the pores.

Will Waterproof Sealer Protect a Wood Deck from Dog Urine?

A waterproof wood sealer is the best way to protect your wood deck from dog urine!

Dog urine is mostly water. When a dog pees on an unsealed wood deck, the pee is readily absorbed by the wood. Softer the wood, quicker will be the absorption. This results in two problems:

1. It is very difficult to clean embedded dog urine
2. You do not get a chance to clean up till it is too late

However, if you waterproof your wood deck with the right sealer, the dog pee will form a telltale puddle. You can mop or hose your deck clean with water and a mild soap such as Dawn Dishwashing Liquid.

Here is how to seal a wood deck:

• Wait for a month after installing the deck before sealing
• Use a waterproof or water repellent wood sealer. This is not the same as a wood stain or deck paint. Most stains & deck paints are not really waterproof
• Wash & sand the deck before applying the wood sealer
• Wood sealer can be applied just like paint using a brush, roller or spray
• Apply 2 coats, with a gap of 24 hours between coats, in case of a new deck. If resealing, one coat will be enough

Thompson’s Waterseal Clear Water-Based Waterproofer Wood Protector even exceeds Industry Standard ASTM D-4446 for Waterproofing Wood. It is exceptionally good at

• Preventing Water Damage
• Maintaining Wood’s Natural Color
• Resisting Mildew and UV Damage

Make sure that you reseal the wood deck every 2-3 years, earlier if it looks worn out.

What Sealer Will Protect a Concrete Deck from Dog Urine?

To protect a concrete deck from dog urine, you certainly need to apply a Penetrating Sealer.

A penetrating sealer will seep into the tiny pores (capillaries), fill them up, solidify and block them, so that dog urine can not penetrate into the concrete.

I recommend using Foundation Armor SX5000 Water Based Silane Siloxane Penetrating Concrete Sealer.

The Armor SX5000 WB is a water-based Department of Transportation approved Silane-Siloxane penetrating concrete sealer. It penetrates deep into the concrete pores, reacts to form a hydrophobic barrier. It can reduce the absorption of water by up to 95%.

For additional protection apply a coat or two of a Topical Sealer. In case you have a stamped concrete deck then this is a requirement anyway.

I recommend using Foundation Armor AR350 Solvent Based Acrylic Wet Look Concrete Sealer.

The Armor AR350 is a solvent based acrylic wet look sealer that is designed to seal, enhance, and protect a variety of interior and exterior concrete and concrete paver surfaces.

Penetrating & Topical Sealer are the best way to protect a concrete deck from dog urine!

Thank you very much for reading the post. I do hope you found it informative and helpful.