When you put your hard earned money into purchasing pieces of furniture patio decor, you want to make sure that you are going to protect that investment. Little do people know how much damage just leaving those furniture pieces out in the cold a time or two can do.
In this article we are going to show you why you want to bring your furniture in, or at least cover it up in the winter, to avoid the damage that snow can do to it.
Plastic Furniture – Many people take the economic route to purchasing furniture patio decor. This is not a bad idea, especially if you are going to leave it out in the winter. In the case of plastic furniture, winter weather can weaken it and make it brittle. Also, if there are any cracks in the furniture already, the snow that is falling can seep into those cracks, melt, refreeze and expand. This will cause the cracks to become even bigger and do more damage to your furniture pieces.
Metal Furniture – If you have metal furniture, leaving it out in the snow can really shorten its life span. Water and metal have never been the best of buddies. Water often breaks down metal and causes it to rust. Well, snow is water, so the same thing will hold true here. In some cases snow can be worse as it can cause damage both outside and inside metal furniture. On the outside, it can work away at the surface. But then it will melt and seep into any openings. Later it will freeze again and expand, possibly damaging the metal by making it change its shape.
Wood Furniture – Wood furniture can be extremely damaged by snow. First, the winter weather that comes with snow is generally dry, leading to cracking in the wood. Then the show falls. It gets into those cracks and melts. Now you have water, inside the wood. As soon as it freezes again it is going to push and strain against the wood crack. In most cases it will make the cracks and splits in your wood bigger and more pronounced. Not only can these be ugly cracks, but they can also pinch and snag skin and weaken the composition of the furniture altogether.
Furniture Cushions- The final thing you need to think about when it comes to furniture patio decor is those nice comfortable cushions that you like on your patio furniture. Are you leaving them out in the snow? This is just as bad as leaving them in the rain. You see, the snow is going to fall on them and then melt. It will seep inside and stay there. Over time this can lead to mold and mildew from those wet cushions. At the least it can lead to a mess for you to clean up. At the most it could lead to complete destruction of your cushions and mean you have to replace them.
With all of these threats facing your patio furniture, it is often best to avoid repairing or replacing pieces down the road and instead just prevent the damage from happening in the first place by protecting your furniture pieces from the snow.