Cedar Patio Furniture Finishes

Most cedar patio furniture is shipped with a natural finish—a sanded surface that has a light oil finish to accent the wood's beauty and luster. Popular cedar woods used in the production of outdoor patio furniture include Western Red Cedar, Eastern White Cedar and yellow cedar. Each type has a distinctive color tone. If your outdoor furniture is left outside without any other treatments, it will turn a silver grey over time and the wood grain will raise slightly.

If you prefer to apply your own finish to your patio furniture, here are some cedar patio furniture finishes that we recommend. Most of these finishes will require annual maintenance and some will require re-finishing.

Wood Sealer

A wood sealer is designed to prevent any moisture and dirt from getting into the pores of the wood. This prevents wood grain from raising but allows the natural weathering process to continue. Your cedar patio furniture will turn a warm silver grey over time.

Stain

A wood stain is useful if you want to preserve the color and smoothness of your cedar patio furniture. By applying a stain, the color and texture of the wood is preserved. The stain must be re-applied after a specified time. Please consult the products direction concerning how often to re-apply the wood stain to your cedar patio furniture.

Oil

A high quality wood oil can be applied to cedar patio furniture as well. This will preserve the wood's color and texture just like a stain but will not protect the wood from turning a silver grey over time.

Paint

Cedar and other wood can be painted. The paint however may blister, peel and will wear over time. We recommend poplar or other treated woods for painted patio furniture. These wood species accept a painted finish better than cedar, redwood and teak.