A Guide to Maintaining Wicker Chairs

Wicker furniture is often the go-to option for those looking for vintage inspired style on a budget. Wicker chairs are durable, stylish and perfect for easily complementing any existing outdoor furniture with very little effort.

If you’ve recently purchased wicker chairs, you may be curious as to how often you should clean them and how heavy the maintenance schedule for this material can be. Fortunately, you only need to put a small amount of care into cleaning wicker in order to keep it looking pristine for years to come. Read on for some tips and tricks on the best way to maintain your wicker furniture.

How to Clean Wicker

Wicker chairs are ideal for those with a regularly busy schedule, as they only require a quick clean and a small amount of maintenance.

Resin based wicker can be cleaned with a simple mixture of soap and water. This is due to how the material is weaved and then coated, making it difficult for particles and dirt to stick to the surfaces of the furniture which effectively prevents rot and splintering.

Bamboo and rattan wicker, on the other hand, require a little more care. These pieces require more routine dusting and vacuuming in order to maintain their condition. The cleaning process is similar to their resin based counterparts, although you may wish to add a couple of teaspoons of ammonia to the soap and water mix. This will help to easily break down the grime that often builds up between the weaves of this type of material.

As for scheduling, if your wicker is bamboo or rattan based, cleaning it once every week should be more than enough to keep it well maintained. For resin based wickers, a dust and clean every other week should suffice.

General Care Tips

While wicker chairs generally won’t require serious maintenance during their lifetime, you can prolong your wicker furniture and preserve its condition further by following these tips.

If your wicker furniture happens to be placed in an area of direct sunlight, it’s important to make sure your pieces are covered up when not in use. This will prevent the natural wood colouring from becoming dull and faded, or becoming prone to cracking.

If you do find your wicker pieces looking worse for wear, rubbing them with linseed oil can quickly restore their former warm glow. Make sure to let the oil dry for at least several days after applying and also keep the wicker out of direct sunlight during this time.

Wicker can be prone to the build-up of mildew. Thankfully, this can be easily washed away with a combination of soap and water, and it’s especially easy when you use an oil-based soap. Ensure that the wicker dries adequately after cleaning, as failure to do so will make it easier for mildew to build up again.

Occasionally inspecting your wicker for any cracks or broken pieces is also a good idea. While it’s unlikely your wicker chairs will suffer major damage in their lifetime, in the event that they do, they can be easily repaired by a furniture repair specialist or restoration professional.