How to clean rattan garden furniture
Updated: 23 October 2026
By March the weave on a UK patio is green in the corners and the seat cushions have sat in a puddle since November. If you are working out how to clean rattan garden furniture, the sets in this comparison are polyethylene weave on a metal frame, not natural cane. The useful routine is a wash, a full dry, a cover that can breathe, and cushions that come indoors. A sealed cover on a damp frame is how mould starts. This page does not rank the six listings. Cover products were taken out of the category, so nothing here is a cover to buy. The sets themselves sit on the [rattan garden furniture comparison](/hub/garden-furniture/rattan-garden-furniture). Peter F. read those listings on 21 October 2026. This is not a laboratory test.
By March the weave on a UK patio is green in the corners and the seat cushions have sat in a puddle since November.
By March the weave on a UK patio is green in the corners and the seat cushions have sat in a puddle since November. If you are working out how to clean rattan garden furniture, the sets in this comparison are polyethylene weave on a metal frame, not natural cane. The useful routine is a wash, a full dry, a cover that can breathe, and cushions that come indoors. A sealed cover on a damp frame is how mould starts. This page does not rank the six listings. Cover products were taken out of the category, so nothing here is a cover to buy. The sets themselves sit on the rattan garden furniture comparison. Peter F. read those listings on 21 October 2026. This is not a laboratory test.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Weave | Frame | Cushions | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  EVRE EVRE Marylin 9-seater, mountain grey | PE rattan | Powder-coated steel | Heavy weather | 8.0 | about £599.99 | View offer |
 EVRE EVRE Madrid 4-piece, cedar brown | PE rattan | Powder-coated steel | Shower-resistant | 9.2 | about £129.99 | View offer | |
| Best value |  rattanstar rattanstar L-shape, brown and white | PE rattan | Lines conflict | Indoors if wet | 7.8 | about £199.99 | View offer |
On this page
Wash the weave, then let it dry
Harbour Lifestyle's care guide, written for its own PE and aluminium sets, says hose and soft brush, mild soap, rinse, and dry before you cover. Do not hold a pressure washer close to the weave. BE Furniture Sales splits the job the same way for synthetic rattan: soapy water, a low-pressure rinse, and no pressure washer. A garden-centre FAQ elsewhere allows a jet washer. That disagreement is real. Prefer the cautious line. A close jet can drive water into the frame and lift a coating at a joint.
Use washing-up liquid in a bucket, a soft brush along the weave, then a hose rinse that is a shower rather than a blade of water. Work from the top of the back down to the feet so dirty water is not sitting in the lap of the seat. Tip the chairs or the sofa section so the feet can drain. Leave the set in a breeze until the strand and the frame feel dry, including the underside. Covering it while it is still cool and damp is the mistake that shows up as green marks the following spring. Natural cane is a different wash: less water, and linseed oil only if the cane is dry and indoors. Do not oil the plastic.
UV fade and a little brittleness are normal wear on Harbour's own PE furniture. They are not a number of years you can claim for an amazon.co.uk set. A hairline gap after a hot week is not, by itself, a failed frame.
Mould means the last cover trapped water
If you lift last year's cover and the weave is spotted, the cover held moisture against the strand. On synthetic rattan, BE Furniture Sales and Harbour both point at vinegar and water for stubborn mould, and both say to avoid bleach. Equal parts vinegar and water is the retailer method. Test a small patch under the arm, where a mark will not show, then brush, rinse, and dry fully. Do not scrub with a wire brush. You will cut the weave and give the next shower a place to sit.
A breathable cover is the next step, not a tighter one. Harbour's guide wants a cover that lets moisture out, used only after the furniture is dry, and it does not want cushions left under a winter cover. A cheap sealed sheet keeps leaves off and also keeps a wet day in. If your patio is under a dripping gutter, fix the drip before you argue with the cover. Leaves packed into the weave hold water even when the cover is vented, so brush them out before you put the cover on in October. Which? makes the same practical point for synthetic furniture: it can stay outside, you wash it with soapy water, and you store the cushions. Natural wicker should not live outside at all.
Cushions come inside
The cushions are the part these listings already tell you to move. The rattanstar bullets say the fabric is water-repellent and tell you to bring the cushions indoors on rainy or snowy days. The EVRE Marylin bullets say to store cushions during heavy weather. The EVRE Madrid set calls the covers removable and shower-resistant, and a specification field also says waterproof. That flag does not mean the foam can sit out all winter. Shower-resistant is the sentence to follow.
Take the covers off when you can, wash them as the label allows, and dry them before they go back on. If a cover has no label, treat it as a cold wash and a line dry, and stop if the colour runs on a white cloth. Store the foam indoors, on its edge if you can, so it is not stacked wet in a bag. A conservatory is fine if it is actually dry. A damp shed is not an upgrade on the patio. The rattan garden furniture buying guide is where that waterproof-field clash is set against the bullets, before you buy. After you own the set, the clash is already decided: bring the cushions in.
Glass and a steel frame
Tempered glass still breaks if the edge is chipped. Harbour's glass-top guide says to think about taking the top off if debris can fall on it over winter, and to treat a damaged edge as the failure point. In this comparison only the rocking bistro states 5 mm. The rattanstar tops sit on suction cups, so check those cups after a gale rather than assuming the glass cannot walk. Lift a top with two hands on the edge, and do not sit on it while you are cleaning. If the glass is already cracked, stop using the table.
Powder-coated steel is what the Madrid and Marylin bullets name. Chips at screw heads and at the feet are where rust starts. Touch those spots in the dry, after the wash, and do not cover a frame that is still weeping rust water into the weave. Aluminium is calmer when a coating chips, but the rattanstar listing says aluminium in the bullets and steel in a garbled material field. You cannot wash that conflict away. Gardeners' World notes that PE can stay outside unless a steel frame needs winter storage. Which? makes the same steel point. If the feet are already blooming orange, a winter under a vented cover will not reverse it. On an L-shape, clean the return as well as the long arm. Dirt collects in the corner joint. If you cannot lift a glass top safely, or the frame is soft at a joint, stop and get help rather than force the piece.
A season in short form: wash with mild soap and a soft brush, rinse gently, dry fully, brush out leaves, fit a breathable cover, and take every cushion indoors when the listing says rain, snow or heavy weather. Do not bleach the weave, do not jet-wash it up close, and do not treat a waterproof field as permission to leave the foam out until spring.
Common questions
Can I leave the frame outside in a British winter?
Polyethylene weave is the outdoor material in Which? and Gardeners' World. The frame is the limit. Powder-coated steel, as on the Madrid and Marylin bullets, can rust at chips, so a dry, vented cover is the cautious winter for those sets. A listing that disagrees with itself about aluminium and steel does not become rust-proof because you hosed it.
How do I wash PE weave without damaging it?
Mild washing-up liquid, a soft brush, and a gentle rinse, then a full dry before any cover goes on. Follow the weave rather than scrubbing across it. Skip a close pressure washer even if another FAQ allows a jet. Water forced into the frame is harder to dry than dirt on the surface.
What if there is mould under last year's cover?
The cover trapped moisture. On synthetic weave, vinegar diluted with water is the retailer method from Harbour and BE Furniture Sales. Brush, rinse, and dry. Do not use bleach. If the mould is inside a cushion, wash or replace the cushion rather than soaking the foam on the patio.
Should I use a pressure washer?
Not up close. Harbour says no close pressure washer. BE Furniture Sales says no pressure washer on synthetic rattan. Another garden FAQ is more relaxed. The safer reading for these sets is a hose and a brush. You can always wash a missed patch again. You cannot un-split a coating.
Where do the cushions go?
Indoors, dry, whenever the listing says rain, snow or heavy weather. That is the rattanstar and Marylin wording. Madrid's shower-resistant covers belong in the same habit. A waterproof field on the specification does not override those sentences. Do not leave the cushions inside a winter cover.
Does a waterproof specification mean the foam can stay out?
No. On these pages the waterproof field sits next to shower-resistant or water-repellent wording and, on two of the sets, an instruction to bring the cushions in. Follow the instruction. Foam that stays wet in a cover collapses and smells, which is a worse repair than carrying the cushions inside in October.
Is vinegar safe on synthetic rattan?
It is the method those UK care guides give for mould on synthetic weave, diluted and rinsed off. Try a hidden patch first. It is not a weekly wash, and it is not a substitute for drying the frame. Do not mix it with bleach.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources used for this comparison, last checked on 22 October 2026. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk lines saved on 21 October 2026. There is no laboratory test.
- BS EN 581-1:2017 outdoor furniture, general safety (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- BS EN 581-2:2026 outdoor seating tests (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- GOV.UK designated standards notice 0004/21 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Trading Standards furniture guide (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 22 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Which?, how to buy garden furniture (retrieved 22 October 2026)