This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Garden furniture is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:
Related Sponsors
Garden furniture, also called patio furniture, is a type of furniture specifically designed for outdoor use. It is typically made of weather resistant materials. The oldest surviving examples of garden furniture were found in the gardens of Pompeii.
Types of furniture
Garden furniture is often sold as a patio set consisting of a table, four or six chairs and a parasol. Garden parasols are a specialist type of umbrella designed to provide shade from the sun. Parasols fit through a hole in the centre of the table and are secured in a base. Long chairs, referred to as chaise lounges, are also common items. Patio heaters, that run on bottled butane or propane, are often used to enable people to sit outside at night or in cold weather. A picnic table, is used for the purpose of eating a meal outdoors such as in a garden
Materials
The materials used to manufacture modern patio furniture include stones, metals, vinyl, plastics, resins, glass, and treated woods.
Plastic garden furniture is naturally waterproof, so you can leave it out year-round. However, rain water will collect at the back of chairs and in nooks and crannies. As such, surprising amount of dirt can form.
Wooden garden furniture can suffer through exposure to the elements and therefore needs to be periodically treated, for example with varnish. Teak is a commonly used material for outdoor furniture. It naturally contains silica which makes it resistant to fungal decay, many of the effects of water (such as rot, swelling and warping) as well as chemicals. It is also resistant to fire, acid and alkalis, there are certain oils specifically for the treatment of teak to help it resist weather and the adverse effects of being outside.
Aluminium garden furniture is robust and long-lasting. Despite that, agents such as suntan lotions, perspiration and car exhausts can eat away at the powder coating that protects it although aluminium does not rust if the protective coating is compromised it will corrode and cannot usually be salvaged.
See also
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 11 September 2008, at 16:12.
Wikipedia Authorship and Review
Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.
Wikipedia Usage Guidelines
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Garden furniture".
The URL for this specific entry is:
All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.