Here are a few general Frenchic painting tips for outdoor painting of garden furniture
Add color to your yard, terrace, or balcony! Your summer oasis's new look is just waiting for the mood of colors! By painting, you can quickly and affordably give your furniture a new look, whether your furniture is wood, metal, or rattan.
The painting instructions for a successful result are ultimately very simple:
- Wash and clean the surface to be painted carefully and let the surface dry.
- Sand thoroughly and wipe off sanding dust.
- Paint at least twice, on a dry and clean surface, with carefully mixed paint.
- Let dry according to instructions.
The Al Fresco paint series has been developed specifically for painting garden furniture
Al Fresco paints are weather-resistant, withstand rain and normal summer temperature variations well. They already contain the protective agents needed for outdoor furniture paint: UV protection and mold inhibitor.
We have compiled comprehensive and useful tips for your spring and summer yard and garden furniture 'do-it-yourself' projects.
Take good care of your painted furniture and store it according to our instructions, protected from the weather during winter.
Tighten the furniture screws if necessary and do spot painting as needed. Avoid direct ground contact when placing wooden furniture. Wooden furniture reacts to weather and moisture changes. By caring for and maintaining your furniture, they are almost "eternal".
Painting outside is a pleasant summer activity - the best painting weather is a warm and partly cloudy day - just the right amount of wind and calm.
From this guide, you will get useful tips on how to best succeed with outdoor painting and what to consider when painting your garden furniture with the Al Fresco series!
We have listed here a few reasons why Al Fresco paint is the best paint for your garden furniture
Say goodbye to multiple products and choose Al Fresco:
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- Al Fresco series paint is an "all-in-one" paint, so you save both work time and material costs.
- Fast-drying and almost odorless Al Fresco is pleasant to use.
- Your paint waste decreases when you can use Al Fresco series paint for many targets: wood and metal - for both outdoor and indoor stacks.
- Al Fresco is "Self-Sealing", "Self-Priming", and "Self-Levelling", so thick, long-drying, and toxic primers, undercoats, or varnishes are not needed.
- Al Fresco is water-based and low in VOC content. It has a mild scent and the smell is short-lived.
- Al Fresco is EN 71-3 certified: "Toy Safe," which means this paint is a safe choice also for children's garden furniture or playhouses.
- Al Fresco is moisture- and wear-resistant.
- Al Fresco paints contain mold inhibitors and UV protection.
- Al Fresco paint can significantly extend the lifespan of your garden furniture.
Painting garden furniture is a quick and easy way to update your outdoor space; terrace, balcony, yard, or garden. The right color can completely change the atmosphere of the space (and the garden).
You won't find the beautiful shades of the Frenchic series at your local hardware store!
Start choosing colors conveniently from here.
Plan your painting project for good weather.
So on a hot day, seek shade and avoid painting in direct sunlight.
Paint that dries too quickly may crack, and brush marks appear as clear grooves on the surface when the paint and brush dry too fast.
The Al Fresco series has many stunning matte shades that look beautiful on outdoor furniture in the garden, on the terrace, and your balcony.
The powdery Frenchic Paint shades suit both old environments and modern built yards together with stone and wood surfaces.
Only paint outdoor furniture that you can keep protected from the weather during winter. Read more about all Frenchic series here.
Do you think your outdoor furniture is too old to paint?
You might be surprised how beautiful they turn out!
Examine the age and condition of the furniture before deciding to paint
An exception is soft, even partly rotten and grooved old wood that collects moisture, water, and snow in the grooves, and therefore is no longer the best painting target. Paint cannot cover or fill rotten wood grooves indefinitely. For the surface to be beautiful, durable, and even, the painted surface must also be intact and smooth.
Al Fresco is EN71:3 certified, like all other Frenchic Paint series, so it is safe to paint children's furniture or playhouses with it.
Paint outdoors during good weather
So first check if it's too cold or hot to paint outdoors - for drying outdoors, Al Fresco paint requires at least +10 degrees Celsius for the first 48 hours (day and night).
Or paint outdoors and carefully bring outdoor furniture inside or under a shelter overnight, after a few hours of drying.
Carefulness and patience are rewarded with a durable paint surface!
Paint a dry and clean surface with at least two coats
When using Al Fresco series paints, always apply at least two coats.
Two opaque and intact paint layers create a moisture-resistant surface. The Al Fresco series is suitable for both indoor and outdoor furniture.
If you wish, you can add a few coats of Finishing Coat to the dry paint surface (24h), which increases gloss and provides extra wear resistance for high-traffic areas.
So it's a matter of taste, not a necessity. Al Fresco shades dry to a matte finish.
Always try first
If you're not quite sure about Al Fresco's suitability for your project, try it first on a small area - a handy small can size of 250ml is available for testing.
At the same time, you'll get a grasp of the paint's coverage and how opaque your chosen shade is, and you'll notice just how economical Al Fresco paints really are!
Where is Al Fresco not suitable?
However, water-based Al Fresco paints are not suitable for previously oiled surfaces, items not stored indoors during winter, or rotten and grooved wooden surfaces.
All Frenchic Paint series paints are 100% water-based and repel dirt, grease, and oil.
If wooden outdoor furniture has been previously oiled, paint durability cannot be guaranteed – sometimes oil seeps from the wood to the surface even for years.
The type of wood can also affect paint durability and consumption: some wood types are naturally very porous or oily, such as teak or other 'hardwood' types.
Some factory treatments of garden furniture may have used oil-based coatings or wood preservatives intended to prevent other substances from adhering to the surface.
It may be that paint will not adhere on such protective treatments. Especially if you have acquired your furniture used, there is no full certainty about previous years' treatment substances.
Large garden swings and old, grooved garden fences and similar items that cannot be stored protected from the weather, are in contact with the ground year-round, or have a surface too old to paint – we do not recommend painting them.
If you still decide to paint furniture or other items left exposed to the Finnish winter, be prepared for annual maintenance painting: even old wood expands and contracts due to weather and moisture changes, and can easily crack the paint film. Water, snow, and ice can get under the paint through the crack and lift the paint easily.
Covering with tarps also collects a lot of moisture on the furniture, especially if the furniture is stored on the ground during winter.
Store your painted furniture in a dry and spacious place where the painted furniture won't get damaged from stacking and tight storage. Dents and scratches on the paint surface are easy to fix in the spring during normal maintenance painting.
Do a test paint before a larger painting project
Pre-treatment and preparations
All surfaces to be painted must be clean and dry.
Please do not paint wooden furniture stored outside too early in the spring: they are still wet inside the wood for a long time.
Frenchic Paint series have excellent adhesion, so make sure that nothing extra remains between the paint and the surface to prevent paint adhesion.
Loose or peeling old paint or flaking varnish must be removed before painting.
Painting metal furniture
Al Fresco is suitable for painting metal.
If you are painting metal, note that Al Fresco paints do not contain rust inhibitors. We recommend Finishing Coat as a base.
Mold and rust must also be removed because mold and rust left under the paint will eventually penetrate even the new paint surface.
You can slow down rust formation by using Finishing Coat as a base; 2-4 coats if you don't want to use toxic rust inhibitors.
Painting rattan furniture
If your rattan furniture has not been treated with oil recently, painting works when you follow the same instructions as for other painting.
When painting woven surfaces, paint consumption is often higher than when painting a smooth surface. The Frenchic Paint series oval brush is handy when painting woven surfaces.
Painting poly rattan furniture
Painting plastic poly rattan furniture works when you follow the same instructions as for other painting. Careful washing and cleaning is important, as well as surface roughening.
When painting woven surfaces, paint consumption is often slightly higher than when painting a smooth surface, so reserve enough paint for your project.
The Frenchic Paint series oval brush is handy when painting woven surfaces.
Read more about painting plastic surfaces here.
Painting plastic outdoor furniture
Painting plastic outdoor furniture works when you follow the same instructions as for other painting. Careful washing and cleaning is important, as well as surface roughening. Remember to allow the furniture the drying time specified in the instructions before use.
If the paint surface gets scratched, for example when stacking furniture, spot painting is a normal maintenance procedure.
Read more about painting plastic surfaces here.
First wash, then paint
Only paint clean and dry surfaces. It is advisable to wash the furniture before painting (do not use a pressure washer, which pushes water deep inside the wooden furniture). Washing can be done with Sugar Soap furniture cleaner and a scrubbing brush.
Washed wooden furniture / woven surface furniture must be dried carefully.
A good rule of thumb is: washing and painting on different days.
Wooden furniture that has been outside all winter or throughout a rainy summer may be too wet to paint in early spring / autumn; take the furniture to dry in a sheltered place before painting.
Leave painting to the next season if you can't get the furniture dry - or dry and paint indoors.
Painting Tip!
Raise the furniture to be painted a little higher - for example, on an old table, so you can better see corners and crevices. However, make sure your riser or surface is sturdy and can support the weight of the furniture.
Start painting from the bottom - so turn the chair or table upside down and paint the bottom and legs a couple of times first. We recommend painting furniture all around on all surfaces.
If the furniture has many small gaps, use additional risers to raise the gaps, making them easier to paint twice.
If you can still position the painting surface so that you can easily walk around it, painting goes quickly and you can easily inspect the paint finish from different angles.
Protect the furniture base with an old cloth or sheet and use protective gear yourself when painting: at least remember gloves, safety glasses, long-sleeved shirt, and pants. You can read more about protective gear at this link.
Remember to take before and after photos!
Also protect the paint can from impurities
Tip: keep a lid or cloth on the paint can when painting outdoors to prevent impurities from the air or brush getting into the can: dust, dirt, pollen, needles, etc. Dirty paint does not keep.
Do not thin the paint with lake or rainwater.
Do not leave the paint can or brushes in hot sunlight.
Always wash new brushes before starting the project and after finishing the painting work.
With a clean and slightly damp brush, the paint finish is beautiful. You can read more about choosing and caring for brushes here.
Al Fresco is a furniture paint for your outdoor furniture, but our customers paint many other materials and objects with it.
You can find all kinds of ideas, experiences and tips in our FB group.
Should I paint a rag rug on the stairs?
For example, stencil and pattern painting on concrete tiles or asphalt surfaces outdoors on paths and stairs has been a summer painting hit in Britain - just like rag rug paintings here - a pleasant summer painting project that needs to be repainted the following summer.
Sand, rain, ice, and snow wear down the paint surface from the ground and porous surfaces, but the most enjoyable part is planning and executing a new painting project.
Drying time and paint curing
Paint drying and paint curing are different things.
Al Fresco is a water-based paint and it dries to touch quickly.
However, it is important to follow drying times also between paint coats. Although the paint surface dries quickly to touch dry, the interval between Al Fresco paint coats is always at least 2 hours.
The drying process starts when the paint is applied to the furniture - the water evaporation from the paint completely takes about 20-30 days and at the same time other protective agents in the paint harden.
You will notice an amazing difference in the durability of the painted surface when you allow the surface to reach its final hardness.
You can start using the furniture carefully after 48 hours of drying, but remember that the paint is still fresh for about three weeks.
Please do not place cushions, cloths, dishes, or heavy pots etc. on the freshly painted surface.
Al Fresco is touch dry in 1 hour and overpainting can be done after at least 2 hours if the weather is good.
Always follow drying times and read the instructions on the paint can before painting.
At least two paint coats - The shade, age, and condition of the furniture's wood material affect the paint consumption and the final result.
Depending on the surface to be painted, its material and color, painting tools, painting technique, and the new shade you choose, you may need to paint a few more coats than usual, especially if the color difference between the old surface and the new paint is large.
You can read FAQ questions and answers here.
Only do painting work with clean and intact tools.
Normally, at least two paint coats are needed.
For example, a porous or old, grooved wooden surface and planed raw wood can absorb surprisingly much paint.
Note that an old and grooved wooden surface can retain water in deep grooves. If water gets under the paint film, it easily lifts the paint off.
Spot and maintenance painting is a normal procedure for painted utility furniture.
The shade, age, and condition of the furniture's wood material affect the paint consumption and the final result.
Painting won't make a poorly maintained wooden surface look like new.
First do a test paint, so you can better notice the paint consumption and coverage specifically for your project.
Al Fresco's moisture resistance comes from at least two opaque layers.
Storage of painted outdoor furniture protected from the weather during winter
Only paint outdoor furniture that you can store protected from the weather during winter.
Store your painted garden furniture properly in a dry storage during winter and prepare for normal maintenance painting in spring if the furniture has been damaged due to tight storage or stacking.
A good storage space is dry, cool, and spacious.
Covering outdoors with tarps can trap a lot of moisture – moisture swells wooden furniture and that is not good for the paint surface.
Yard and garden furniture are under heavy strain outdoors.
Moving furniture, stacking, temperature fluctuations, sun exposure, rain, and moisture strain the surfaces.
Sunscreens, sand, grill grease, needles, leaves, bird droppings, and other loose dirt should be cleaned off painted surfaces immediately using water or a mild detergent.
Would you like to paint your exterior door?
The same advice applies to painting exterior doors.
+10 degrees for the first 48 hours
It is also not good to paint in too cold conditions; the paint does not dry or adhere to its base in the cold.
Avoid rain and excessive moisture as well; night moisture and summer rain spoil the drying process of freshly painted furniture and damage the freshly painted surface.
So it's worth checking the weather forecast in advance.
The painting temperature must be at least +10 degrees for the first 48 hours so that the paint starts to dry properly and the surface becomes durable.
Read more about painting doors here.
