Comments on: Seeking Advice on Patio Furniture

By: Zach

Zach — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 18:01:07 +0000

Response to my above post here are the links:

Park Grill:
http://www.jamestownadvanced.com/Products/Grills/tabid/58/Default.aspx

Picnic table:
http://www.jamestownadvanced.com/Products/PicnicTables/tabid/60/Default.aspx

By: Zach

Zach — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:57:20 +0000

In post number 6 that Dana mentioned I have a standard park grill from jamestown advanced products and it is absolutly wounderful. I have had it for a few years and is a great “park” type grill. I am in the process of getting one of there picnic tables. I live in Jamestown and have had the pleasure of touring there facility and it is a very high quality shop. I would recomend any of there products.

By: MayBee

MayBee — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:48:24 +0000

I promise you, if you get SunBrella you don’t need to put cushions away after every meal.

By: Patterico

Patterico — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 06:31:11 +0000

We’re going to set up the dining table on the porch and leave it like that. Plan is to have a storage area for the cushions and put them away after every meal.

By: cthulhu

cthulhu — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 06:03:58 +0000

Oh, one more thing: IIRC, you’re in PV. Teak and resin chairs won’t get eaten by salt spray — and that might figure into the grill choice, as well.

By: cthulhu

cthulhu — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 05:59:01 +0000

I know I’m really late to the party, but…

The biggest issue for both the patio furniture and the grill is how you live your life. If you get the nice stuff set up once and leave it like that forever, you get one answer. If you shove everything on the patio to one side for a season, then move that out into the yard and make a dining/entertaining area for a few months, then tuck that away for a special project — well, you’ll get a wildly different answer.

Since you’ve got kids, I’m suspecting the latter more than the former (if I’m wrong, just blow off the advice). So here’s the recommendation if the wind is blowing that way: get a Consumer Reports Best Buy propane grill, an extra propane tank, and check that one off as done. Then look into a reconfigurable table that can change size (with a minimum of your family’s size). Patio umbrellas are a must, but are so inexpensive these days you can get a few rather than worry about each one. Finally, get nice solid oversized teak chairs for your family — they’re never too hot, you can slap a cushion on ‘em, you can leave ‘em out, and they’re luxurious without being too pricey. On the flip side, you have to oil them every couple of years and the costs add up if you want one for every potential houseguest. So get enough for your family, and give ‘em up for company when they come over.

Then get some stackable chairs and folding tables, and tuck them away somewhere. Garden parties are temporary phenomena, not permanent burdens.

By: carlitos

carlitos — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 03:09:00 +0000

It’s really windy here in the … windy city. So we have wrought iron furniture. The wind blows right through, and you just have to rustoleum once in a while. My cheapie Char Broil combo charcoal / gas grill has lasted me 5 years in the elements, and I use it 3 times a week, 12 months a year. Once in a while, I have to clean out the burners, but that’s it. I have it wired to my porch, so it doesn’t fall over in the wind.

By: T. Sterling

T. Sterling — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:14:06 +0000

Too bad you are missing a great chance to be endearing to you mother-in-law since this is the kind of softball question that relatives thrive on. “When can we come over?”

I once had a tough job in a paper plant as a process engineer. The mechanics test your mettle and dismiss your ideas until you develop a rapport of some kind. The best advice for that job and many others is to ‘ask for some help’ from the supervisor (adversary) like, “could you get me a wrench for my use so I could test the ‘units’ on my own?” Once they think they are helping you, you are on their team and things go much easier!

By: Jeff

Jeff — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:50:19 +0000

Many 4 chair patio sets come with 2 swivel and 2 fixed chairs and for just a few dollars more you can get 4 swivel chairs, which is what I did.

By: PC14

PC14 — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 15:28:28 +0000

I’ll add to the Weber endorsement. I’ve had a two burner for almost 20 years. The nice thing about Weber is the replacement parts are easy to find. I replaced the grill and flavor bars once and it works as well as the day I bought it. The only other must for barbeque is a very good digital thermometer.