How many of us mean to get everything shipshape in the garden once the barbecue season has finished? Instead we often retreat indoors when the cold weather comes, leaving our garden furniture to fend for itself throughout the winter months.

Yes, we probably intended to buy waterproof covers or put our garden furniture away for the winter, but many of us just run out of time or enthusiasm. The result might be a set of garden furniture covered in mould and bird poo, and everything looking rather sad and neglected.

Give your garden furniture a make-over this spring:

Clean wooden garden furniture: Although wood scores points for its durability and natural look, it is time consuming to maintain. Scrub it down with warm, soapy water, sandpaper off any rough edges and treat it each year with oil or stain.

Restore rattan furniture for summer: This is designed to be weather resistant, but it still shouldn’t be left exposed to the elements during the winter months. At the very least, you should keep the cushions indoors or in the shed. To clean rattan, use warm water with liquid soap. Add vinegar to remove mould or mildew, and rinse gently afterwards with a hose.

Caring for stainless steel and aluminium outdoor tables and chairs: Although most metal furniture sets are now rust resistant, they should really be covered or put away for the winter. In the spring, they will need cleaning with warm soapy water. If you use a pressure washer, don’t have the setting too high.

Cleaning up plastic garden chairs: Use a pressure washer on a low setting for plastic tables and chairs; or clean with warm, soapy water.

Remember to wash your decking

Decking often becomes slippery and mouldy in the winter months. First, brush away leaves and other debris, then use a hose or pressure washer on a low setting. Now you can scrub the decking with warm, soapy water and rinse, or use a disinfectant to clean mould and algae. You can buy products specifically for cleaning decking and patios. There are also waterproofing and anti-mildew sealers.

Repair your garden furniture

Before you sit on your garden chairs or put food and drink on the tables, check they are safe to use. You might need to get your tool kit out to mend a few wobbly legs! There are various tutorials that will tell you how to repair rattan furniture, such as this one from Whitestores.

Looking ahead to next summer

Let’s hope that next year we will have returned to our normal, busy lives. Of course, this means we won’t have so much time to revamp our garden furniture. It is worth a bit of forward planning once we get to this autumn and the cold, wet and windy weather returns. Would it be easier to store your furniture than spend days scrubbing it all down and resealing it the following spring? And don’t worry if there is no room in your shed or garage. It is simple and cost effective to store your garden furniture in one of many storage facilities dotted around the country. See our tips on preparing your furniture for storage .

How much is self storage per month?

It probably won’t be as costly as you imagine to keep your garden furniture under cover next winter. Find out more with our blogpost on costing storage   and to keep insurance costs down, Store and Insure can offer you a competitive online quote.