I installed a new treated pine deck in October 2007. I wold like to apply a finish to it and I am considering a cedar colored toner. What surface preparation should I do? I would like a recommendation on a manufactureer of a finshing product. I have looked at Lowe's and Home Depot and I am looking for other alternatives.

I live in South Louisiana.....plenty of rain and high humidity.

When staining a new deck it is important to prep the wood first with a light cleaning with a deck cleaner followed by a deck brightener. This will remove any dirt or grayness and prep the wood for the deck stain. Cedartone deck stains are the most popular color. There are many high quality brands out there. Try this link for high quality brands:

Deck Stains

Unfortunately there is not one particular brand on this list that is better then the others. The best selling product is the TWP brand of stains. Every brand name is high quality though and will be much better in terms of longevity and maintenance procedures then product(s) at the "big box" stores.

Thank you so much for the question! and the answer makes a lot of sense to me. But you say that all brands are basically the same as each other. I am sure for many brands that is true but I personally have heard that the lower costs brands often do not compare quality and longevity wise with the mid ranged price brands. Do you know anything about this.

I was referring to the particular stains on the deck stain list all being of high quality. Of course there is cheap and inferior stains out there but they are not on this list.