More durable finish over Hard Shellac?

I built this bench earlier this year from offcuts of Ikea beech worktop, so it's had less than 6 months of wear. It lives on the back deck, but is used and abused by the kids and anyone else who needs somewhere to perch, so it gets hard use. I finished it in Walnut stain and a few coats of UBeaut's Hard Shellac, but the usage is way too tough for shellac, so I'd like to cover it with something.

A 2-part question then - what should I finish it with, and do I need to remove the Hard Shellac first?

G'day Richard - Hard shellac is for fine finishing on inside furniture. Not for furniture used outside use on the deck even if it's under cover of a veranda, pergola, etc.

Most polyurethane's should coat over it. Make sure it is an exterior finish though. Sikens exterior with UV stabilisers is pretty good but I'm sure there are a heap of others with UV protection now so any of them should do the job.

Try giving the damaged areas a wipe over with methylated spirits before applying the poly to hopefully get rid of the water damage which is what the milky look is. If it does not disappear then you will need to sand back or strip with a good paint stripper. Looks like it needs a bit of a sand anyway.

Cheers - Neil :U

Thanks, Neil. I'm sure I've got some Sikkens so I'll use that.