How to Pick a Quality Patio Furniture Repair Shop
Imagine that the sling on your favorite patio furniture set became ripped and you couldn’t sit on it any more, it would be time to take it to the repair shop… but which repair shop do you choose?
Many people find themselves in this situation and don’t know how to pick a top quality repair shop, so we decided to share a few important things to ask the candidates before choosing a finally patio repair service shop in your area.
Metal Patio Furniture
When dealing with metal patio furniture repairs take a look at the paint finish quality, we've seen some repair shops finish metal furniture so poorly by not sandblasting and just painting over the old paint- that they failed in just 1 year. Better quality finishes are achieved by sandblasting to remove all of the old paint.
The finish on metal furniture acts as a 'sealant' to the metal protecting it from exposure to the elements. So it's very important that the finish is a strong “powder coat” finish.
How is the power coating applied?
Powder coatings are based on polymer resin systems, combined with curatives, pigments, leveling agents, flow modifiers, and other additives. These ingredients are melt mixed, cooled, and ground into a uniform powder similar to baking flour. A process called electrostatic spray deposition (ESD) is typically used to achieve the application of the powder coating to a metal substrate. This application method uses a spray gun, which applies an electrostatic charge to the powder particles, which are then attracted to the grounded part. After application of the powder coating, the parts enter a curing oven where, with the addition of heat, the coating chemically reacts to produce long molecular chains, resulting in high crosslink density. These molecular chains are very resistant to breakdown.
Questions to ask beforehand:
-- Ask the repair shop if they work with “powder coat” finishes.
Sling Patio Furniture
When repairing sling patio furniture make sure the repair shop uses a top quality fabric such as strong PVC weave fabrics that are long lasting and water resistant. It’s important to avoid fabric that is blended with extra materials. A common material blended into sling fabrics is called ‘olefin’. From our experience, we’ve seen that this blended fabric often withers away a lot quicker than sling fabrics made with “%100 PVC”.
We highly recommend PVC fabrics since they are durable and mostly impermeable to water. PVC fabrics are easy to clean, simply mix a solution of 2 gallons of water, ¼ cup of Dawn dish soap, and up to ½ cup of bleach (optional) you can sponge or brush this on to the sling fabric- then always be sure to rinse away cleansers.
Questions to ask beforehand:
- Ask the repair shop if they use PVC Fabrics.
- Ask them how long have they been in the repair business.
Vinyl Furniture
When repairing vinyl patio furniture make sure the repair shop uses vinyl straps that are made in the USA and contain UV Inhibitors. These will resist sun discoloration better than vinyls that don't have this material. These vinyl straps will most likely last you up to 30 years!
Questions to ask beforehand:
- Ask the repair shop if the vinyl straps they use are made in the USA.
- Ask the repair shop if they use vinyl straps that contain UV Inhibitors.
Now you have better knowledge of which materials are important for patio furniture repairs and what to ask the patio service repair shops before you send your furniture to be fixed. If you have any other questions we're glad to help and share our 45 years of experience, send us an email over to sales@sunnilandpatio.com
Happy Repairing!