Protecting eucalyptus outdoor furniture.

[GregLee]

I'm getting some eucalyptus lawn furniture and trying to figure out what sort of protective oil to get to keep it from weathering to gray. I see "hardwood oil", "teak oil", "tung oil" recommended, as well as polyurethane and spar varnish. I think I want an oil, though I understand it has to be reapplied once or twice a year, but what kind to get?

I found a recommendation for Watco Teak Oil, but my local hardware store only has gallon cans -- too much. The Wikipedia article on wood finishing says that linseed oil does not waterproof, though tung oil does, so I decided tentatively on Formby's Tung Oil Finish, low gloss, $13/16oz, which according to the can does contain tung oil (how much it doesn't say).

So, any experience with oiling eucalyptus or teak?

 

[W2R]

No experience here, but if I was in your situation I'd follow the manufacturer's recommendation. When your furniture is delivered, it will probably come with a sheet containing information such as this. If not, I'd call them.

 

[GregLee]

No experience here, but if I was in your situation I'd follow the manufacturer's recommendation. When your furniture is delivered, it will probably come with a sheet containing information such as this. If not, I'd call them.

I'll be sure and look for an information sheet and phone number from the manufacturer. Having read hundreds of user comments on Amazon and searched the web, I don't expect to find anything useful. The Amazon description says to use "a hardwood oil", which is rather vague. The furniture manufacturer, Strathmore, seems to be just a name, an Amazon contact and a web page of web references back to Amazon. Who knows who and where it really is?

 

[GregLee]

I got my Strathwood chaise lounge today, $120, from Amazon. No real information about finishing or care. Seems nice, though. Nothing is broken. I gave it a coat of tung oil, but I haven't tried to assemble it yet.

 

[braumeister]

Just keep those pesky koalas out of them.

 

[davemartin88]

If you're prepared to recoat once a year, pure tung oil will work well, it fades but doesn't flake. Tung oil "finishes" can flake as they weather and you will usually need to sand the surfaces before applying a new coat, a lot more work.

 

[GregLee]

This is tung oil finish (I gather, a sort of penetrating varnish), not pure tung oil.

 

[davemartin88]

This is tung oil finish (I gather, a sort of penetrating varnish), not pure tung oil.

Hope it works for you, I found that the finish started flaking a bit after a year or two in the heat and cold so had to resand before applying anything again. You won't have the cold issue and if the furniture isn't in direct sun a lot, maybe it will hold up better. Looks good!

 

[GregLee]

You won't have the cold issue and if the furniture isn't in direct sun a lot, maybe it will hold up better.

Hope so. But I wouldn't have used the tung oil finish if I'd known about the flaking issue.