Quality furniture can last you a lifetime. But even quality furniture can get damaged or experience other problems. The cushions may have lost their fluff over the years, or the seat may sag where you have worn a groove in it.
When these things happen, you may be tempted to replace your furniture. With the right tools, you can restore your furniture, making it comfortable and stylish once again. You’ll also give it many more years of life and save yourself a lot of money. Here are a few things you can do to repair your furniture at home:
Replace the Springs
Compression springs and conical springs are often used to give couches and chairs a little extra support and cushion. When these springs break down or lose their tension, your cushions can become flat and your seats lose their support. Simply replacing these springs may be all you need to do to restore your furniture.
Of course, you’ll have to open up the seats and the cushions to see what’s going on and find out what conditions the springs are in. You may also need specialty tools to remove the old springs and install the new ones.
Replace the Webbing
Not all couches and chairs have springs for support or cushion. Some are supported by thick upholstery webbing known as jute webbing. If the webbing is torn away from the frame, or if it becomes stretched, the seat will sag or may even fall through the frame. Replacing the webbing is actually quite easy, but you do need to remove the upholstery and the cushions. You will also need a special tool known as a webbing stretcher to apply the webbing. Using the stretcher will ensure that you get the tightest fit for the best support.
You may also have a piece that uses a combination of webbing and springs for support. If that is the case, make sure you check the condition of both. If you replace one but not the other, you may not fix the problem.
Replace the Upholstery
Maybe the problems with your furniture are cosmetic. Maybe you have tiny burn holes in the fabric or stains that won’t come out. You may have tried professionally cleaning the furniture with no success. If that’s the case, you may need to consider reupholstering the furniture. Reupholstering is not as hard as it may seem. Most furniture can be reupholstered with nothing more than fabric and a staple gun. You’ll need to watch some online tutorials to walk you through the process. If you think the job is outside your skill set, just call in the professionals for help. You may still end up spending less than you would for new furniture.
Don’t get rid of that quality furniture you own — just repair it. You can also use these tips to restore antique furniture or pieces that you have inherited from your family. You’ll be able to keep the furniture in your family for many more years and save yourself some money.