Tips For Preserving Your Outdoor Furniture During The Fall
Patio furniture can be great for enhancing your outdoors and providing your loved ones with a place to relax. Outdoor chairs and tables can make outdoor living easy during the warmer months, providing anything from a comfy place in the shade to an idyllic dining place under the stars.
However, as temperatures cool and the snow approaches, the issue of how to preserve and protect your outdoor furniture arises. Without proper care, your outdoor furniture can sustain irreparable damage, forcing you to dig into your pocket for replacements.With that in mind, here are tips on how to care for your wooden furniture during the fall.
Cleaning
Harsh weather can be very hostile to wooden furniture, causing it to lose its shine, rot, or crack. To keep wooden furniture in good condition, start by brushing off any twigs or leaves that may have accumulated on horizontal surfaces, as they pose a serious fire risk. You should also remove any spider webs and bird droppings that may stain the surface or cause your furniture to look unsightly.
Next, focus on hosing down the furniture to remove any caked-on dirt before using a cloth or non-abrasive brush and soapy water to gently scrub the wood surface so as to remove any stubborn dirt stains that survived the hosing. Thorough cleaning will also discourage the growth of algae and lichens that can dull the wood finish.
Stripping and coating
After the furniture has dried, you can now apply protective coatings to help preserve the wood finish though adverse weather. If your furniture is painted, check for any peeling paint that would let in moisture into the wood. Strip such paint using a sandpaper or paint stripper to expose the bare wood exterior. Look for any areas that have turned grey due to water damage, and use wood cleaning solution to scrub the weathered areas so as to restore the natural color of the wood as well as prepare the wood for repainting.
The final step to protecting your wooden furniture is applying a preservative. Garden furniture oil is a good option that can easily be applied using a sponge or cloth to prevent rotting and warping. You may also opt to use hardwearing acrylic to keep out moisture and prevent pest and insect damage. When applying a protective coat, pay particular attention to horizontal surfaces that are likely to collect water as well as feet that are in contact with damp soil.
As winter weather sets in, consider investing in heavy-duty waterproof covers that will keep snow and ice off your furniture. Self-storage units can also provide the controlled conditions you need to keep your outdoor furniture protected during particularly harsh weather.
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