You would need to seal it to protect it from water absorption.
The capillary action of wet/dry will cause it to ''crack'' more and allow for the mold to accelerate the decaying process.
A UV inhibitor... of various degrees... as part of the stain (color) determines how long that may last; with oil taking more even wear than acrylic.
Rather than just letting it dry for best estimate... use a moisture meter.
You can tell if the sealer has failed using a ''beading'' test.
You can only tell if the UV inhibitor is failing from the graying of the wood.
Cleaning gets done before any application of stain as a means not to trap mold beneath the stain. Most important for transparent and semi-transparent stains as that will create a darkening.
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