The warmer months are already making their way into our lives, and before we know it, summer is going to be here. As for now, though, there are a few things we need to be focusing our time on, with one of those being protecting our home decor, including outdoor furniture.
Outdoor furniture is great to have. After all, it can bring livelihood to any outdoor area, it makes for great seating and lots more. But, if you’re not careful, your outdoor furniture won’t make it from one year to the next, and this is never a good thing because this type of furniture tends to be extremely expensive. Let’s take a quick look at some helpful tips for protecting your furniture.
Tip #1: Clean it up
Hopefully, you properly protected your outdoor furniture during the winter by storing it inside. And even though storing it inside during the colder months of the year goes a long way in protecting it, you will still need to clean and dust your furniture once you get it out of storage. The exact way that you need to clean your furniture will be determined by the materials it’s made out of.
No matter the materials, though, it’s a good idea to rinse your furniture, including cushions and all, with water. One the cushions are dry, take a vacuum to them to suck out any remaining dust.
Tip #2: Apply a protective coating
Cleaning your outdoor furniture is essential to its longevity, but it also strips it of the protective coating that was applied by the manufacturer. You need to go back and apply this coating at least once a year, preferably after you get done cleaning the furniture. Applying a protective coat gives your furniture a nice, shiny appearance. Once again, the exact type of protective coating that needs to be applied will be based on the furniture materials.
Tip #3: Give it a thorough inspection
Your outdoor furniture probably gets a lot of wear and tear on it from year to year. Because of this, it requires regular maintenance and inspection. From loose bolts and nuts to checking for cracks in any glass table tops, you need to thoroughly look over your furniture to see if anything needs to be repaired. You don’t want someone sitting in one of your outdoor chairs and the leg falling off due to a loose nut or bolt.
Tip #4: Set some ground rules
If you have kids, you need to set some ground rules. It’s no secret that little ones like jumping on furniture. And while jumping on the bed every once in a while probably isn’t going to hurt anything, when it comes to outdoor furniture, you need to put your foot down. There should be absolutely no jumping on it. These furniture pieces, whether they are placed on blacktop, concrete or grass, don’t have soft landing spots.
If your child falls while jumping from one piece to another, he or she is likely to get hurt. And there’s also the chance that he or she will damage the furniture.
+Paul Reichman is the founder of BedBathStore. Using decades of experience in home fashion, Paul offers quality bed, bath, home and outdoor furnishings at affordable prices through www.bedbathstore.com.