Outdoor Wooden Bench

Five boards, two screws per joint and no fancy joinery. Here is a 48-inch slat bench you can cut, screw and oil in one afternoon.

A wooden bench needs two things. Water has to run off it, and the wood has to hold a little oil. Here is the wash, the oil, the gray and the winter, in order.

A close look at the Amazonia Aster backless eucalyptus bench - a 53-inch, 25-pound seat that holds 450 pounds, moves with one hand, and works indoors or out.

A park bench is the most sat-on seat outdoors. Here is how the maker builds it, why hardwoods last, and what to borrow for a bench at home.

A small wooden bench does more per foot than any other seat outdoors. Here is where it fits, what to look for, and how to build one in a day.

A patio storage bench is a seat with a box under it. Here is what fits inside, what should never go in, and the one thing that decides whether the box stays dry.

Eight places a garden bench earns its keep, the iron and wood builds that survive outside, what each price band buys, and the half hour a year that keeps a wooden one going.

Seat height, width, wood choices and placement - the six numbers and four layouts that decide whether a patio bench gets used every evening or becomes an expensive plant table.

Teak, cedar, acacia, eucalyptus and pressure-treated pine side by side - lifespan, maintenance, cost and the climates each one suits.

A decision order that works: climate first, then size, then wood, then style. Get the order right and the shortlist builds itself.