If you want to furnish your backyard patio area, you will need to think about what materials you want this furniture to be made out of. Depending on what you get there are different advantages and care that must be made with various patio furnishings that you choose to buy.

One very traditional material is wood. Wood can actually last a long time assuming that the product is built well. If it's compressed wood, it won't last as long as it's the wood is carved and a higher quality. What you need to do with wood to care for it is make sure that it's properly sealed and finished. This will help keep the moisture and rain out of it. If you live in a very rainy or humid climate, you might want to skip using wood and look at a different material. In dryer areas, wood can withstand the elements and take care of itself for the most part.

Aluminum is a very common material for this type of furniture. It is light weight meaning that it's easy to move and store if you ever want to put it away during the times of the year that you really aren't going to be using it. It cleans extremely well. All you really need is soap and water to make sure your furniture will be clean. The huge disadvantage of this material is wind. If you live in an area with thunderstorms and high winds, your aluminum furniture will blow all over the place.

Wrought iron furniture that is powder coated is popular especially for windy areas. This is heavy enough that it won't move much with weather. The powder coat material can be in any color meaning that you have choice on looks and design. The huge disadvantage is that is the coating is damaged the inner wrought iron can rust fairly easily. This means that if the paint chips that you need to care for it else your furniture can rust.