Patio Furniture Buyers Guide and Reviews

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Sunday, March 30. 2008

Redwood Patio Furniture

Facts about Redwood and why it is a good choice for outdoor furniture.

Does not warp as much as other woods. This means the boards will not disform because of warping from sun and water as much as other woods. Redwood does not absorb water as other woods can.

Resists decay, disease and rotting - Redwood has natural decay and insect resistance not found in many other woods.

Holds and maintains stain - Redwood furniture holds and maintains stains and finishes better the most other woods. Redwood has a unique open cell structure that allows the stains and finishes to bond to the wood more effectively.

Redwood has unique color - Most people can recognize the color of redwood when they see it. Redwood has a natural reddish brown color that blends well with other natural landscaping structures and items.

Changes color to a silver grey over time

Redwood Patio Furniture Construction
Redwood Patio Furniture Care

Links to other Redwood related sites.

Replenishment of redwood trees

About redwood forests

More Patio Furniture products and information.

Posted by Kasey at 07:32 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Recycled Plastic Patio Furniture

Poly Lumber ( recycled plastic, and other names ) is a high density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic derived from post-consumer waste such as milk jugs and plastic packaging that would otherwise end up in a landfill. This material is then cleaned in a decontamination process to a high purity level. This purified recycled plastic is formulated with Ultra-Violet (UV) stabilizers and color pigments, and then formed into various shapes and profiles used to create beautiful and maintenance-free furniture.

Will the colors fade?
The poly lumber used to make this Outdoor Furniture is made of UV stabilized colored plastic. It has solid color throughout the material and will fade very minimally.

Product Care
Poly Lumber does not splinter, crack, rot or peel and never needs to be sealed or painted. Stains can be removed with a mild household cleaner. Since Poly Lumber is not affected by the elements, it can be left outdoors year around in any climate.

Lifetime Warranty
This Outdoor Furniture product has a lifetime warranty. Our guarantee is that our products will not crack, splinter, chip, peel, rot, rust, nor will it be infected by bugs or termites as long as you own it. We will replace the product or refund the original purchase price if any of these defects occur.

Assembly
Most furniture comes ready for final assembly unless otherwise noted. This means the main components are usually assembled and it just needs those pieces assembled for use. Most take less than 1/2 hour to assemble.

Poly Lumber looks similar to real wood but does not look exactly like wood. Color choice may be limited to what the manufacturer has. On the other hand, poly lumber is ZERO maintanance. No staining, oiling, hiding indoors during winter. If you are looking for a low maintanance patio furniture, recycled plastic patio furniture is the best choice.

Back to Patio Furniture for more information.

Posted by Kasey at 07:20 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Cherry Patio Furniture

Cherry wood makes a good, not great choice for patio furniture. Cherry does have average characteristics for outside usage but cedar, redwood, treated pine and recycled plastic are better choices of wood. Cherry does not resist rot and other damages as well as the other woods. Cherry is usually used for indoor or limited outdoor use.

Cherry does have a great color and grain. Cherry is usually more expensive than redwood and cedar. If you are looking for an elegant wood with a redish hue, cherry is a good choice.

Here are some properties of Cherry.

Properties:
- stiff and strong
- moderately hard and heavy
- high resistance to shock
- stays in place well after seasoning
- comparatively free from checking and warping
- difficult to work with handtools
- excellent bending strength
- glued satisfactorily

Used for:
- high quality furniture
- veneer
- backing blocks for electrotype plates
- woodenware
- interior finishes
- interior parts of furniture
- molding and trim

Back to more patio furniture information

Posted by Kasey at 07:13 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Poplar Patio Furniture Construction

when searching for Poplar patio furniture, use the guideline below when checking the constryuction of the furniture. High quality products are fastened using screws, carriage bolts, tongue and grove or mortise and tenon joints for strength and durability. High quality furniture will outlast all commercial, mass produced patio furniture that is simply stapled and glued. The stapled and glued joints are not nearly as strong as our mortise/tenon or bolted joints and will break over time.

We also use zinc plated, stainless steel or treated hardware that will not rust and last the life of the furniture.

All of our furniture has a light oil based finish that shows the beauty of our wood. Please see our care of products page for more details on finishing and maintaining your furniture.

All of our wood that we use is either air dried or kiln dried to prevent warpage and other deformations of te wood due to moisture.

We only use Poplar that is grown on plantations and tree farms. This strategy will ensure that there is enough Poplar for future generations. It is important that we preserve our forrest from over harvesting by only using renewable plantation grown trees.

Poplar Patio Furniture Care

Facts about Poplar Patio Furniture


Mortise/Tenon joinery	Bolt joinery	Hardware

Posted by Kasey at 06:49 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Poplar Patio Furniture Care

Most poplar patio furniture products are shipped with a natural finish. This natural finish is a sanded surface that has a light oil finish to accent the woods beauty and luster. If the furniture is left outside without any other treatments, it will turn a silver grey over time and the wood grain will raise slightly. Many of our customers choose to paint their poplar furniture or finish it themselves. Poplar is an excellent wood for painting.

If prefer to finish your furniture, here are some examples of other types of finishes that we recommend. Some of these finishes require annual maintenance and some require re-finishing after a few years.

Wood Sealer - A wood sealer is designed to prevent any moisture and dirt from getting into the pores of the wood. This prevents wood grain from raising but allows the natural weathering process to continue. The patio furniture will turn a silver grey over time.

Stain - A wood stain is useful if you want to preserve the color and smoothness of the furniture. By applying a stain, the color and texture of the wood is preserved. The stain must be re-applied after a specified time. Please consult the products direction concerning how often to re-apply the wood stain.

Oil - We do not recommend using oil to finish poplar in that the grain is not as pleasing to the eye as other woods. Poplar usually has a greenish color heartwood mixed with white outer wood. If needed, us a high quality wood oil can be applied to the furniture. This will preserve the woods color and texture just like a stain but will not protect against the wood from turning a silver grey over time. Some of our furniture is shipped with a light oil finish.

Paint - Poplar is a good wood for painting. Poplar does not contain the different grain patters found in pine. This grain pattern allows poplar to have a very smooth finish that does not "raise" as other wood do. The paint however may blister and peel over time. We recommend poplar and our treated pine furniture for painting. These wood species accept a painted finish better than cedar, redwood and teak.

Treated - Poplar can be treated like most other woods. Poplar should be treated if it will be in contact with the dirt for prolonged periods of time.