Should I Cover My Patio Furniture in Summer?

Patios and patio furniture are significant investments that can boost the net value of your lovely home. Once the patio is built and the furniture is situated on the deck, the job isn’t done. You need to maintain the integrity of the patio and protect the furniture from being overly exposed to the outdoor elements.

That’s why most patio owners are faced with an annual recurring question: should I cover my patio furniture in summer? It makes sense to cover or store patio furniture throughout the winter, which is the season far more likely to damage patio furniture beyond repair. But the summer months can also be damaging to patio furniture, and there are times when decent covers are necessary to help protect the furniture from damage.

When should I cover my patio furniture?

Many pieces of patio furniture are built to be waterproof, capable of withstanding damage from rain or other weather patterns. But that doesn’t mean the manufacturing is essentially foolproof. There are several ways that weather can do significant damage to your furniture.

For example, strong gusts of wind can blow around rocks, tree branches, and other outdoor items right into the furniture itself. Branches could penetrate the lining of the furniture, leaving gaping holes in the seating area that leave it unusable for future seatings.

Not only that, but the power of the sun could cause damage in and of itself. UV rays are especially strong during the summer, and the strength of those rays can erode the structural integrity of your patio furniture over time.

Should I cover my patio furniture in summer?

One of the basic reasons to cover patio furniture in summer is to protect the cushions that you use to make the furniture more comfortable. Cushions are the life essence of a good patio deck chair, and they have the greatest potential to be ruined by unpredictable weather patterns.

Heavy downpours, in particular, are the greatest threat to the integrity of your patio cushions. You want to make sure that you cover up those cushions with a proper protective layer to shield them from the damage that could be caused by those downpours. The other alternative is to move the cushions inside or into a storage shed where they won’t be impacted by the weather.

What’s the worst that can happen if I don’t cover my patio furniture?

The biggest consequence of uncovered patio furniture is that it causes wear and tear that erodes the integrity of the furniture. Remember that an investment in a great-looking patio and the furniture to go with it is a pricey endeavor. You want to do everything you can to maintain the quality of the work so that your investment remains worthwhile over the long term.

The moisture in the air and the morning dew that spreads around the yard each day can slowly eat away at the strength of the patio furniture. Covering up the furniture with appropriate protective gear ensures that the moisture in the air and the morning dew are unable to eat away at the integrity of your patio furniture.

Think of your furniture as the investment, and the protective covers you lay upon it as the guarantors that ensure your investment will pay off over the long run. This is the best way to get the most bang for your buck and maintain a very appealing patio environment!

What to look for when buying patio furniture

So what should you look for when investing in that high-quality patio furniture? There are several traditional pieces and designs you could use to fill out your deck.

However, one consideration to keep in mind is modular outdoor furniture, which will also simplify the answer to the question: should I cover my patio furniture in the summer? Using transformative modular patio furniture, you can arrange comfortable seating configurations into both long outdoor couches or break them up into singular chairs that are easier to reposition. With the right collection of outdoor furniture you can turn a small backyard into an oasis.

If you keep the longer patio seating, you can have a gathering of friends or family and host an intimate outdoor party with that core network. On the other hand, you can also break the furniture up into singular chairs that allow people to move around on the deck at their convenience. Plus, the singular chairs themselves are much easier to cover at the end of the day to protect them from the elements.