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Below is the detailed history in pictures of (4) British Gardens C-grade folding chairs
and a standard oiled teak hexagon table.
As discussed in the product's description, the oil on the table is rather light and not applied in a generous fashion. Therefore, it is expected that the oil will dissipate quickly from the pores of the teak.
In these picture we also expect to see the greying of a c-grade teak item from its sharp 'hickory-like' appearance.
Here are the conditions of this example:
The table and chairs are in a residential backyard. There is no patio cover. The table and chairs are outside 365 days a year/24 hours a day. The backyard is partly shaded by several large trees and huge shrubs. Updates will be posted periodically - hopefully around each season.
APRIL 2008
FALL 2008
7 months outdoors.....
The chairs are already starting to mist to a lighter more neutral grey. The sharp color in the sap wood (white color) is becoming less noticeable (in the chair).
The teak table has already started removing the light coat of teak oil.
JANUARY 2009
Obviously, an ICE STORM.
Yet, notice the fact the chair and table are completely covered with ice (about 3/8"-1/2" thick).
The tabletop has about 1.5" of ice at the center.
FEBRUARY 2009
In February, we used one of the chairs to highlight the strength
in an upcoming advertisement/banner.
Yes, this is one of the ice-storm chairs.
EARLY SUMMER 2009
The tabletop continues to remove the oil as it starts to turn grey. Remember, this chair is the standard Shelia c-grade folding chair aged a little over a year.
The tabletop continues to remove the oil as it starts to turn grey. Remember, this chair is the standard Shelia c-grade folding chair aged a little over a year.
SPRING 2012
4 years later.....
This is the same set that was placed outside in spring 2008. The chairs have never been cleaned, but the tabletop has been wiped down several times. The table and chairs have remained outside and uncovered for the entire duration.
The table was recently cleaned with Simply Green (not diluted) and wiped with a 3m green kitchen pad. In the picture you can see the brown wood coming through the grey. If we continued to clean with some elbow grease or used a palm sander, the table would return to a light brown color (see final picture below).
The chairs look a little less desirable, but have never been cleaned. Watch for our next update as we completely transform a chair to a 'silver beauty'.
SPRING 2014
Here is the table about 6 years later. The oiled surface is gone and the table is now a light silver. Once or twice a year the table is cleaned with Simply Green and general dirt is removed.
We did change the chairs last year from the Shelia chairs to our Sumbawa teak armchairs. The shelia chairs were still fine, but we had some excess open box store chairs. As you can see, new teak chairs compliment the older table in no time. The table has been outside for over 6 years and the chairs a little over 1 year.
Together, the table and chairs look like a perfect match. There is some contributor on Houzz that wrote an article on what to know about buying teak - and said buy it all together so it "matches" when it grays. So here's the facts - teak will weather and at some point new and old teak will match. I hate when I read a bunch of baloney by someone claiming to be an "expert".
THE SAME TABLE AGED 8 YEARS OUTDOORS (THE FIRST TABLE)
Teak's Durability - 8 Years Outdoors
This table sat in the same position and backyard as the example above. There was a new table and chairs replaced in 2008 so this table could be shown to customers visiting the store.
This table has not cracked or splintered........and with relative ease, the teak is cleaned or sanded to a light medium wood color.
Let me repeat, this table sat outside for 8 years and suffered the same conditions as the table above. It also weathered 2 ice-storms in 2001-2003 and we have hired no magicians for our video. There have been no repairs on the table. The teak grade on the table is a solid b+, standard construction (nothing special).
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