Clean and Repaint Your Old Wicker Furniture

Wicker furniture looks great and can last for decades. It is especially good in hot and humid climates because they allow for air flow all around. However dirty, faded, and paint chipped wicker, looks terrible. In this Instructable I will show you how to clean and repaint and give new life to your wicker furniture.

Clean up

A bucket

A gentle soap (I used Dawn Dish Soap)

A firm bristle brush

A garden hose for water

Some bleach if you have mold or mildew on your furniture

A shop-vac to clean up and optionally to blow air if yours allow

Paint

Spray paint primer

Spray paint color of our choice

Spray paint clear coat

Optional

A Wagner power sprayer

Quarts of Rust-o-ileum water based latex paint.

M1 Advanced mildew treatment

Optional supplies

Gloves and a Mask

Tarp of plastic sheet

Wheel barrow

I recommend doing this outside on a sunny day. How much loose paint is on your wicker furniture, will determine how much mess you make, so put down a tarp or piece of plastic if you are worried about the paint chips where you are working. I like to do this in a larger area, where you can get some airflow around the piece as you work. to help the furniture dry.

Pro Tip I placed my furniture on a wheel barrow to elevate off the ground as I am tall.

I am tall so I put the pieces on top of my wheel barrow to get them up higher. I found that this also is great for collecting the soapy water and dirt, and 90% of the paint flakes. The paint settles to the bottom and you can reuse the soapy water. Which is great if you live in a water restricted area. Use your judgement if you want to wear a mask and gloves, the water will keep most of the dirt and paint from becoming airborne. I used dawn dish soap for the cleaning, so I didn't feel the need to wear gloves.

I like to begin by dry brushing the entire piece to remove any really loose dirt and paint.

Then I wet down the entire piece of furniture, to let any dirt begin to loosen up. I did this with all pieces.

Then fill your bucket with soap and water and get to scrubbing with firm bristle brush.

Be sure to brush from all sides of the piece, and do not neglect the underside.

Do not be alarmed if lots of paint comes off with the dirt. As you can see in the last picture there is plenty of paint chips in the bottom of the wheel barrow. This was only from 1 foot stool.

If you have any mold or mildew on your pieces (I did not), You can add a little bleach to your water to help remove it and kill any spores so they can not spread further. Thoroughly brush any affected areas with the brush and bleach water. Scrubbing until clean. I did not have any areas that needed addressed. However, scrub with a little bleach water that same way as in Step 2.

Bonus Tip Pictured is a product that can be added to paint that prevents algae, mold etc. I have a north facing deck on my house that in the past has had green slime problems. I added this $4 product to my paint the last time I repainted, and it has worked wonders. I have also used it on bathroom ceilings and have not had any issues in the bathroom. You can not use this with spray paint, however if using a power sprayer and latex paint it is very effective.

Rinse off your piece thoroughly with a running garden hose and clean water.

If its a hot sunny day your furniture will dry faster. I like to leave the furniture sit out in the sun for the remainder of the day to thoroughly dry. This is not required, just make sure that it is good and dry before you move on to paint. This is very important, as you do not want to seal any water into the wicker. Some air movement will also help if you are in a hurry, place a fan near the furniture to move some air thru it do help drying. My furniture sat for a week between cleaning and painting, so it will be fine for a few days unpainted. I could have began painting the next day, but I got busy with something else.

Priming your furniture is very important. It will help the paint stick to the furniture. Be sure to thoroughly shake your spray cans the recommended amount of time to get best results. Then apply 1 light coat of primer to your piece of furniture. Do not worry if you do not get everything on the first coat. Allow the piece to dry, to the touch. Then apply a second coat making sure you get any areas that you may have missed, the first time around.

Pro tip it is best to work from a different angle when spraying the subsequent coats. I always to at least 2 coats of primer, sometimes I will do 3, if I find any touch-up spots.

Pro Tip 2 Be sure to get the underside of the furniture.

Painting the furniture is basically the same as priming. Use 2 or more light coats of paint. Try to spray each coat of paint from a different orientation or direction. This will help get the paint into all the various nooks and crannies of the wicker furniture. After the paint is dry, spray a final coat of clear on the wicker. This will help it repel dirt and grime, and give a extra layer of protection from UV from the sun.

Optional If you have a power painter, you can use quart or gallon cans of exterior paint. For many pieces this will be much more cost effective. I used 3 cans of primer and clear coat and 12 cans of spray paint for this furniture set. The Rustoleum ultra cover would have also worked and been cheaper in the long run.

Bonus Do not be afraid of bold colors, Just because wicker furniture is traditionally white, does not mean it has to be. I was over ruled on this one, so mine is painted white.

Enjoy your repainted wicker furniture. Next step for me is to recover the cushions, but that's for another inscrutable.