Mould and mildew are both a common type of fungus that thrives in the UK's damp climate. They love nothing more than growing on your nice wooden garden furniture too. Timber is especially prone to mildew if proper care is not taken to prevent its growth.
And believe me, prevention is your best form of defence. Taking the right measures from the day you purchase the furniture is the way to go. Applying a protective finish, stopping it from getting too damp and routinely cleaning your garden furniture are essential. If it's not in use, store it indoors or under a cover. Keep it clean and keep it protected!
However, if Lazy Susan is a little late with this blog post and your wooden furniture is suffering from an outbreak of mould or mildew growth and/or staining, then don't fear, just follow our simple guide to removing it and get your garden furniture looking as good as new.
Remove mould and mildew from wooden Garden Furniture
To remove fresh mould and mildew from your garden furniture, you'll need some rubber gloves, washing-up liquid, a small soft bristle brush, bleach, microfibre cloths, a bucket, garden hose, warm water and a good garden furniture cleaner/renovator such as HG or Ronseal Garden Furniture Cleaner.
- You need to start by soaking a clean, soft cloth or your soft bristle brush in a solution made of 3 parts warm water and 1 part washing up liquid. Wring the solution from the cloth until almost dry and then wipe the surface of the furniture to remove the fresh mould growth from it.
- Only clean a small area at a time and immediately follow this up by wiping the area you've cleaned with another cloth soaked in just warm water as this will stop the washing-up liquid from discolouring the timber.
- Use a clean, dry cloth to thoroughly dry the surface and ensure it is completely dry before proceeding to another area.
- If the staining is a little deeper/more stubborn and has grown into the wood/under the finish, start by gently scrubbing the affected area with a solution made of 5 parts water and 1 part household bleach.
- Rinse the surface thoroughly with water and dry thoroughly. Do not use bleach on any finished surfaces that you don't want to have to repaint/stain.
- Once you've removed the mould, clean with a good garden furniture cleaner as this will help remove the signs of ageing that arise in hardwoods that have been exposed to the elements.
- If the above method doesn't remove it then you should try a Fungicidal Wash such as Everbuild 404. Failing that a little DIY might be your best solution. Sand it back to bare wood and refinish.
- Again, you could use a pressure washer but this will potentially strip any finish, so it would need reapplying, just be careful not to gouge/score the timber too, which is easier said than done.
- If you can, leave the cleaned furniture out in the sun for a few hours as that'll help with the natural oxidation process and helps to eliminate the source of mould/mildew.
- Check the weather before proceeding with this task as you need to ensure that the day is clear, with very little humidity in the air... You want to eliminate mould, not encourage it to grow, so the furniture needs to dry.
This video from Rachel Yatuzis at greenkleeninc.com has a few great pointers:
The video below from the Furniture Clinic shows you how to clean and restore teak garden furniture:
While the next videon from Painting & Decorating focuses on cleaning and protecting weathered oak garden furniture:
And last up we have a video from Outdoor & Offroad that shows you how to pressure wash wooden garden furniture. Personally, I wouldn't risk it, they're just too powerful and you risk damaging the wood. However, there's no denying that they get a great result in this one:
