How to Restore Synthetic Rattan Garden Furniture If It Has Faded

Restoring your rattan furniture after it has faded is no easy task. Unfortunately, many rattan owners didn’t do the necessary research before buying, resulting in them buying lower quality synthetic or real rattan that fades easily.

Although it’s not always possible to restore faded synthetic rattan furniture, there are many steps to prevent it and some things you can try to restore the furniture if it has started to fade (slightly).

You’ll learn what you can do about this problem in this post!

Should you replace rattan garden furniture if it has faded?

There’s a lot of debate about whether or not you should replace faded rattan furniture. Ultimately, it’s up to you whether you replace your rattan furniture if it has faded. Although it changes its colour, light fading doesn’t cause any structural issues to the table or chair, so you can continue using it.

That being said, if you feel that the colour has faded to such an extent that it starts looking really bad, it may be worth replacing it. We have an extensive range of rattan furniture for you to choose from, so you can be sure that you’ll be able to find the perfect model for you!

If not, you could try restoring it by painting it.

 

Why does it fade?

Sunlight is the main reason that rattan furniture fades. That being said, high-quality rattan furniture shouldn’t fade very quickly, especially if it’s taken care of well. If it fades in the first few years, it’s either bad quality synthetic rattan or you’re not taking all of the necessary steps to protect it from fading.

Rain and bad weather can also speed up the fading process since water can dirt can damage the protective layer. Luckily, this happens over time, so forgetting to move your furniture indoors a few times per year isn’t going to cause any real damage.

 

The general advice is this:

Buying cheap and poor-quality garden furniture inevitably means that the rattan will fade over time. So, of course, we recommend shopping around for the best quality rattan you can find. This is especially important if you are going to go down the artificial route!

Here at Lakeland Furniture, we stock a wide range of high-quality rattan furniture, so if you’re looking to replace your faded set, feel free to check out our collection. That being said, below are some tips for preventing fading.

• Store your garden furniture away during colder months so that it is not unnecessarily exposed to the elements
• Use a reflective cover when storing
• Position your garden furniture in the area of your garden with the least direct sunlight. However, this may defeat the object of buying the furniture in the first place!
• Rotate your rattan furniture every few weeks to minimise any potential fading that may happen to a particular spot or area

Why doesn't good-quality rattan fade?

If you're looking for tips on how to restore synthetic rattan in case you ever face the issue of fading, then pay attention. Good quality rattan won't fade as the dye is fused throughout the entire weave strand. Stay clear of rattan that is surface dyed as this is where your problems will begin!

Tips to restore synthetic rattan

There isn’t much you can do to reverse the fading process, but what you can do is paint your furniture to improve how it looks. You could either go with a completely new colour, but you can also try to find a colour that’s similar to the original colour.

Rattan is notoriously difficult to paint due to there being a lot of small spaces between the strands which are difficult to reach. It’s important to take the time to paint the entire surface, including those difficult-to-reach places.

Take care to place the furniture on a surface that can get paint on it and make sure the cushions and other items are kept well away from the area you are painting your furniture in to prevent paint from getting on them.

 

Conclusion

All you can really do to restore your rattan furniture after it has faded is to pain it. However, faded rattan can also be replaced, as, unless it is really old, it can be an indication that the rattan is low quality or that you’re not taking proper care of it.

If you have any questions after reading this post, or you’d like some help finding a new rattan furniture set for your garden or patio, feel free to reach out to us.