Cleaning wicker furniture

[Agilityscots]

Anyone have any hints on how to do this?

Last weekend, a friend gave us a lovely wicker couch and endtable for our breezeway. Unfortunately, it had been sitting in the entryway of her old farmhouse for years, and it is literally encrusted with dust. I used a scrub brush to get most of it out, but it still smells very musty. Any ideas?

Amy

 

[missusduray]

Remember that you can give it a shower but never a bath. Soaking it in water will wreck it. As for the smell, the best thing is just to let it air out. Rinse it with a graden hose on the shower setting. Good luck! and Congrats!
Kristyne

 

[Poison Ivy]

Found this for you.

Use laundry bleach to remove musty smell from wicker furniture


Chlorine laundry bleach
Use 1/4 cup of chlorine laundry bleach in two gallons of warm water and use a medium bristle brush, like a vegetable brush. Dip the brush and gently scrub the wicker furniture completely, even underneath, then rinse the same way with clean warm water.

The sun will help remove odor.
It'll help if you can put the wicker furniture in the sun to dry. The sun works wonders with eliminating odor.

Let the wicker furniture dry
Let the wicker furniture dry completely before you use it, because if you sit on it while it's damp it will move the strands of reed slightly and when it dries the strands will stay in the new position and could put stress on the joints.

You may have to repeat the treatment two or three times to get rid of the smell completely, then it would be a good idea to give your wicker furniture an annual treatment just to be sure to keep from having the musty odor problem again

 

[chickbea]

Ah - this was one of the annual chores I had to do for my gramma when I was little. She made me use an old toothbrush so I could really get into the nooks and crannies!
Poison Ivy's advice is right on. Just be sure your bleach mixture isn't too strong, and rinse well.

 

[SpottedCrow]

I use a scrubbie and the hose to clean mine...it works great to get the ploop and splort out of all the nooks and crannies.

 

[Sharona]

I read an article years ago that said use salt in the water when cleaning it. It was supposed to help keep the weaving strength strong.

 

[Agilityscots]

Wonderful! Thanks so much, everyone! How is it that no matter what I ask here, someone always has an answer??

Amy

 

[schmism]

TSP and carefull use of a pressure washer would be my method....