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Outdoor Storage
4 products
The best outdoor storage does two jobs, because garden space is too short for a box that only holds things. Everything here is a second surface as well: a beer barrel table at 60 x 48.5cm, a matching barrel storage stool you can sit on, a large wooden storage tub and a set of three brown crates that stack or separate.
All of it is wood — albasia and reclaimed timber — and all of it is between £40 and £149. It is the practical, honest end of garden storage rather than a plastic box that has to be hidden.
Large Brown Wooden Storage Tub | Kaiku
From £40
Brown Wooden Storage Crates (Set of 3) | Kaiku
From £49
Natural Wooden Beer Barrel Storage Stool | Kaiku
From £87
Beer Barrel Table – Natural Wood 60 x 48.5 cm | Kaiku
From £149
How to choose
Store dry things or use a liner. Wood outdoors breathes, which is exactly what you want for cushions that need to dry out and exactly what you do not want for anything that must stay bone dry. For tools, seed or paper, use a sealed bag or box inside the wooden piece.
Raise it off the ground. Wood standing directly on soil or on a paving slab that puddles wicks water up into the base, which is where rot starts. A couple of feet, a pallet or even two bricks will double the life of the piece.
Get it under cover in winter where you can. None of this is a weatherproof box, and the season that does the damage is not summer rain but months of standing damp. A porch, a shed wall or a covered corner is enough.
Use the double duty. The barrel stool takes a person, the barrel table takes drinks, and the crates work stacked as shelves or separated as three carriers. In a small garden that is the whole argument for wood over plastic.
Common questions
- Is this storage waterproof?
- No. These are breathable wooden pieces, which is good for cushions that need to dry out and bad for anything that must stay dry. Use a sealed bag or box inside for tools, seed or paper.
- Can I leave it outside all year?
- It will last far longer under cover. Standing damp over winter does the damage, not summer rain — a porch, a shed wall or a covered corner makes the difference.
- How do I stop the base rotting?
- Raise it off the ground on feet, a pallet or a couple of bricks. Wood standing on soil or on a slab that puddles wicks water up into the base, and that is where rot begins.
- Can I sit on these?
- The barrel storage stool is made to be sat on. The tub and crates are storage and surfaces rather than seating — check the stated weight limit on the product page before putting weight on any of them.