Frequently Asked Questions

Many garden furniture covers can be used for multiple purposes. The rectangular table covers are also often sold for lounge sofas. Also, a small garden table cover can in some cases fit perfectly over BBQs and Outdoor Kitchens. Or a BBQ cover can fit perfectly over for example a fire table. If you can't find the right size garden furniture cover, take a look in another category. A cover is after all a cover.

On this page, ‘Search by size’, you can search for covers with a specific size. The filter will search the entire webshop for the right cover. We do not do customization, but we have so many sizes that the right size is always among them.

We know from experience that it is better for a garden furniture cover to be a little too big than on the small side. This makes the cover easier to put on and take off. The fact that the fabric is not so tightly wrapped around your furniture also means that there is less wear and tear on the cover. This also benefits air circulation. For smaller covers for BBQs, benches, small garden sets etc. with a size up to 150 x 150 cm we recommend taking into account a margin of at least 5 cm. A margin of 15 cm is just about acceptable. A margin of more than 20 cm is too big. For larger covers, we use the rule that 10 to 20 cm is good. A margin of 25 cm is still acceptable. A margin of 30 cm is too much.

On every product page you will also find a tab, 'Suitable for'. This often contains very useful information about the dimensions and whether the cover is large or small. Good selling covers even state which model and brand of garden furniture the covers fit.

Manufacturers often claim that their products are watertight. This is true in theory or in a laboratory setting.

In practice, where the cover is exposed to wind and other conditions, this claim is not always true. Just like a tent, a cover will eventually leak. A cover is made of textile that is stitched together. The seams can be a bottleneck when it comes to the waterproofing of a garden furniture cover. We therefore recommend that you look for a cover with taped seams. In addition, a cover that is left in the wind can develop wear marks on the inner coating. Be especially careful with garden furniture covers in the vicinity of roses and other thorny bushes, as the tiny holes they leave can also cause leakage.

It is important that no water remains on your garden furniture cover. If this is the case, the water can seep through the cover. To prevent this we always recommend placing something like a ball, bucket or water shedding pole under the cover so that the water runs off. Regularly pulling the cover tight can also prevent seepage. The best results are achieved with a RWSC, Raffles Water Shedding Cushion.

Despite the fact that many of our covers, such as those by Raffles Covers, score well on watertightness, your furniture and cushions can still become damp through condensation. Due to temperature differences, it is inevitable that condensation occurs (just as in a tent), so furniture and cushions can feel damp, especially if they have been standing or lying under a cover for a long time. Condensation usually occurs when heavy rainfall alternates with lots of sunshine. This causes the rainwater to evaporate quickly and can then remain under the cover. These weather conditions are most common during the summer months, June, July and August. This can be partially avoided by choosing covers made of breathable material or garden furniture covers with air vents. Condensation can be mistaken for leakage. Therefore, do not leave the cushions under the cover for a longer period of time (weeks) without checking or airing them from time to time. Your cushions may then become clammy of wet. A cover that lies flat on the table top can cause it to ‘sweat’, which can lead to damp patches through condensation of rainwater and the moisture in the wood of your furniture. Therefore, always put something underneath (e.g. an overturned bucket) so that you get some distance between the cover and the table top, this creates space for ventilation. If you use your cover for a longer period of time, remove it from your furniture from time to time to allow your furniture to air properly.

Please also note the quality rating, which is given in the product information of all our products. The higher this rating is, the higher the waterproofness of the cover. (To see our scores, click on "Which Cover". The score runs from 1 to 10. A score below 6 is completely insufficient. These covers should only be used against dirt, such as bird droppings or resin from trees. These covers are also suitable for use under canopies and verandas.

This depends on two variables. The quality of your cushions and the quality of your cover. For info on the quality of the cover we would like to refer you to the page 'Which cover' and the answer to the question above, 'Are the covers waterproof? As for the quality of the cushions, the best you can have for outdoor cushions is the combination Sunbrella with QDF, QuickDryFoam. A good second is the combination Ateja Sunproof with QDF QuickDryFoam. This quality is supplied by AppleBee and 4SO. Both combinations can also be left outside without a cover, without moulding (but beware that they can become dirty or green). Next are combinations of ordinary foam (polyether) with Sunbrella or Ateja Sunproof. These cushions can take a good shower, but they do need to be dried again and again. Extra protection from a cover is therefore highly desirable. Next in order of quality are ordinary acrylic fabrics, dralon, spun polyester and cotton. Mildew or mould can also get into these cushions as a result of clammy damp air and/or condensation. We therefore recommend that you never leave these cushions under your cover for long periods of time. If you do want to leave your cushions permanently under the cover, keep a close eye on them. For example, let them air out on a nice winter's day and then remove the cover. Leaving cushions permanently under a cover is always your own responsibility.

Around 80% of our customers leave the cushions semi-permanently under the cover. That means from April to August. Only when it rains for several days in a row do they bring the cushions inside. In the winter months almost every customer brings the cushions inside.

 Field mice like to hibernate between the cushions of your lounge furniture.

We know from experience that a cover works better than a cushion bag. If water penetrates a cover, usually only one cushion is wet. If water penetrates a bag, usually all the cushions are wet. With a cover you also have more air circulation and ventilation. With a bag, you have the maximum number of cushions in the minimum amount of space. Bags are usually quite large and, when they are filled, very heavy. Therefore, bags wear out more quickly. It is always smarter to take 2 small bags instead of 1 large storage bag. A large bag is also difficult to pass through a door. Another disadvantage is that the zip is never waterproof. So if you want to use a bag outside, always keep the zip underneath and off the ground. Therefore we advise you not to use bags outside. Bags with a rating of 7 or higher should only be used in combination with a cover, canopy, veranda or similar. Always remember that a bag is never better than a damp shed.

On the "Which cover?" page, we have clearly compared all the different brands of covers. We have also given each cover a score on a scale from 1 to 10.

Depends on the material used:

• Polyethylene; not or hardly;
• Non-woven 3 layer construction; not or hardly;
• Plain polyester; yes;
• Solution Dyed polyester; discolors slightly over time. 

The most commonly used fabric for protective covers is polyester. There are many different quality classes of polyester available. Polyester has the following properties: polyester hardly wrinkles and does not discolor under indirect sunlight. Polyester also has high resistance to wear. Polyester is a relatively dense fabric, so it offers some protection against rain. If it is combined with a PVC or PU coating on the inside, a good product is created. Cheaper polyester fabrics are less colourfast, the better ones have a higher colourfastness. These covers are made of Solution Dyed material. However, it is inevitable that polyester will discolor over time.

We strongly recommend two ways of cleaning your cover and strongly advise against one. That is to use the washing machine. Although this seems to be an easy and quick way to clean your garden furniture cover, we cannot guarantee that your cover will stay intact. Due to the temperature and the high revs your cover is subjected to in the washing machine, the PU or PVC coating on the inside can come loose and your cover can lose its waterproofness.

Cleaning advice 2: This advice goes best when you want to clean your dry cover in dry weather. You will need: moss and algae cleaner and a plant sprayer. Using the plant sprayer, you spray the moss and algae cleaner over a dry cover. In these dry conditions, the algae absorb the cleaner best and then perish. After a few showers, the moss and algae will have disappeared.

Extra tip: After cleaning in both ways it never hurts to spray your cover with a water-repellent spray. This will keep your cover watertight for even longer and ensure that green deposits will no longer attach so easily to the fabric of your cover. 

Reaction of a customer: "I have tried it and both the moss and algae cleaner and the green soap work perfectly. The moss and algae cleaner leaves light stains on the spots where the green was. This can be quickly removed with a brush. The green soap works in one go, but leaves a little more soap residue on the seams. This can be solved quickly with extra rinsing. The cover remains water-repellent in both cases."

Most of our parasol covers are supplied with a stick. This can be easily slid into the cover. This can be done at the bottom of the cover next to the zip on the right side. Here you'll find an opening under the black loop where you can slide in the stick. You can see an example of this in the photo below.

Unfortunately, we do not make customised covers. For this, we recommend going to an old-fashioned sail-making shop. However, this is often on the expensive side.

An alternative is to buy a bigger cover and have it tailored at a sewing workshop. They often work very neatly and at a competitive price.

A good sewing atelier can customize a cover, but pay attention to the following things;

First of all, place the cover over your garden furniture and mark with a marker where it has to be shortened. This gives the tailor a lot more clarity and reduces the chance of mistakes.

The seams on the inside of the cover are always sealed with PVC tape, a good solution for the newly created seams is to tape them with duct tape. This is a quick and cheap solution. If you do not feel confident doing this, it is also possible to seal the seams with seam sealer from an outdoor tent dealer. It is a neater but more expensive option.

A good tailor can also turn the seam a few times. This will also make the seam virtually watertight.

The best option to repair your cover is to cut up the storage bag that the cover comes in. This is made from the same material as the cover itself. Then you stick the new piece to the inside of the cover and fix it with PVC glue or Bison Vinyl PVC Soft Plastics Repair Glue.

Once you have attached the new piece to the cover, make sure you stick it between, for example, a table and heavy books or a heavy box.

The quicker and cheaper option is to cover the tear or damage with a good quality duct tape. Please note that this is less effective than sticking a new piece of cover over it.

We often get the question whether Raffles Covers are also available in grey, anthracite or black. The covers of Raffles Covers are only available in taupe and not in other colours.

We do have covers in other colours in our webshop, but these often do not have the right size or are of lesser quality compared to Raffles Covers. In addition to the standard range, Raffles Covers has more than 200 covers with unique sizes that are not supplied by other major brands. For more information see the page; ‘Which cover?’