Do yourself a favor and disassemble your furniture before moving day
Don’t forget to add “take apart your furniture” to your pre-moving to-do list. Unless you hire a full-service moving company, you’ll be responsible for taking apart furniture that you want to move to a new home.
Even if you haven’t kept all of your furniture manuals to look back on, breaking down furniture isn’t as daunting as it seems. With some prep work and plenty of label stickers, you can disassemble furniture for a move, pack like a pro, and your prized possessions should arrive at your new address in perfect condition.
Before you start pulling apart your sofa and breaking down bookshelves, you’ll need to gather supplies and note which pieces you’ll need to disassemble and what you can transport as-is. As long as the item can fit through doorways and into the moving truck, you likely won’t need to take it apart.
Find any remaining furniture manuals to help guide you in taking it apart. You can also search for online manuals or tutorials for assistance. Also, grab a box of resealable bags as well as labels and markers, so you can store away nails or bolts and pack the furniture pieces together for easier unpacking.
Follow this step-by-step guide for successful furniture disassembly.
Unless a piece of furniture has several fragile elements, like a china cabinet with mirrored doors or glass shelves, it is usually easiest to move it in one piece. So before you disassemble furniture for a move, narrow down what you need to take apart first.
Measure doorways, hallways, and other exits as well as the moving truck. Then, measure larger furniture pieces to determine whether they’ll fit through in one piece or not. Plan to disassemble fragile furnishings and larger pieces that won’t fit through your entry and exit points.
Now that you’ve narrowed down which items need to come apart, remove any loose items from drawers and pack those away before taking apart a piece of furniture. For couches, take off the cushions and pillows and pack those separately. For beds, you should take off the sheets, blankets, and pillows to pack, and remove the mattress before taking apart the bed frame.
Fragile furniture parts, like mirrors, or moving pieces, like doors, can break during a move if they aren’t packed away or handled carefully.
Mirrors and glass pieces: Remove mirrors or glass pieces of furniture and wrap them carefully in blankets and bubble wrap and label them as “fragile”.
Drawers: Drawers can easily slide out during transportation, causing them to fall, chip, or break. Remove them and pack them separately for easier and safer transportation.
Doors: Unscrew hinges to remove doors. Wrap them in blankets or bubble wrap to protect them from breakage.
If necessary, remove the furniture legs from sofas, dressers, tables, or other furniture items. Make sure to keep the legs together, labeled, and packed with the furniture item. This step will alleviate any confusion when it’s time to put everything back together.
Once the legs and moving parts are out of the way, you can either transport the now-lighter frame for smaller furniture items or disassemble the frames of larger items to fit them through doorways and into the moving truck. Use handy tools like a screwdriver, hammer, pliers, or a wrench to disassemble the furniture with ease.
If you have the furniture manuals, follow them in reverse to take apart the frame. If you are dealing with furniture with pieces that are glued together, it’s best to leave those items to a pro to prevent permanent damage.
Whether you pack up furnishings whole or disassemble them into pieces, you should pack them carefully. Use packing materials like furniture blankets, bubble wrap, and packing paper to minimize the risk of dings, dents, and scratches. Keep resealable bags of the nails, screws, bolts, and other items from each furniture piece packed with the furniture, and label everything for easy assembly when you get to your new home.
Hiring movers costs an average of $880 to $2,570 for local moves and $2,700 to $10,000 for long-distance moves. Distance is a primary cost factor here, but so is the overall size, complexity of the move, and accessibility of the properties. In other words, small apartments are easier and cheaper to move from than large homes.
While it’s possible to disassemble most furniture pieces on your own, you may want to consider hiring a professional to help you break down high-value, antique, or very large items. It’s best to hire a moving company if you need to disassemble more delicate furnishings, like the hutch that has been in your family for generations or a piece of furniture that has been glued together.
You can save about $25 to $50 per hour on the cost to hire a moving company by disassembling furniture yourself, and these savings can add up if you need to take apart simple furnishings like bookshelves or desks. Many moving companies also charge an additional fee to disassemble furnishings.
I recently moved to another state and chose United Trust Van Lines after comparing several companies. Their team was punctual, professional, and extremely careful with my belongings. I was especially impressed with how they handled my home office setup and fragile items. Everything arrived on...
United Trust Van Lines, LLCShowed up on time and cleaned carpets well, but didn?t move furniture.
Voda Cleaning & Restoration of ColumbusA reliable team for moves across state. My switch to a new place needed careful lifting through tight hallways. The movers checked the doorway first, then carried heavier pieces with slow, controlled movements. Their patience helped prevent damage, and I?d choose them again.
**Would rate a 0 if i could** NEVER USE THIS COMPANY!!!!! They shattered my tv console and dresser, lost a mirror, and never finished the move. The broken furniture cost me over $600 to replace. They left me with 6+ hours of personal labor moving my 1BR apartment, when I was quoted a FULL...
All My Sons Moving & StorageI could not have moved without the help of Jen Stover! I was in my house for nearly 20 years, so the thought of clearing it out while working full time was overwhelming. Jen takes great joy in sorting and organizing while asking the hard questions with patience and compassion. Jen is...
Go and Stow Home OrganizingCouldn't have been a worse experience. 3 of my belongings were lost and 5 belongings were damaged. My furniture was clearly dragged across the ground. The movers couldn't move the furniture I paid extra heavy weight fees for so I had to help them move my own furniture. The manager gave me...
US Interstate and RailExcellent experience for me! They helped me a lot with my move. very reasonable price. Good communication with the office manager is excellent.
Goodview Moving and StorageI was concerned about my possessions safety throughout the move but Bridge View Van Lines took all necessary security measures to make sure everything arrived in mint shape I am really appreciative of their effort and commitment They made my long distance move seem simple
Bridgeview Van LinesThis moving company is the best in Columbus, Ohio! They rescued me when my movers didnâ t show up. Do not ever use Plane Movers! They never showed up for my move, claiming that I never signed the contract. They didnâ t call me to follow up, communication was awful. The people that work for...
All My Sons Moving & StorageOzie and Tyquese were great and worked fast. It was a good move
All My Sons Moving & StorageFrom average costs to expert advice, get all the answers you need to get your job done.
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