How to Prep an Old Bench for a Makeover

My thoughtful friend Melissa gave me 1 of the 2 Berkley Forge and Foundry benches she had sitting in her backyard.  The bench needed a makeover and I knew I was going to have to sand and paint, but my search through the world wide web didn't exactly show me how to dismantle my bench...so I'm here to show you what I did!  You know, in case you come across an old bench too?

As you can see in the pictures above and below, the bench still has a good shape to it and it felt sturdy when I sat on it.  The wood stain or varnish (if there was any) has long been worn away and there is a lot of water damage on EVERY wood slat.

Notice the discoloration on the seat area of the bench!

I started by removing any cobwebs or obvious dirt from the bench the best I could with a clean napkin.

The nuts on the back of the bench were covered by a cap so I popped those off with a flat-head screw driver.

I made sure to keep all the screws, nuts, and bolts in a zip lock baggy.  I'll be taking the bag to my local hardware store to find replacements for the ones that are rusty.

Once all the nuts were exposed I loosened each one and removed the slats one at a time.  I made sure to the label the slats in numerical order from top to bottom on the same side of each slat so that I would know where they would go once I put my bench back together.

I labeled my wooden slats on the sides so that I can paint the front an back without having to worry about covering up any numbers!

After the slats were wiped down one more time, I sanded both sides with 60 grit and then 120 grit sand paper.

These babies are now ready for paint!

As for the sides of the benches, I hosed them down with water and made sure to wipe them with a napkin to remove any dirt or dust.  I will be showing you guys my "after", but not quite yet.  'Tis but a tease my friend...'Tis but a tease...MAUAHAHA!  Actually, it's been very breezy and windy these past few days and I don't want to spray paint or paint until this weather settles down.

I hope this helps you if you ever come across an old bench like mine!  Can you guess what color I picked for the bench?