14 Ways to Keep Patio Furniture from Blowing Away

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Knowing how to secure patio furniture from wind is useful if you don’t want it flying away and causing damage! Of course, your major concern here should be strong winds, as it’ll take quite a lot to lift up patio furniture.

In this article, we’ll cover 14 solutions for how to secure outdoor furniture from wind. If your concern relates to cushions and soft furnishings, check out our other article for some tips on how to keep outdoor cushions from blowing away.

How to Secure Outdoor Furniture from the Wind

Most of these solutions will be suitable for all outdoor spaces, whether a balcony, patio, or backyard. Where this isn’t the case, we’ll point it out.

1. Install anchors

The most obvious place to start is by anchoring your furniture. If your furniture is on grass or soil, use heavy-duty garden stakes and tie your furniture to them. For balconies or decks, simply tie them directly to railings instead.

2. Bring the furniture indoors

The best reaction is prevention! If you know strong winds are coming, put your furniture into storage. Of course, this won’t be super helpful on high-rise balconies because they’re almost always windy.

3. Make a windbreak

A windbreak is little more than a sheet of material on stakes. It’s fairly easy to make your own, although this might mean having to buy some material. Tarp will be the best choice because it won’t let the wind through. Buying one with grommets means you can fix it to railings or a fence.

Of course, this doesn’t directly secure your furniture but it means you won’t have to tie it down to anything.

4. Use bungee cords

Bungee cords are a great option for securing outdoor furniture from the wind. You could either lash chairs and tables together, as their combined mass will keep them in place during lighter gusts. For stronger winds, consider fixing them to a railing for more security.

5. Opt for heavy furniture

Another obvious suggestion is to start with heavy furniture. Avoid plastic and instead go for items made from metal or solid wood. While a strong wind will probably blow them over, it should be fine anywhere from balconies to backyards.

6. Use furniture weights

Furniture weights are essentially sandbags that attach to your outdoor furniture. They’re mostly designed for things like gazebos, but nothing is stopping you from using them on a patio set instead. They’ll be a good option for balconies where you might not be able to anchor furniture down.

7. Try museum putty

Although this won’t be suitable for strong winds, museum putty is worth a go for breezy outdoor spaces. It’s designed for holding vases and glass in place, but it’ll work well here. Your floor surface will need to be flat, and it’ll mean you won’t be able to move the furniture as easily if you rearrange.

8. Deck anchors

Deck anchors work well in outdoor spaces made from slats. Essentially, you slide them into the gaps between slats and then attach things using zip ties or carabiners. For this to work properly, your outdoor furniture will need holes or some other option for securing the anchors. You could also try using them on balcony railings if the gaps are narrow enough.

9. Attach furniture together

Again, this is an option for how to secure patio furniture from wind if you know it’s coming. Simply tie your pieces of furniture together as tightly as possible so the wind can’t sneak into gaps and pull them apart. If you’re dealing with lightweight furniture, such as plastic, you’ll probably want to still secure it to the ground or a railing.

10. Add a furniture cover

This option won’t work in very windy spaces, but it’ll help keep cushions in place along with the furniture. When not in use, simply put a heavy furniture cover over the item. Choose one with enough weight and tie it down so the wind can’t whip it off.

11. Umbrella base

Umbrellas are prime culprits for blowing away in the wind. If possible, take it down and bring it indoors. But if that’s not an option, make sure you use a weighted umbrella base. The best ones have bolts that hold the umbrella in place so it can’t blow away.

Alternatively, you can get umbrella weight bags. Like the furniture weights, these are sandbags that fit over the existing umbrella base to stop it from blowing away. You’ll find these usually add more weight than a weighted base.

12. Block the wind with plants

While this isn’t technically an option for how to secure patio furniture from wind, it does help make your outdoor space more pleasant. Dense plants are great for blocking wind, which should keep your furniture in place.

Any dense plants should work, so focus on things like hedges, small trees, etc. Of course, you might need to secure the pots, but a tree in a pot or planted in the ground will likely be heavier than an outdoor chair.

13. Screw the furniture into place

If you want a really permanent option (i.e., one where you can’t move your furniture), try screwing it into place. This will obviously be easiest on wood decking, but it’s possible to secure the furniture to a concrete surface if you’re determined enough.

For wood furniture and wood decks, all you’ll need are long screws. For other surfaces, you’ll need specialist equipment, so it might not be too practical.

14. Make your own weights

For freestanding furniture, you could try making your own weights by filling buckets with concrete. We suggested this as a tip for making lighting supports, and there are instructions in that article. You could then tie the furniture to the posts using any of the methods suggested above.

Final Thoughts

At least one of these suggestions should help you for how to secure outdoor furniture from wind. It ultimately depends on how strong the wind is and whether you want to be able to move your furniture. Whatever method you use, hopefully it’ll stop your furniture from blowing away!