How to restore wooden outdoor dining table?

melell2209

Hi all,

I am looking to restore this table. I was planning to give it a light sand and apply a stain. I’m very new to furniture restoration and have never done anything with outdoor furniture.

What do I need to consider and what would you recommend as a top coat/sealant or is the stain alone enough? As much detail as possible would be appreciated, very grateful for any guidance, thanks

EricL

Hello @melell2209

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us, and thanks for sharing your question about your outdoor table.

What a wonderful project to be undertaking! This is a great way to get into D.I.Y furniture restoration. The general steps are to wash the surface of the table with https://www.bunnings.com.au/cabot-s-1l-deck-clean-1l_p1521451 . This will remove any dirt, grease and oil that might have settled on the surface of the table. The next step is to sand the outdoor table back to timber. I suggest using and orbital sander such as the https://www.bunnings.com.au/ryobi-300w-random-orbital-sander-ros300-s_p6210549 or something similar. I recommend starting with an 80grit sandpaper and going up slowly to finish with a 240grit sandpaper. This also includes removing the dead grey sections of the timber surface.

Once all the sanding is done, I recommend giving it one more wash with the Cabot's to prepare the timber surface and remove all the sanding dust on the furniture. Allow it to fully dry and then you can stain and seal the table. In regards to the colour, I suggest visiting your local store and looking at the stain and sealer sample board in the paint department. I suggest looking at the https://www.bunnings.com.au/cabot-s-1l-new-natural-water-based-garden-furniture-oil_p1520197 along with https://www.bunnings.com.au/feast-watson-1l-jarrah-outdoor-furniture-oil_p1570670 and https://www.bunnings.com.au/cabot-s-250ml-merbau-water-based-deck-and-exterior-timber-stain-merbau_p1520407 .

Here are some handy discussions that will help:

• What stain for outdoor table? by @cristina
• How to sand back outdoor furniture before oiling? by @lauravdh
• Dining table and chairs upcycle by @NickiM  
• Upcycled stool with Pine top by @Nham   
• Upcycled tallboy by @lifestylebymari  

Here is a handy step-by-step guide: How To Refresh Your Outdoor Wood Furniture

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric