Garden Furniture Warped in sun, now back to normal

briancarr82

Hi all, as title suggests, i have some garden furniture, table and benches that during the very hot weather last year warped. However, over the last few months it's returned to normal. I would like to prevent this again. The table was painted in cuprinol . It's made out of decking timber as you can see from pics. All ideas welcome!!

listermint

It should have been oiled, its been painted and no doubt contained moisture that when it was hot evaporated and twisted the timber. There is moisture back in it now but it will disappear again in hot weather.

Oiling them prevents moisture ingress and keeps the timber moist with oil which shouldnt evaporate. Im not sure if you can restore the oil with the paint on top of it now but there should be options to try.

BrokenArrows

A hope and a prayer?

Looking at the grain of those boards they are likely to warp.

The extreem dryness last year caused them to shrink massively and because they are probably screwed or nailed down they pulled and twisted and the nature of the wood caused some twisting.

The wetness since then has allowed them to expand and relax.

Easiest option, take a hose and soak the table on top and underneath regularly over the summer. (might not work if we get a hot summer again)

Hard option, take the table apart and soak all the ends in mineral oil or some other wood oil. The wipe down all the boards with the same. Then keep wiping down the table over the summer (both top and bottom).

The oil will help the wood retain its moisture and stop warping.

briancarr82

is it possible to treat with a decking oil? then paint over again?

BrokenArrows

briancarr82 wrote: »

is it possible to treat with a decking oil? then paint over again?

Yes, might be worth trying to sand down the existing paint a bit first to try and get better absorption.

Effects

Your furniture is made out of decking boards.
You can screw more brace pieces at the back to keep them from twisting.

Effects

BrokenArrows wrote: »

Yes, might be worth trying to sand down the existing paint a bit first to try and get better absorption.

It's grooved. No point trying to sand that is there? It's exposed at the back anyway.

briancarr82

do you mean underneath or on top? Sorry, complete novice when it comes to this stuff.

listermint

briancarr82 wrote: »

do you mean underneath or on top? Sorry, complete novice when it comes to this stuff.

the top

briancarr82

hi folks, just an update, haven't done anything with this yet, table has in the last week or two started to warp again after straightening last summer. it's only the lats on the table that's warping, have 4 benches and they're not warping at all.

Odelay

Effects wrote: »

Your furniture is made out of decking boards.
You can screw more brace pieces at the back to keep them from twisting.

Do this. It needs more screws. Use the angle brackets with slots in them. You’ll get these in any hardware.

briancarr82

so will i just screw in from top?

Odelay

briancarr82 wrote: »

so will i just screw in from top?

No, from underneath with an angle bracket. Have a google. I’m on the phone so can’t include more info.

briancarr82

well folks tried all above but still warped, can't believe it came back to normal in winter and now warped again. Looks like the whole top will need to be replaced, not a huge job i know but very annoying.

jack of all

If the ends of each board had been screwed fixed to a stout batten or board underneath (at right angles to the boards) - a crude "bread board" joint then the worst of the twisting could possibly have been avoided or controlled. Google "bread board joint" and you'l see what I mean.

cheif kaiser

It seems to be just your overhangs that are twisting so as Jack of all says above, run a brace underneath the ends and screw them down to it. Replacing them in the same manner is just going to result in the same thing happening.

briancarr82

ok thanks for the tips, yeah the overhangs are twisting alright, there's about a foot. So where should i run the brace? right at the end of overhang or about halfway from where the're currently screwed down?

cheif kaiser

briancarr82 wrote: »

ok thanks for the tips, yeah the overhangs are twisting alright, there's about a foot. So where should i run the brace? right at the end of overhang or about halfway from where the're currently screwed down?

A foot of an overhang is probably a little too much. If it was me, I would take it back to about 8" max and brace it nearer the end.

briancarr82

on inspection overhang is only about 8 inches so i'm going to attempt this today. Would a piece of 2x2 be strong enough for the brace? i presume just cut to the width of the table and run from one side to the next underneath

cheif kaiser

briancarr82 wrote: »

on inspection overhang is only about 8 inches so i'm going to attempt this today. Would a piece of 2x2 be strong enough for the brace? i presume just cut to the width of the table and run from one side to the next underneath

Not much meat on a 2 x 2. A 3 x 2 would be better?

briancarr82

hi folks, gonna tr this tonight, how far from end should i run the brace across bottom? also, should i screw in either end first and then make my way into middle? Clueless at this stuff!

Odelay

briancarr82 wrote: »

hi folks, gonna tr this tonight, how far from end should i run the brace across bottom? also, should i screw in either end first and then make my way into middle? Clueless at this stuff!

About 100-150mm in from the end.

Screw from outside in is a good idea. Set the screws to pull the high side. Bore holes the width of the screw shank through the brace only.
Don’t bother screwing the side of the board touching the brace, it’s the high side you want to pull down. If you screw both sides, you risk the board splitting when it wants to shrink.