Buying outdoor furniture in Foshan

Outdoor furniture has a harder job than anything else in the catalogue. It sits in ultraviolet light, rain, frost or salt air, often unmaintained, and the customer forms their opinion of it in year two. Everything that decides how it does can be asked about in a showroom.

Frames

Aluminium is the workhorse: light, does not rust, and easy to move around a terrace. What matters is the wall thickness and the coating. Powder coating that has been applied over properly prepared metal lasts. Thin coating over poor preparation lifts at the edges.

Steel is stronger and heavier and will corrode wherever the coating is breached, which makes it a poorer choice near the coast.

Teak and other hardwoods weather to grey and are widely loved for it. Ask about the grade and where the timber comes from, and be aware that your own country may have documentation requirements for imported timber, which is worth confirming with your broker before ordering rather than after.

The weave

Synthetic rattan is the most common outdoor material in this market and the quality range within it is wide. The thing that separates good from poor is whether the fibre is ultraviolet stabilised through the material or only surface treated. Unstabilised weave becomes brittle and starts cracking after a couple of seasons in strong sun.

Ask directly what the fibre is and whether it is ultraviolet stabilised. It is a normal question in this category and suppliers who make good product answer it readily.

Cushions, where most complaints come from

Cushions cause more outdoor furniture complaints than frames do. Three things matter.

• The fabric. Solution dyed acrylic holds its colour in sun far better than printed alternatives. If the piece will live in strong light, this matters more than anything else on the specification.
• The foam. Quick drying open cell foam designed for outdoor use, not standard upholstery foam that holds water and eventually smells.
• Drainage. Covers that let water out rather than trapping it.

Fixings

Stainless fixings throughout. A single mild steel screw in an otherwise excellent piece will leave a rust stain down the leg within a season, and it is the kind of small failure that costs a review rather than a repair.

Match the product to the destination

Specify for where it is going, not for where it is made. Guangdong is warm and humid. A piece heading somewhere with hard frost, or somewhere with intense dry sun, or somewhere coastal, faces a different set of stresses. Tell the supplier the destination climate: it is useful information and they will often adjust their recommendation.

Packing, again

Outdoor sets are bulky and awkward, with tables, chairs, cushions and often a parasol all travelling together. Nesting and stacking design matters more here than in almost any other category, both for the shipping cost and because loose components in a carton damage each other. Ask how the set packs before you fall in love with it.