Natural rattan is something else: a climbing palm cane, lovely indoors and in a conservatory, but it takes up water and does not belong out in the rain.
What is polyrattan?
A synthetic fiber, usually polyethylene and sometimes PVC, extruded to look like cane and woven over a frame of aluminum or steel. It is also sold as resin wicker, poly rattan or rattan effect.
How long does rattan garden furniture last?
As long as its weakest part: the fiber, the frame or the cushions. A UV-stabilised polyethylene fiber on an aluminum frame, covered or stored in winter, can last for years. PVC fiber on plain steel is the short end: the weave fades and goes brittle, and the frame can rust inside it where you cannot see.
No shop can give you a lifespan that holds in every garden, so judge it by its parts.
| Part | Lasts longer | Fails sooner |
|---|---|---|
| Fiber | UV-stabilised polyethylene | PVC |
| Frame | Aluminum or stainless steel | Plain steel |
| Weave | Tight, ends tucked and fixed | Loose, ends stapled or glued |
| Cushions | Solution-dyed fabric, quick-drying | Printed fabric, thick foam |
Is rattan garden furniture weatherproof?
Against rain, mostly: the fiber does not absorb water. Against sun and frost, less so. UV fades and dries out the fiber, frost makes it brittle, and a strand that splits where the weave bends is hard to mend. The weave also holds dirt and damp in its gaps, which is where green film starts.
That is why polyrattan is usually covered or stored for winter, and why its deep cushions come in every time it rains. When to cover and when not to is in garden furniture in winter.
Polyrattan, teak or steel: which lasts longest outside?
For furniture that stays out, teak and stainless steel last longest with the least care. Polyrattan wins on weight and on soft, deep sofa sets.
| Polyrattan | Teak | Stainless steel | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rain | Fiber sheds it, weave holds dirt | Natural oils keep water out | Does not rust through a chip |
| Sun | Fades, dries out | Weathers silver-gray | Powder coat holds its color |
| Winter | Cover or store | Can stay out | Can stay out |
| Repair | Split weave is hard to mend | Sand and oil | Touch up the coat |
| Weight | Light | Solid | Heavy, steady in wind |
Can rattan garden furniture be cleaned and repaired?
Cleaned, yes: brush out the weave, wash with mild soapy water, rinse and let it dry fully before you cover it. Repaired, only up to a point. A loose end can be fixed back; a strand that has gone brittle and split usually means re-weaving the panel, if the maker sells the fiber at all.
Teak can be sanded and oiled back to new, and a chip in a powder coat can be touched up. Over the long run, that is the difference.
What do we make instead?
We weld and join our garden furniture in our own factory in Sweden, from materials that stay out: stainless steel, teak, sintered stone and solution-dyed olefin. No rattan, no sofa.
If you like rattan for its softness, Kenny is a lounge chair with an outdoor mesh seat and back that drain the moment rain lands, with an Oat olefin cushion on top. Elsy and Isa do the same at the dining table. If you like it for the warm, natural look, there is teak: Arvid, Signe, Edith and the Algot tables. For a lounge corner without a sofa, see garden sofa or two lounge chairs, and for the frame metals, steel or aluminum.
Polyrattan for softness, teak and steel to stay out
- Best fiber
- UV-stabilised polyethylene
- Best frame
- aluminum or stainless
- Winter
- cover or store
