When it comes to choosing outdoor furniture for your patio or lanai, there are several choices available. First is the synthetic woven product with aluminum frames that are available at many local hotels. Next there is the powder-coated aluminum furniture with fabric seats and glass-top tables seen at many big-box stores. Also there is the ultra-low cost plastic deck furniture. Finally, you have the solid wood patio pieces namely teak furniture.
All these categories have advantages and disadvantages as well as wide differences in cost. When given a choice, most folks generally prefer the classic look and feel of solid wood outdoor furniture. There are many things to consider when choosing the right solid wood lanai furniture. There is cost, wood type, hardware quality, finish, warranty and maintenance requirements, to name just a few.
Island Style Furnishings in Kaneohe has teamed up with Australis Leisure — a company with headquarters in Brisbane, Australia, and which specializes in the design and manufacture of solid wood all-weather furniture. For more than 30 years, Australis Leisure has been producing merbau wood furniture to survive the harshest conditions imaginable across Australia and the world.
Island Style Furnishings tailors this high-quality furniture to meet the very specific and demanding conditions found here in Hawaii. Merbau wood (also known as kwila) is regarded as one of the most durable and stable timbers in the world. It grows in Northern Australia and across Southeast Asia. It is well-known as the wood-of-choice for building docks, decks and flooring.
Merbau is the perfect wood for outdoor furniture. It is twice as hard as teak, which makes it resistant to abrasion, pitting or roughening. It is significantly stronger and harder than teak, oak, eucalyptus and meranti, which are other woods commonly used for outdoor furniture. Many different kinds of wood will split if they are moved from a wet environment to a very dry one. Prior to manufacture, the merbau is kiln-dried to a moisture content of 12 percent. This stabilizes the structure of the timber so it does-n’t warp or crack. Merbau is naturally rot-resistant and insect proof. The wood is not subjected to toxic chemicals (treated). The secret is merbau’s reddish-brown tannin, which is toxic to bugs.
The furniture is constructed using mortise and tenon joints with cross doweling. This prevents loosening of the components over time. The furniture is only as good as the hardware that holds it together. All the hardware is constructed from corrosion-resistant stainless steel as well as some nickel-plated brass components. The stainless steel chosen is the 304 grade, which is commonly found in cookware and marine applications. Proper finishing is crucial to maintain the beauty of the furniture. A multi-step preparation process is used to ensure the best adhesion and penetration of the finish. Each piece is coated with three applications of Sikkens Cetol One™, which provides a protective, durable and beautiful finish without obscuring the grain. This finish is recognized by contractors around the world as being one of the best choices available for preserving the natural beauty of outdoor wood. Island Style Furnishings also carries Sikkens Cetol One™ for its customers and provides them detailed maintenance instructions for keeping their furniture looking spectacular.
The Australis Leisure brand furniture uses timeless classic styles that will always look current no matter how old the furniture setting is. The seating is very comfortable, the contour and shape make sitting for awhile a pleasure. Cushions are also available to fit most of the chairs in stock which are constructed from water and sun resistant outdoor olefin fabrics. There is a full replacement warranty that extends 5 years from the date of purchase. This guarantee covers splitting, hardware failure and breakage. Because Island Style Furnishings is the exclusive distributor of Australis Leisure all-weather merbau furniture in Hawaii, it can pass the saving on to its customers, which results in an excellent value for the price.
Address: 46-212 Kahuhipa St.
Contact: 234-1129
Website: www.AustralisLeisure.com.au
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