Most of the furniture sold by Hello Baby is delivered flat packed and requires assembly. This Guide provides advice and pointers to successful assembly.
When considering purchasing flat packed furniture you need to assess your skills at following assembly instructions, recognizing and using screws and dowels and having the confidence to tackle such a project. It’s not difficult but many purchases find the multitude of parts, screws and instructions daunting and this has generated a mini industry of companies and handymen who will help for a fee. A Google search in the London area for “flat pack furniture assembly” produces around 58,000 hits!
It should be noted that flat packed furniture, once opened, is almost impossible to repack and therefore cannot be returned to the supplier in the “as delivered” condition.
There are several good YouTube chips showing the assembly process – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QauQpxsS-2U is one of my favourites. Although it only covers a drawer unit, the principles are the same.
You will usually need a cross head screwdriver – usually pozi No2 is specified. Whatever screwdriver you have it must be a good fit into the recess of the screws provided. A small spirit level, a metal tape measure, small hammer and a carpenters square would be useful. Sometimes wood glue is specified and this should be liquid such as the Evostick wood glue products.
A suggested assembly sequence would be :
- Layout the pack on the floor and carefully remove the packing to find the instructions. These instructions can be very variable in quality but since most of the furniture we sell is UK sourced, they generally make sense. Some instructions are mainly pictorial and all start with Step 1 which is a good place to start! Often the instructions recommend a 2 person assembly.
- Read through the instructions – and then read through them again!.
- Unpack all the items and lay them out on the floor.
- Unpack the bag of screws and other fittings.
- Take time to identify each screw against the picture in the instructions. This is very important since if a screw which is too long is used in the incorrect position it will break through the surface. Suppliers do not offer replacement panels when damaged.
- Start at Step number 1 – this might seem obvious but many problems are caused by not starting here!
- If there are cams, pins or dowels (either wooden or plastic) make sure they are fitted correctly. Use a small hammer to insert the dowels but take care not to use too much hammer force.
- If there are thin wooden back panels these must be fitted carefully. They often provide strength and keep the structure square. Some panels fit into a slot and might require glue. Others are nailed and the top corner nails should be inserted first, make sure the structure is square and then insert the bottom corner nails. There will be further nails for the sides and these should all be used.
- It is your responsibility to ensure that the unit is safe from tipping and if you are unsure you should seek advice. Usually units up to about 1 metre high may be free standing, above that height the unit should be attached to the wall by screws or a strap which is often provided by the furniture manufacturers.
Now stand back and admire your work – it wasn’t that hard was it.
