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How To Disassemble Furniture When Moving

Last Updated: Thursday, March 5th, 2020

Home moving can be a very tedious and time-consuming process. There’s a lot to do and sometimes no matter how much you’re planning, you just can’t get everything done in time, especially when it comes to disassembling flat-pack furniture or larger items.

The best thing you can do is to explore your options about everything. Some things are better to be outsourced but others you can do by yourself. Following our simple tips and tricks will help you disassemble the furniture on your own if you’re looking to save some money. However, keep in mind that it might cost you a lot of time and nerves. 

Prepare your moving plan

The very first step of the moving preparation is to create a moving checklist. Thus, you won’t forget anything when organizing. You can also download аn already prepared checklist and follow the instructions. Along with the do-to list, goes the inventory list of all the items you want to take with you. The inventory list can be very helpful with the furniture disassembling because it will assist you to make a better judgement of how many things you have, how big are they, do they have many parts, etc. 

Read the instructions

Disassembling furniture for a move is much easier if you know the splitting points. They might be visible or hidden. So, start by reading the instructions for disassembly. If you’ve made the mistake to toss them out or you simply can’t find them, you can always search online. Unless your furniture is from another century, the chance to find them online is pretty big. Maybe even the manufacturer has them uploaded on his website. If that doesn’t work, go to the store where you bought the item and ask them to assist you.

Collect the needed tools

The proper tools are an essential part of the furniture disassembly process. You won’t need professional tools, but you must obtain the basic ones, like a hammer and a screwdriver. Not having the needed tools will make the task impossible to complete, so make sure you’re prepared. If you don’t have them, you can ask a friend to lend you the tools. And while you’re on it, ask them to come and help with the disassembling, too. 

Tools needed to disassemble furniture:

  • Hammer
  • Pliers
  • Allen / Hex Keys
  • A wrench set
  • Screwdrivers or a drill
  • Spanners
  • Sharpie & Ziplock bags
  • Rubber mallet
  • Painter’s tape

Ask for help 

If you don’t know anything about assembling and disassembling furniture, you can ask your removalists if they can assist. Otherwise, it’s best to turn to a friend who knows what he’s doing. Or maybe even two. Depending on the size of the job. Chance it, they’ll come prepared and bring everything you will need in the process. Some of your friends may even have special tools designed for a specific type of furniture. 

Access the situation

Start by evaluation of every piece of furniture before disassembling it. Make sure you know how to disassemble it, how to assemble it back and that you have a way to pack the little parts, in order not to lose them. Also, make sure to look at the furniture installations before you take anything apart. A very helpful trick is to label all the parts of your furniture using a sharpie. Taking pictures of the furniture during the disassembling process will also help you with placing it back together. Pay extra attention to the way the joints are connected, how the hinges have been installed and how all the pieces are put together. If you notice any labels on them, photograph those as well, to help you with the assembling later. 

Measure the furniture

Once you evaluate the items, make sure to measure them one by one. Thus, you’re going to decide if you even need to disassemble the piece. Remember that if the item is small and you’re able to fit it through your doors and hallways, you’ll be able to fit it into the moving truck, too,  without disassembling it at all. So, why complicate your life?

Actual disassembling of the furniture 

Sofa legs, beds and bookshelves are usually easy to disassemble. However, some pieces need more attention and might have furniture covering the disassembling points. So, before you start make sure you know where these points are and approach them with extra attention. After you find the desired point, use your tools to carefully take each piece apart and store the smaller items in the ziplock bag. 

Tips For Dissasembling Furniture:

  1. Remove everything from inside before starting. It’s an obvious thing to do, but you’ll be surprised how many people forget such details in the rush. 
  2. Remove the doors first. They are the last thing you need to install during assembly, so it’s logical that they are the first thing to go during disassembly. 
  3. Stack all the labelled pieces neatly and place some padding between them, to avoid scratches and other types of damage during transport. 
  4. Prepare ziplock bags in handy. Once disassembled, all the little parts like screws and fasteners, need to be carefully stored in a ziplock bag. After that, make sure you seal the bag and don’t forget to label it. 
  5. Use coloured electrical tape or stickers to tag screws and the location they were removed from the furniture. 
  6. Professional handymen advise to keep track of all the hinges, screws and other small parts by taping the ziplock bags to the furniture pieces they belong to. Thus, they won’t get damaged or lost during the moving process.

Assess the environment.

Before you start moving the furniture out of our home, make sure that there are no obstacles on the way. If it is such, and it can be moved to another room, so it’s not blocking your way to the entrance, do it. Always be careful and move with caution to avoid hurting yourself. 

Final step

Enjoy your new home! 🙂

Any good removalists will also be able to assist with disassembling and rebuilding furniture, contact us for a quote today

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