Patio Furniture Buyers Guide and Reviews - Patio Furniture

Patio Furniture Reviews - Southern Cross Trading Company

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 22:10:13 -0700

Company Name: Southern Cross Trading Company
Website:http://www.lewisfirst.com/southerncross/

Description: Southern Cross Trading Company is a small artisan shop located in New York. They make outdoor patio furniture made from Cherry. The wood is harvested from US Forestry approved forest that enables a sustainable harvest of Cherry trees. There furniture styles are very unique in that they inherit the Mayan style of patio furniture. The shopper will either love the style or hate it. I have found the furniture to be comfortable when I tried it for a few days. The selection is limited to a few pieces. The cherry wood is ok for outdoor use but may not be as well suited as the cedar, redwoods and cypress.

The quality is good, the craftsmanship is outstanding and the customer service is great. This furniture is only available at retail stores. Search the internet for the company name there will be several vendors selling this brand. I used to call the owner on occasion to check on orders. He was always nice and willing to talk.

Type of Products: Chairs, Lounges, Tables, Benches and Swings

Favorites: It has to be the Mayan chair. If you want to have something that nobody else in your neighbor hood has, this is the chair for you. You will need to get the ottoman as well.

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outdoor patio furniture reviews - Uwharrie Chair Company

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 12:35:22 -0700

Company Name: Uwharrie Chair
Website: http://www.uwharriechair.com/

Description: This manufacturer is a high end wood outdoor furniture manufacturer. The styles are all unique and only found at this company. They have common styles of patio furniture but that add an extra flair and splash of style to make their furniture stand out from the crowd. The quality is good and will last a long time.

This furniture is not cheep. In fact, it is rather expensive. If you want the style and are looking for a specific look, this is your place. Just be prepared to spend a bit more. There are several online internet stores that sell this patio furniture so take a look around.

They offer 13 collections of wood patio furniture. There are styles for every type of backyard. They also offer about 30 different colors ranging from whites, darks, reds greens and blues. A good store will order your patio furniture in any color available. The shipping time is about 2-6 weeks depending on the season.

Type of Products: Dining/Deck Chairs, Rockers, Swings, Gliders, Occasional Tables, Dining Tables, High Dining, Tete-a-Tetes, Chaises

Favorites: I like Plantation series, specifically the 3011 chair in white.

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Patio Furniture Reviews - Old Growth Again

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 05:52:08 -0700

Store name: Old Growth Again
Website: www.oldgrowthagain.org

Description: Old Growth Again redwood furniture is a redwood only patio furniture manufacture and reseller. They are located in northern California. They manufacture all their own furniture using environmentally friendly policies. They firmly believe in a sustainable harvest of redwood trees and forests. Old Growth Again uses three types of redwood, new, mature and old growth. Each age of wood has its own properties related to disease resistance and durability. Each age group cost more based on how old the wood is. New growth is less expensive than the old growth.

This company also makes really really durable, thick patio furniture. This is probably the best quality wood patio furniture you will find anywhere. It does come with a price tag however. I also like the various styles of furniture that this company makes. There are pieces here that are truly unique in the patio furniture industry.

Type of store: Brick and Mortar with internet sales.

Types of products: Patio furniture selections include Benches, Swings, Chairs, Tables, Adirondack, sets and many other products related to outdoor furniture. Only redwood is used.

Customer Service: Their customer service good. It may take a day or two to get your answer but they are really good a getting back to customers.

Sales Knowledge: Excellent. They make it, they know everything about it.

Quality: Exceptional ( my highest rating). The wood is twice as thick ( and heavy ) as other patio furniture. They only use quality stainless steel components. This is the best you will find. You will however pay a premium for this quality.

Shipping: Average, the items may ship later than promised based on availability.

Price: Average ( see notes about quality )

Selection: Good

Notes: Really good furniture. I would buy this if I had the money. If you like redwood and can afford this great quality, look no further. Give them a call, they are really nice people to talk too. They will take the time to answer all your questions. They are pretty busy during the spring months take that into consideration.

Improvements: I would recommend they offer lower priced options. There are many customers that can’t afford the price. I am not suggesting to reduce the size/thickness, but to somehow offer products that may fit a tighter budget. How about a few specials, or closeouts?

Additional Comments:

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Outdoor Furniture Reviews - BackYardCity.com

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 04:16:20 -0700

Store name: BackYardCity.com
Website: www.backyardcity.com

Description: This is another internet only store. I think they drop ship all their orders from manufacturers. This is pretty much a store that resells other products. The selection is average along with the site design and usage. The prices appear competitive to other stores selling the same items. I would only buy from this store if the price was less than other stores or I could not find the items anywhere else.

Type of store: Internet Only

Types of products: Patio furniture selections include Benches, Swings, Chairs, Tables, Adirondack, sheds, sets and many other products related to pool, outdoor furniture. The patio furniture is made from all kinds of materials including teak, cedar, redwood, recycled plastic, aluminum and others.

Customer Service: Their customer service average. The customer service policies are very much what you would expect from the industry.

Sales Knowledge: Average.

Quality: Good, they do not manufacture any products, just drop ship from other companies.

Shipping: Good, most all products shipped on time.

Price: Good

Selection: Good

Notes: There is not much detail about the store or who they are on the website, just the product information. I called the store to get some information and the sales staff was not very helpful. The person I spoke with was eager to get me off the phone if I was not going to buy something. There is average selection of products and the overall experience was average. The site design and navigation works but lacks information found on other sites. I would use this company if I could not find the products I am looking for from another vendor.

Improvements: I would try to improve the sales knowledge of the products and be willing to spend more time with customers. The person on the phone indicated more than once that they are really busy and needed to help other customers.

Additional Comments:

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Patio Furniture Reviews - PatioFurnitureUSA.com

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 04:14:00 -0700

Store name: PatioFurnitureUSA
Website: www.patiofurnitureusa.com

Description: This is strictly an internet store. They have a warehouse in Omaha Nebraska where they do store some of the more popular items. This internet only store is part of a larger group of stores ( netshops ) that sell just about anything and everything. There are actually several stores related to patio furniture including Adirondack, Teak Gazebos, benches, patio swings and more. Navigate to this site and then to the netshops logo to see the other stores. This company will drop ship most products directly from the manufacturer to the customer’s location. They primary shipping company is Fedex.

The sales staff and customer service handle about 200 stores. There is good knowledge of the products but not the type of knowledge a manufacturer or small reseller would have.

Type of store: Internet Only

Types of products: Patio furniture selections include Benches, Swings, Chairs, Tables, Adirondack, Gazebos, sets of all types and just about anything else related to outdoor and patio furniture. The patio furniture is made from all kinds of materials including teak, cedar, redwood, recycled plastic, aluminum and others.

Customer Service: Their customer service very good. The customer service policies are very much what you would expect form a larger store.

Sales Knowledge: Average.

Quality: Good, they do not manufacture any products, just drop ship from other companies.

Shipping: Good, most all products shipped on time. Good communication with customers.

Price: Good

Selection: Excellent

Notes: This is a very good internet store. They have good security, know how to handle customers and answer the phones on the first ring. This is a large company in that there are over 200 internet only stores they own and operate. It is like going to a big box store except using the phone. Good selection of items in many different materials. Websites are very well organized and easy to navigate.

Improvements: the one area for improvement would be the sales staff is a little more knowledgeable about their products. Their business model however makes this very difficult in that they have a sales staff that must know thousands of products in 200 stores. They would be able to direct you to some items of interest but you would be on your own to find specific items.

Additional Comments:

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Patio Furniture Reviews - CedarStore

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 22:07:06 -0700

Store name: Cedar Store
Website: www.cedarstore.com

Description: CedarStore is located near Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. They started business in 1992. They started making their own furniture mainly out of cedar and have grown by leaps and bond since. They have a good internet program and ships patio, garden and outdoor patio furniture worldwide. They make most of their own products locally in their factory and resell/redistribute products from other manufacturers. They have a wide selection of products, more than most other stores. They have great product knowledge for they make the patio and outdoor furniture themselves.

Type of store: brick and mortar with internet sales

Types of products: Patio furniture selections include Benches, Swings, Chairs, Tables, Adirondack, Gazebos and just about anything else related to furniture. Furniture is made primarily of cedar.

Customer Service: Their customer service very good.

Sales Knowledge: Excellent.

Quality: Good.

Shipping: Good, most all products shipped on time. There are a few times the products where on back order and took 2-3 weeks to ship. Pretty common in this industry.

Price: Good

Selection: Excellent

Notes: I like this store in that they are also a manufacturer of their products. Most stores that make their own patio and outdoor deck furniture have outstanding customer service, sales knowledge and policies. The one outstanding feature for this store is their wide selection of products. A shopper can find almost anything they need from this store. Their quality is good but the thickness of the wood is average compared to other stores. Overall, a great store.

Additional Comments:

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Patio Furniture Reviews - Applegate Furniture

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 21:39:17 -0700

Store name: Applegate Furniture
Website: www.applegatefurniture.com

Description: Applegate Furniture is located in Canfield Ohio. They are a brick and mortar store that also sells on the internet. This patio furniture store is unique in that they have very good business relationships with several Amish families that build patio and outdoor furniture by hand. They bring the products down to the store once or twice a week. Applegate Furniture store then resells these products locally and via the internet. Most of the sales are local although they are trying to grow the internet business.

Type of store: brick and mortar with internet sales

Types of products: Benches, Swings, Chairs, Tables, Adirondack furniture made of cedar, poplar, recycled plastic and a few others.

Customer Service: Their customer service is the best I have found. Ask for Tiffany or Paul. See notes below.

Sales Knowledge: Excellent.

Quality: Excellent

Shipping: Good, most all products shipped on time. There are a few times the products where on back order and took 2-3 weeks to ship. Pretty common in this industry.

Price: Good

Selection: Average

Notes: This is one of the stores that I used in my business. They drop shipped all my orders for me for over 4 years or so. They have the best customer service of any of my stores that I worked with. If a product was damaged during delivery, they would replace it with no questions asked. They usually sent out a replacement part and not an entire patio furniture product.

Additional Comments:

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Sometimes small patio furniture stores are better

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Thu, 29 May 2008 08:32:41 -0700

I once had a client that asked if I could put wheels on all the patio furniture pieces she was interested in. This was an older lady that wanted to move the patio furniture around her deck based on the season. She could not lift the heavy pieces so putting wheels on them really made sense. The customer also wanted a hole drilled in the patio tables to put an umbrella. I have had several requests for the umbrella whole but not the wheels.

I was also interested in this question so I contacted the deck furniture manufacturer and they indicated that they could put the wheels on. There would be a fee however ( $30 per piece ). Most of the big stores ( certainly all the larger manufacturers, chain stores etc ) would never accommodate this type of request. This is a good argument that purchasing outdoor deck furniture from a smaller manufacture has its’ benefits.

Patio Furniture styles and types - Benches

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 22:10:15 -0700

Benches are a very popular item when buying patio furniture. Next to dinning sets, Benches where the next best selling item for my store. Swings where the next best seller. As for benches, there are but a few types. The basic bench has a seat, backrest and legs. As with chair styles, the back slats are usually vertical ( up and down ) rather than horizontal ( across ). The vertical slats are shorter and therefore more stronger. The second type of bench style is with or without arm rests. Here are some examples of benches.

Another type of bench is a highback. Highback have a higher backrest than regular benches. Highback styles of benches are usually more compfortable while lounging. Here are some examples of highback benches.

I added a few pictures of bences that also do not have a backrest. The last two are made of cherry. Back to patio furniture styles

Patio Furniture Chair Styles

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 04:51:40 -0700

What you may ask? How many styles of chair can there be? Well, it turns out there are more styles of chairs that any other type of patio furniture. Here is some basic information.

Dinning or Casual
Vertical Slats or Horizontal Slats
Highback or Regular Backrest
Flattop, fan or decorative backrest
Arm rests or no arm rests

Chairs can be categorized by dinning chair or casual chair. The dinning style chair has a more upright backrest that makes sitting at a dinner table more comfortable. The casual style of chair has the backrest not quite as upright as the dinning chair. These chairs are more suited to sitting around a coffee table leaning back and talking with friends. It is less comfortable to sit upright in casual chairs. Here are some examples of dinner and casual chairs.

Notice that the first picture the backrest is more reclined. The second picture the backrest is more vertical. What chair would you prefer to use at a dining table? What chair would you prefer to lounge around in?

The next style of chair is how the backrest slats are oriented. There are two basic types, vertical and horizontal. The thickness also varies on the slats. Some have a wider gap between the slats. There is no real difference between the slat orientations. It is just a matter of preference. The first two are example is vertical stats, the bottom two are horizontal and a pattern.

Did you also notice that the chairs can be higher and lower. This is typically refered to as barstool height and regular chairs.

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Selecting and Internet Store

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 05:33:04 -0700

The internet is fast becomming a realiable place to buy patio furniture. There are many companies out there that sell patio furniture. The problem is to find a good one that you can trust. Here are some tips to consider when selecting an on-line patio furniture store.

Things to look for

Phone number - Does the store offer a phone number? If so, this is a good indication. If they do not have a phone number, probably not a good choice.
Do they answer the phone - Call the phone number. If they answer, this is a good thing. Many companies will have a phone number but simply have the calls go into a message to return later.
Do they know the products - What I mean by this is when you call, ask them some questions about the products. Ask them the length, width and height for example. Ask them about the types of wood used and the benifits of each type of wood.
Return Policy - Ask them about their return policy. It should be a 30-day money back gaurantee at the least. Ask them about who pays for the return shipping if any. Good companies will pay for the return shipping.
Customer Service - Get information about the customer service policies. If a piece is damaged in transit, will they send a replacement part at no cost? What are the customer service hours of operation.
Look for references or customer comments - Any good companies will at least have a few customer references on their sites. Be advised that any references will be positive but at least there are previous customers.
Ask if they are a reseller or a manufacturer. Ask them to give you the names of the manufactures they resell for. Some may not but good stores will gladly tell you this information.

If the internet store does not have all of these features. I would be wary of purchasing anything from them.

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Where to buy patio furniture

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 05:13:04 -0700

There are two ways to buy patio furniture. Go to your local patio furniture store or from an internet company. Below are tips on how to find the best one.

Local Patio Furniture Stores ( no internet ) -

There are a few types of these brick and mortar stores. These are stores that have an actual location ( as opposed to internet stores ) and you can go down to the store and see the actual pieces

Big Box Stores - Lowes, Home Depot, these stores stock patio furniture from about february to june. They usually always buy products made in china and are of medium quality. They also cost less than comparable items at other stores.

Local Stores - these are retail stores that specifically sell patio furniture of all types ( wood, aluminum, plastics - others ). These stores will purchase items from national manufactureres, and sometimes local companies. These stores typically have a good selection but tend to charge higher prices.

Internet Only

These are stores that resell patio furniture through the internet only. This means that the internet store does not have an actual location but just sells through the website. There are some really good stores but there are some bad ones as well. These types of stores typically just drop ship to the customer from the manufacturer. These stores typically do not have too much information. There are some really good ones and not so good ones. Check this posting to determine if the internet store is worthwhile.

Local and Internet

These are local brick and mortar stores that also sell on the internet. These are typically very good and reliable stores to work with. The best possible type of store to work with is a store the manufactures their own furniture or works closely with the manufacturer.

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What type of wood should I get

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 07:20:11 -0700

There are so many to types of wood, what type is best for me? This is a question I used to get a lot when I had my store. Listed below are links to the types of wood. Each has its own description.

Cedar - Probably the best all around, most expensive

Cherry - best appearance if you like the red color. Not as good for outside furniture, requires more care.

Pine - Cheapest type of wood. Not as strong a other types, usually painted and/or treated. Does not resist decay/rot as well as others.

Poplar - Better than pine, a little stronger and takes paint very well. This type of wood is usually painted. Not as good as other types for outside usage.

Redwood - Good looking, open grain, well suited for outside use. Not quite as strong as cedar. Can be REAL expensive if you get the old growth or recovered.

Recycled plastic - This type of material has the least maintenance and will last the longest by far. Most products will not fade over time. Best choice if you like the looks.

Oak – don’t bother for outside use.

Teak - Pricy, good looking and is well suited for outside use. I don’t like this too much for these trees are endangered. Too many people are cutting them down. Check with the manufacture before you buy to make sure they are harvested from a sustainable source.

Other

Here is a matrix to help compare. This is a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the best.

Type of wood	Price	Strengh	Suiteable for outside use	Looks
Cedar	4	4	5	4
Cherry	4	4	3	4
Pine/Painted	2	2	2	?
Poplar	3	3	2	2
Recylced	4	5	5	3
Redwood	4	3	5	4
Teak	5	4	5	4

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Other Types of Woods and Exotics

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 07:01:01 -0700

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Teak Patio Furniture

nospam@example.com (Kasey) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 06:57:42 -0700

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