Salvaging Porch Furniture

My sister wanted to toss her porch furniture because the cushions had fallen apart and the metal frames were pitted and rusted. Connie wanted new furniture despite my explaining it was salvageable.

My husband and I couldn’t bear to see it trashed. We hauled the couch, coffee table, and two rocking chairs home from her house. I got to work on it right away—you can do this, too, if your metal furniture is showing wear and tear.

The cushions were indeed beyond redemption. My husband replaced them with some found at Home Depot. I eventually plan to make new cushions myself, but these will work for a couple of years.

After scrubbing everything clean, the corroded metal was dealt with by sanding every single inch using a metal sanding tool made by Black & Decker which attaches to a drill.

Once all metal pieces were smooth and rust-free, I primed everything and then painted each framework piece a soft fern green twice. I protected the glass section of the coffee table with newspaper and masking tape.

It’s all done now and ready for summer. Connie is not getting this furniture back.