How to Protect Your Patio Furniture from the Cold Weather

With the Summer in full flow, now is the perfect time to prepare your furnishings for the winter months ahead. Not only do furniture covers (see garden furniture covers) help protect your furnishings from unnecessary harm, but there are other tactics that can be employed to ensure your patio furniture lasts even longer.

Most gardens have at least a few key patio items that require storage when the cold weather arrives. Even treated furniture requires maintenance in order to ensure longevity. So, whether your patio furniture is weather resistant or water proofed, some further maintenance will be needed. By simply putting time aside over the Summer months, you can save yourself the expense of purchasing a new patio set next Summer.

Preparing Your Furniture for Storage

When putting your furniture into storage (see garden chair cover), the key step to remember is to clean it first. Any dirt, dust or wetness remaining on your furniture can greatly increase the chance of mould growing. Once mould targets your garden furniture, your furniture could deteriorate extremely quickly. If you have patio furniture made from Rattan furniture, wrought iron, plastic or mesh – these materials can be cleaned with soap and water.

Eliminate Stains from Wood Furnishings

If you own wooden furniture – oil, soap and water is advised for use during the cleaning process. If your wooden furniture happens to be stained or tricky to remove, we have found the following solutions work very well… combine ½ cup vinegar, ¼ cup baking soda, 1 cup Ammonia and a gallon of water should do the trick. By using a soft brush to apply the mixture and work on the stained areas. Spend a little time doing this and you will notice a significant difference. Once applied, rinse the area and leave to dry.

If you have cushions on your patio furniture, these will need to be completely dry before put into storage, otherwise mould will start to grow. Stained fabric should be cleaned and left to thoroughly dry out.

Remove Rust From Your Garden Furnishings

Coating your outdoor patio furniture will prevent unnecessary harm to your garden furnishings whilst enabling your furniture to retain its youthful appearance. If your furnishings are either plastic or Aluminium, these can both be covered with a thin coat of car wax as a protector. If you notice your metal furniture has signs of rust, a wire brush can help to ease this problem. A silicone sealant is particularly great as a metal furnishing protector. For further information on protecting your garden furnishings, see garden furniture.

When Winter Hits, Ensure Your Garden Furniture Is Protected is a post from: WiredWriter