How to Paint a Garden Seat

If you have an old garden seat you can make it look new again by giving it a new paint job. Most garden seats are made from wood, plastic, or metal. Make sure you purchase the correct paint for the type of garden seat that you own.  You can learn to paint a garden seat in a few short steps.

Things You'll Need

• Screwdriver


• Hardware for the garden seat, if needed


• Sanding block, 100-grit


• Sandpaper, 100-grit


• Garden hose


• Dust brush


• Painter’s plastic


• Aerosol primer, if needed


• Paintbrush


• Mini roller


• Exterior bare wood primer


• Exterior finish paint

1. Get the garden seat ready to paint. Tighten the hardware on the bench if anything is loose. If any hardware is missing, replace it.


2. Use sanding block to sand the garden seat on the flat surfaces. Use sandpaper for the rounded surfaces on the garden seat. Remove all old paint from the garden seat, or any dirt on the seat.


3. Spray the garden seat using a garden hose to make sure it is completely clean. Allow it to air dry before you start to paint it. This can take up to two days.


4. Sand the garden seat again to smooth it out, and use a dust brush on the garden seat to remove the dust from sanding.


5. Lay a piece of painter’s plastic on the floor and set the painter’s seat on it to protect the floor from the paint.


6. Spray any plastic on the garden seat with aerosol primer. Shake the can well and hold at least 12 inches from the garden seat when you spray it. Only use this if your garden seat has plastic on it.


7. Use a paintbrush and mini roller to paint the wood on the garden seat with exterior bare wood primer paint. Use the brush for the places that are hard to get to, and roll the surface of the garden seat. Let the garden seat dry for 24 hours.


8. Paint the garden seat using the paintbrush and mini roller with exterior finish paint. Allow it to dry for at least 24 hours and then apply another coat of paint, if desired.