Tips for looking after your Garden Furniture
Teak garden furniture can really enhance the features of your garden and provide a relaxing and comfortable location to pass the time. But because the wood from which this furniture is made comes from Southeast Asia if you want it to last you need to look after it properly.
Teak is a hardwood and this is why furniture made from this wood is very durable. Also, the wood is much denser than other types and has high levels of resinous oil that means it has a much longer life. The oil within this wood helps to not only make it resistant to moisture but also to drying out.
Initially you’ve to make a choice between whether you want to purchase furniture, which comes in its raw say, or one that has been treated using a teak oil. When you first purchase your teak garden furniture, you’ll find that it has a golden color to it. However, over time and when the elements get to work on it, the wood will turn a silver grey color instead.
If you are quite happy for the wood to turn silver grey then once it has there’s very tiny you’ll need to do in order for it retain it. For those, who however would rather their would to retain that golden hue then it is important that they apply a layer of teak oil.
In order for your teak garden furniture to retain its golden color, then one should be applying teak oil to its surface twice a year. The first that you’ll need to do is actually clean the wood.
In order to clean, the wood you need to take some warm water to which you’ve added a mild detergent. Into this mixture place, a clean cloth and wring out until it is only damp (not soaking wet) and then gently wipe this over the surface of the furniture. This will help to remove any dust or grit that has built up. After wiping the furniture down with the water you need to let it dry completely before you go ahead an apply the oil.
It is important that you only use a specialist teak oil on the furniture and apply this using a lint free cloth. You could use a spray gun that is filled with the oil but using a cloth will ensure that the oil is spread evenly over the surface of the furniture. Now you need to leave it for sometime until it feels tacky.
Once you feel the oil is tacky you take yet another clean lint free cloth and this one you wipe across the surface of the teak garden furniture in order to remove any excess oil. After this cleaning stage, you leave the wood for a further hour before you then take another clean cloth that’s free of lint and this will be used to polish up the surface of the wood and present that golden color you were after.
