Brighten up your garden furniture

Give your weathered garden furniture a new lease of life and create a fresh new look to work in any outdoor space.

Summer is just around the corner and it’s time to get your gardens in to tip-top shape ready for those long summer days. But don’t worry if you’ve left your garden furniture out all winter and it’s looking worse for wear - it’s easy to breath new life in to your weathered tables and chairs and give your garden a fresh new look. 

Plan ahead

Unless you have a garage or shed large enough to undertake the project, check the weather forecast and plan ahead. Weather is a big factor. It’s not just rain that will impact your ability to get the job done. If its hot enough to get sunburnt then it's probably too hot to paint as this will cause the coating to dry too fast. Humidity can also affect the drying time and the longer it takes your paint to dry-through, the more time your wet paint is open to surface imperfections, which will affect the quality of your finish. In general, 21ºC and about 50% humidity are ideal conditions for painting but up to 30ºC should be acceptable.

Paint choice

First and foremost you need to choose the right type of paint for the material of your furniture. Whether its wood, plastic or metal, there will be a paint specifically formulated to provide optimum coverage and lasting performance and protection from the elements. This is especially important if you are painting plastic patio furniture. Many general purpose paints can adhere to most surfaces except plastic so you need to have a paint designed to adhere to hard-to-bond surfaces.

UV rays can negatively affect both the paint colour and the underlying surface. Just as we would apply sun screen to our skin, certain paints also provide UV protection. Our Futura range is an ideal choice for furniture that will be exposed to high levels of sunlight.

Equipment

The quality of your brush will make a huge difference too. It’s worth spending a few extra pounds for the higher end brushes as short haired or worn brushes will leave lines in the dry coating film. The last thing you will need is something to abrade the surface with before painting. Depending on the type of material you could use sand paper, wire wool, wire brush, a scraper or a paint stripper to get rid of any old flaking paint and surface imperfections. 

Priming

Not all furniture will require a primer but materials such as wood are porous so it’s best to use a primer to seal the wood prior to painting. Primers not only help to protect the wood but also provide a nice smooth surface to apply your topcoat to. Applying a primer is also a good idea when you are changing the colour of your furniture. For metal and wood projects then Futura 3 is the ideal choice. It’s dust free after just an hour and can usually have topcoat applied after two hours.

Paint application

Use a high quality synthetic bristle brush and ensure new brushes have been washed in clean water and thoroughly dried with a clean, lint free, cloth. When applying your paint try to avoid immersing your brush too far into the paint to prevent paint from entering the ferrule (base of the paintbrush). The best way to avoid drips is to not overload the paint brush so don’t be in a rush to slap the paint on because often this leads to paint imperfections and a poor quality finish. Instead, apply the paint in even strokes.

Another mistake to avoid is over coating paint that has already begun to dry. In high ambient temperatures the working time can be extended by diluting the paint with 10% to 15% of clean tap water. This will allow you slightly longer to apply your coats.

Drying time

Don’t let all your hard work be for nothing and ensure you leave enough drying time. Whilst many paints can have a second coat applied after just a couple of hours, it can often take a couple of days until your project is properly through dry and robust enough to withstand normal use.