BEST · Outdoor Furniture
The Best Garden Furniture
Teak, aluminium and rope sets left out through a full weather cycle — with joint checks at both ends.
How to Care for Teak Garden Furniture
Cleaning, silvering and the one product that ruins it.
By Tom Brennan, Garden & Outdoor Editor · Published August 10, 2026 · 2 min read
Photograph: Tarren Bailey / StockSnap
Teak contains its own protective oils, which is why it survives outdoors untreated. Almost every teak problem we see is caused by maintenance, not by weather.
Wash once a year
Warm water, a little soap and a soft brush along the grain in spring. That is the whole routine for furniture you are happy to let silver.
Skip the teak oil
Oil feeds surface mould and produces the black blotching people mistake for rot. If you want the honey colour back, use a teak sealer after cleaning — not oil.
Sand, do not strip
A light pass with 120 then 180 grit removes years of greying in minutes and leaves the surface fresh.
Lift it off the ground
Feet standing in a puddle wick water upward. Small pads or a slatted surface prevent the only genuine rot risk teak has.
Frequently asked
- Can I pressure wash teak?
- Only on a wide fan at low pressure and never close up. High pressure erodes the soft summer grain and leaves a permanently furry surface.
- Is grey teak damaged?
- No. The silver patina is a surface layer a fraction of a millimetre deep and has no effect on strength.
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