Outdoor Furniture, Outdoor Patio and Outdoor Gardens

Frequently Asked Questions

1. QUESTION:
   What are some decorating ideas for a small patio?
   Besides patio furniture and plants.

   • ANSWER:

2. QUESTION:
   patio furniture as living room furniture?
   Have you ever heard or seen anyone do this and how did it look?

   We have a very small livingroom and furniture had become so bulky. I thought that wicker would make the room a little bit more open.
   What do you think?

   • ANSWER:
     Your home is your home. You are entitled to decorate it as you see fit. If you check some of the country home magazines, you'll find such displays.

3. QUESTION:
   patio furniture in maryland for an apartment?
   does anyone know where i can get some green furniture for my patio??
   i live in maryland n i want a small table n chairs/?

   • ANSWER:

4. QUESTION:
   sun bleached sea grass patio furniture?
   recently got some used patio furniture, I think it is sea grass, but it is faded from the sun. What product can I use to add color back to it? Someone recommended a spray polyurethane, I tried this on a small corner, and it didn't do much. Would a brush on poly work, or a stain, or an oil?? I don't want to change the color, I just want it to look like it does when it is wet (new again). Please help! THANKS.

   • ANSWER:
     Water-based stain. It comes in spray form, too

5. QUESTION:
   How can I arrange a small, furnished apartment to make it look and feel larger?
   I am living in a small, furnished apartment in Costa Rica and it would be great if it felt more like home. The main room (which is comprised of the kitchen, "dining room", and sitting area) is an awkward L-shape. The furniture is actually more like patio furniture. I am a teacher, so buying large pricey furniture isn't yet an option. If anyone knows of any good sites, multifunctional pieces, or tips please help me.

   • ANSWER:
     In a small apartment you want small and uncluttered. You live where the weather is great and if your furniture is outdoorsy looking, just go very tropical. Futons are good. I used to have a table that pulled pulled up and chained to the wall. When I needed it I just let it down. There are also table that have drop leaves. I have a very small house and I bought an outdoor very small metal table and then antique chairs at an auction. I put up shelves cause I have a lot of stuff but I made sure they were narrow shelves. And one day I got mad at how much room my couch took and I pitched it into the trash and bought a leather vibrating recliner. If you come to my house you will sit on chairs and if you eat at my house, your plate will be in your lap. I do intend to get some stack tables but haven't. Just put your table in the middle of the L and call it your dining room. If you get a fold up one, you can push it to the wall when you don't have guests and have more room. Just get creative and don't worry about what others have in their rooms because they have room.

6. QUESTION:
   Was I wrong to blame my man because his friend's bring the "big girls" over and broke my patio furniture
   There's little worse than coming home to no beer and all of your patio furniture crushed because the smallest chic these guys will date is pushing 400 lbs!

   Hell I even offered to help them run a few pounds off by dragging then with the car but honestly I'm worried about ripping the frame out!

   • ANSWER:
     If you but a donut on the bumper and drive they will chase it

7. QUESTION:
   Strange bugs on patio furniture?
   Last night I noticed these very, very small bugs crawling all over the arms of our patio chairs on the screened-in porch. After a bit of freaking out and some examination, I thought them to be baby ticks, but their bodies are too elongated to be ticks. Reminder: They are very, very small and brownish in color. I don't have a clue as to how they got there or what they might be.

   Does anyone have any ideas?

   • ANSWER:
     you might want to get some and put into a pill bottle and take to local exterminators. they will tell you for free what they are and how to get rid of them. they got there most likely by crawling up and on to the furniture to have a nice lounge after a hard day of hiding out

8. QUESTION:
   How do you keep cats out of your yard?
   We have a small patio on the back of our townhome with a small grassy flower bed. The neighbor's cats are constantly jumping over the fence to our patio and using our patio furniture to sharpen their claws as well as our small flower bed as a litter box. I don't want to kill them or anything but I want them away from my property! Please help!

   • ANSWER:
     Hi there...Aside asking your neighbour to consider keeping their cats indoors, there are non-toxic ways to try and deter cats.

     Common odours that are effective deterrents for cats are:

     Citronella works best for cats as well as citrus scents such as orange or lemon (primarily towards cats), cayenne pepper, coffee grounds, pipe tobacco, lavender oil, lemon grass oil, citronella oil, peppermint oil, eucalyptus oil, and mustard oil.

     "Havahart's Cat Repellent" uses capsaicin pepper and oil of mustard as its active ingredients. It repels by both taste and odor, has a lemon scent.

     Every animal responds differently to each of these. Some will not be phased by them and others will be quite revolting.

     For training purposes they are applied on items that are to encourage avoidance behaviours and not for use with a squirt bottle as they could harm the eyes or respiratory system. Test each substance and observe to see which works as a deterrent so that accidental injestion does not occur as some could then be fatal.

     Coleus plants can be effective, but every cat responds differently so it is uncertain without experimenting.

     Many people believe mothballs work, however they are considered toxic and should NOT be used. Here's more information on this:
     http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu/ope/enotes/showarticle.cfm?id=89
     MOTHBALLS are toxic to cats which contains the ingredient Naphthalene. Mothballs are approximately twice as toxic as paradichlorobenzene, and cats are especially sensitive to naphthalene. Signs of ingestion of naphthalene mothballs include emesis, weakness, lethargy, brown-colored mucous membranes and collapses. Paradichlorobenzene mothballs may cause GI upset, ataxia, disorientation, and depression. Elevations in liver serum biochemical values may occur within 72 hours of indigestion.

9. QUESTION:
   Looking for websites to help arrange furniture in a small room?
   I need to find a website where I can input my apartment size and get ideas on how to arrange furniture. I have a room that is connected to an open kitchen, where I want to combine dining and a small tv area. The room is odd shaped and the patio doors are right in the middle of the long wall. I've googled "small room interior design" and am not coming up with what Im looking for. Any ideas where I can find such a website?? Something where I could pick room sizes and add/move furniture around to see how things would look. Thanks!!

   • ANSWER:
     Here you go. You don't have to click "here" to start using the tool.
     http://www.bhg.com/decorating/arrange-a-room/
     Just google furniture arranging tool.

10. QUESTION:
    Can a Landlord modify my aparment balcony after move-in??
    When I moved in my landlord said they were refurbing the balconies (they were old), but the new balconies are at least 30 sq ft smaller. Our patio furniture does not fit now. Our lease does not seem to say anything about such modifications. We are in PA.
    The old balcony was not unsafe, we hahve only lived here a month, and when we moved in the manager told us how great the balconies were going to be and discussed how large they were and never mentioned the size decrease, it was a selling point.

    • ANSWER:
      Such alarge change may only be made with mutual consent. Cn the landlord break the ceiling,on the same lea of weakness, without your consent ?
      He wii have to get a certificate of unsafety, and even than he just can not disturb you as he pleases.
      here in India , He just can not do.

11. QUESTION:
    What's the best way to repair a flagstone patio?
    We have a small (11x8 or so) screened in flagstone patio that is a couple of feet off the ground. It has a roof over it but rain comes in through huge screens on 3 sides. So I guess it's more of like an outdoor patio. We wanted to put some patio furniture out there, but there are a couple of issues:

    1) The stone is flaking off so it is a bit uneven
    2) After it rains, there is some standing water on it

    I thought we could seal it and just put a patio rug on it to protect the stone from being damaged/flaking further, but would the water sit between the rug and stone and cause mold? (The sealing alone probably won't help with the chipping/flaking, correct?) I really want to avoid replacing the flagstone all together. Here's a photo:
    http://img357.imageshack.us/img357/6051/patiota1.jpg
    Any help or ideas would be much appreciated!

    • ANSWER:
      A piece of indoor/outdoor carpet should work OK. Just roll it up once in a while and hose it off.

12. QUESTION:
    Someone or something is making my patio cushion fabric melt or burn?
    Noticed on my second set of patio furniture which is less than a week old that I have burn marks on my patio furniture cushions. They are nearly a foot long and bad enough i have to dispose of my cushions. I though my old set someone had accidently spilled grease on them or something and in the sun they melted the fabric as the cushions were old. However in less than a week on my new cushions I noticed on large long burn looking mark at an angle. Then I noticed a few strips of dead or dying grass at the same angle next to the chair. The angle is suggesting a neighbor who we don't talk to but have had issues with on noise complaints is spraying them. They would have to shoot the stuff about 25 feet or more over their fence. Don't want to point fingers but its scary as I have small children and its very odd. Any suggestions or advice or what this chemical burn could be from?

    • ANSWER:
      Suggest you look for anything which forms a lens... a hummingbird feeder, crystals or prisms on a wind chime, reflections off curved glass or water drops before you start blaming the neighbors. Also look for reflective surfaces that could give you a solar cooker effect.

      Theoretically, the neighbors could be shooting chemicals at your cushions and grass, but it seems less likely to me than a "burning glass" effect from a lens, accidental or intentional, or even a small laser. I'd expect odors and splatters with a spray.
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_glass
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cooker

13. QUESTION:
    Is a self employed business license in york county south carolina required?
    I want to start a self employed business of pressure washing homes, convenient stores, driveways, sidewalks, small business fronts, decks, privacy fences and patio furniture as well as patios. Also, I want to offer staining and sealing services for the decks and fences. How many licenses do or am I required to have and or purchase in addition to the South Carolina specialty license registration? Do I need a license in every small city or town in YORK County or just the license in York County itself?

    • ANSWER:
      It appears York County doe not distribute such licensure

      "This Office Does Not

      * Issue contractor licenses or give examinations."

      So, any licensure would be applied for per individual community standards.

14. QUESTION:
    Can I just get a U-haul and start taking stuff out of my house now? (Divorce)?
    I've been married for 1 year now and plan on getting a divorce soon.
    I want to get a U-haul and start taking some stuff out of our house (I still live with my husband) and bring it to my new house (he doesn't know that I'm moving out yet).... I'm mostly taking small stuff (patio furniture, wall hangings/pictures, some kitchen stuff, a curio cabinet, 1 couch (we have 2), 1 coffee table (again, we have 2). Mostly everything is things that we have purchased after we got married & he does not have any proof that they were his in the first place.

    Can I do this without getting into trouble?
    I'm really not screwing him over at all. I'm leaving him with 3 widescreen tvs, couch, coffee tables, tv stands, master bedroom furniture, guest bedroom furniture, washer, dryer, car, 00 pool table.... ect.

    I just don't want to go through the whole court process just to get several things out of the house. Plus I want to move out NOW & I'm afraid that he will throw away most stuff out of just being nasty.

    And you don't know the whole story about why we are getting a divorce so you have no room to run your mouth.

    • ANSWER:

15. QUESTION:
    Patio door in bathroom out to deck?
    i wanted to put a smaller size patio door into the bathroom on the second floor leading to a large deck in the backyard. Is this odd or has anyone ever seen or heard of this being done? the bathroom is attached to the master bedroom. We just thought it would be nice for people to go from the deck/pool with out having to walk through the entire house. I just need opinions and advice. I would put it in the master bedroom, but then there would not be enough room for furniture.

    • ANSWER:
      I think it is an excellent idea and should you ever decide to sell it may make the house more marketable. Instead of a patio door I would use a french door. It would look nicer and be more secure.

      Good luck!

16. QUESTION:
    what is best way to keep birds away?
    We have a set up patio chairs and a small table in small narrow space on the side of our house under a tall tree. We would like to keep the birds from pooping on our patio furniture.

    • ANSWER:
      shotgun

17. QUESTION:
    She said they were too small, and she wanted to have them enlarged. I said it would cost quite a bit of money
    to stuff more foam into our patio furniture cushions. That crap is expensive, do you think my wife is wasting our money? Should I care?

    • ANSWER:
      lol that was funny your sneaky very very sneaky.Really who gives a crap about stuffing patio furniture.Yeah its a waste of money lol

18. QUESTION:
    Would a gravel path and patio look nice?
    I know from reading online that there are not many people fond of gravel paths and patios, however, my husband and I are looking for a cost effective project that we can do ourselves.

    We are planning to add rock bordered flower beds to the front of our house and would like to parallel the bed with a gravel path (also bordered with rock) leading to a small circular gravel patio. We would like to place a few planters and some furniture (maybe just a fire pit and some chairs or a swing) on the patio. It would not be used everyday (and only May through September), but I'm dying to have a place where I can sit outside with friends on occasion.

    My concerns are, aside from functionality, do gravel patios look nice? Are they easy to maintain? We live in an area with A LOT of rain and snow, could that pose a problem?

    Thanks!
    Right now we only have grass and were planning to pull up the sod, lay a weed cloth, and edge it so that the gravel would be less likely to "roam". We don't want to use concrete in case we change our minds a few years down the road!

    • ANSWER:
      It depends what you like and I'm sure gravel paths look ok but are quite high maintenance with weeds etc. What do you have at present? I personally hate to see so many gardens paved over with concrete paths and patios. I like to see things growing and drainage is important too. Flooding is often caused by water having nowhere to drain and as you have rain and snow I would think gravel much better than concrete so you have my vote so long as you don't mind pulling up a few dandelions now and then.. Enjoy your project and your New Yeat

19. QUESTION:
    Studio Apartment.........Extreamly small!?
    I am moving into a studio apartment that is 500sq ft, but it feels soooo much smaller. I have not moved in yet and it already looks small with no furniture. HELP any ideas. I have ordered a couch, book shelf and a TV stand. The couch is a sofa bed, so it serves a dual purpose, but I'm still worried it will look and feel too crammed. Please give me some suggestions! I have never lived in a studio, and any advise will help thanks.

    oh one of the good things about the apartment is that I have a really cute patio, so thats something to look forward to.

    • ANSWER:
      Living in a small space can be a challenge. You have to literally make the most of every inch of space. The key is to use all your space as multi-functional spaces without making it looked cramped.

      The sofa bed sounds like it will work great. Try to find a large chest/trunk to use as a coffee table, but that you can store bedding in for your sofa bed and pillows.

      Pick up some baskets to put on the book case to store items that you may not want out in the open or don't have room for an extra dresser or drawers.

      Try to arrange the furniture against the walls and leave the area between designated "rooms" open as much as possible.

      Utilized mirros in several areas to make the place appear larger than it is...especially across from the patio doors and windows.

      Keep all window treatments very light, sheer, and simple as possible to allow as much natural light to come in as you can!!

20. QUESTION:
    Porch furniture ...?
    So I have a screened in porch with a roof but I live in Mass so we get some pretty bad weather and snow and rain do get in if it's windy. My husband and I went to Pier one and we mixed and matched a great patio set with pillows, a loveseat, table, small table everything, it was perfect and in our price range........only to find out it was mostly indoor stuff!! They had all their outdoor furniture and indoor wicker/cushions mixed together and not separated. it was quite frustrating..
    anyways, has anyone used indoor wicker on a porch?

    • ANSWER:
      That Pier One for you.

      I have not tried putting inside furniture outside, but do have some suggestions, if they are not returnable.

      You may want to spray the wicker with aerosol polyeurethane, or any weatherproof clear finish that can be sprayed.

      I am also worried about the waterproof-ness of any adhesives used in the construction of the frame. If it is screwed nicely together, you may be safe.

21. QUESTION:
    Doggy Do Do!?
    The people that live above me have a dog and they have been letting it use their porch to go potty is this not cool or what! I have brought it to the managers attention but nothing has been done as of yet what is my next step to correcting this problem?Can I take them to small claims court if all my stuff is ruined by the dog piss or am I just out a 00.00 for the work and my patio furniture?

    • ANSWER:
      Call the health department because dog waste can hold a lot of germs. Then call the humane society so that the dog owners can be citied. Then go to court with both the health department citation and humane society citation and pictures of your ruined furniture.

22. QUESTION:
    List Of Things I Should Bring Camping For 1 Week?
    I'm going camping with my mom, my cousin, my sister, my sisters boyfriend and myself. I just want to be prepared for camping, we are staying in a cottage.

    Cottage includes
    -Satellite TV
    -DVD Player
    Heat
    -Air Conditioning
    -Stove
    -Microwave
    -Small Appliances
    -Fridge
    -Utensils
    -Internet Access
    Pool Table
    -Board Games
    -Patio Furniture
    -Sandy Beach
    -Beach Chairs
    -Fire Pit
    -Parking

    My cousin and I are sleeping in the bunk beds, also we might sleep down at the beach in a tent.

    So what else should I bring???

    • ANSWER:
      Layer your clothing, so that you can go from hot activity to cold sitting at night while staying comfortably warm and dry. Review camping checklists to make sure that you cover everything you may need. Take along some new foods and cook for the family. Try cooking over a fire, like smoked beef ribs slowly cooked over coals on a metal grill with barbecue sauce. Prepare a fruit bowl with fresh pineapple, strawberries, blueberries, bananas, and other fruit. Do the marshmallow s'mores standard dessert with milk chocolate and graham crackers.

23. QUESTION:
    PLEASE HELP!! I need selling ideas....?
    I work at Home Depot, INSIDE GARDEN, I have a small showcase to set up! I would like to do patio furniture.. ect.. but not big enough space.. If I nail this, I get a promotion.. I need an idea that is something within 0 range which I can showcase that everyone will want to buy! PLEASE any ideas will be grateful!!! I have until 9 am to get this!!

    Already done sprinklers, grills, lawn mowers, and bug insecticides..

    I GIVE BEST ANSWERS!!!

    email me at spoiled_gapeach@yahoo.com
    with any Additional questions!

    • ANSWER:
      Do an example flower bed with flowers, mulch, decor and pavers.

24. QUESTION:
    Indoor Hanging Chair HELP!!!!!!!?
    Where can I find a indoor hanging chair for no more than 0? I saw one at Ikea, but it might be too big, for ? I've also seen some for 00, which is way out of my price range. It is for my bedroom so I need something smaller and something that doesn't scream patio furniture. Any suggestions please!!!!!!

    • ANSWER:
      Before you shop, you need to determine the approximate size of chair you need. The IKEA chair should have a specification sheet that will have the dimensions. It could be that it will work afterall.

      You could try your local classified ads, but since this is not a very common item, I think you are likely to come up short. I usually don't recommend e-bay because it is such an obvious and easy answer. In this case, it may be the way to go since this may be a hard to find item. Remember, shipping costs can add a lot to the price.

      Good luck with your search.

25. QUESTION:
    Childproofing Balcony for the Holidays.?
    I'm having thanksgiving at my new Condo and living on the 21st floor, my family is worried about having small children (ages 1-6) over due to the worry of climbing on patio furniture and falling over the edge. I need some assistance with ideas on childproofing the balcony. Basically moving the patio furniture is out of the question due to the fact that It's not that large of a condo, and people will be outside at almost all times..

    Keeping the doors locked might sound like a good idea, but they are kids and they can get to the locks if they are lucky.

    Saying being responsible adults and watching the children might be a sound answer but then again they are kids, and during an event with lots of people it's hard to always have someone watching the kids (we're talking 5 to 6 1-6year olds) so that's a lot of children to watch over.

    • ANSWER:
      Get a Good child proof gate. No short people allowed on the deck. Big people can climb over it. If it's a slider there are gates made for them. http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0037NX8WY%3FSubscriptionId%3DAKIAJCUOZYFEDN3DU6EQ%26tag%3Ddoors-sliding-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D386001%26creativeASIN%3DB0037NX8WY
      Any child over 3 will not tempt the gate if told they are not allowed out there. Little ones will not mess with the lock. The particular one I listed moves like a gate.

      I'm sure the parents of the children coming own a gate..have them bring one. Then instruct the parents in the issue of fairness no one under "X" age is allowed out there. No exceptions.

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