Furniture Installation & Repair Essen / Nordrhein-Westfalen / Germany

In this article, we’ll discuss the difference between furniture restoration services and furniture repair and refinishing services, talk about the different services that fit into each of these categories. Look at when furniture repair, restoration might be a good idea, and when it might be best to move on and replace furniture outright, as well as provide some tips for choosing the right furniture restoration services or furniture repair and refinishing services to meet your individual needs.

FURNITURE RESTORATION SERVICES AND FURNITURE REPAIR AND REFINISHING SERVICES – DIFFERENCES

First, it’s important to understand what the different terms – furniture restoration services, furniture repair services, and furniture refinishing services mean. In general, these are three distinct and different types of services that can be utilized to fix or refurbish furniture, based upon the type of damage, type of furniture, and options for repair. In almost all cases, however, companies that specialize in these areas alone are uncommon. Usually, a company will bill itself as one of the above types, or with a description just something like “furniture services” or similar. There are also other types of furniture repair or refurbishment services that are outside the scope of this article, such as furniture reupholstering services. 

In general, though, it is rare you will see individual specialized companies for each of the services above. On the off chance that you do, or you require specialized services, the general specialties of each of these types of companies can be described as follows:

• Furniture repair services companies are usually focused on repairs to physical damage, replacement of parts, and similar. They may include more aesthetic-type services offered by the other types of companies in this article.
• Furniture refinishing services are mostly concerned with resurfacing or refinishing the outer, aesthetic portion of furniture. That may include re-upholstering services. In most cases, the term refinishing pertains to wooden furniture, wherein the current coating and stain or finish are sanded or ground down, and new coats applied. That can also be an opportunity to change the color or tone of the wood to give the piece a new look.
• Furniture restoration services may employ furniture refinishing, repair, and other features as part of their service offerings. These companies are generally focused on doing whatever is necessary to bring a furniture piece back to like-new condition. In some cases, however, these services can be exclusive furniture repair services and are primarily focused on the aesthetics of expensive furniture, and therefore would not be adequate to call for fixing the small physical damage.

As we mentioned above, however, most of these distinctions disappear in practice, with most furniture repair services, furniture refinishing services, or furniture restoration services doing all these things, and often more, as one-stop shops for repairing, restoring, or improving existing furniture items. 

FURNITURE RESTORATION SERVICES AND FURNITURE REPAIR, REFINISHING SERVICES – WHAT THEY DO

Some of the typical tasks that furniture restoration services and furniture repair, refinishing services providers perform are highlighted below. That, of course, is by no means an exhaustive list. Instead, we attempt to provide a good cross-section of examples as to the kinds of things that these companies specialize in. As always, consumers are advised to specifically ask any furniture restoration services or furniture repair and refinishing services provider whether they do the kinds of things a consumer needs, when looking to hire one of these companies to work on their furniture.

Examples of common repair, restoration, and refinishing tasks include:

• Fixing broken furniture parts like table legs, decorative elements, or hardware,
• Replacing furniture parts too damaged to be repaired, such as shattered glass,
• Adding hidden supports, patches, and brackets to reinforce and re-join separated, cracked, or torn pieces,
• Sanding/grinding and refinishing wood furniture,
• Reupholstering textile or leather-finished furniture,
• Restoring furniture through cleaning, removal of stains, an addition of waterproof coatings, and similar,
• Patching holes, cuts, or rips in furniture,
• Fixing mechanical aspects of furniture that have become damaged (e.g., recliners in chairs and couches),
• Repairing minor surface and aesthetic defects.

FURNITURE RESTORATION, FURNITURE REPAIR AND REFINISHING SERVICES – WHEN TO REPAIR, RESTORE, OR REFINISH

Many consumers who love their current furniture are hesitant to get rid of it and replace it with something new. That is especially true with older or vintage furniture or for furniture that otherwise holds unique sentimental value. In these cases, furniture restoration services and furniture repair and refinishing services are often required to assess whether they can do anything for the client. In some cases, they must be the bearer of bad news, telling the client that the furniture is beyond repair or restoration.

At the same time, with modern technology and traditional craftsmanship skill, many seemingly impossible repair problems can be fixed. Of course, the more exotic and detailed the work involved, the more expensive it is likely to be. Most furniture restoration services and furniture repair and refinishing services will provide free estimates up-front of what they believe the repair or restoration work will cost. Often, this ends up being the deciding factor for many consumers as to whether they can or want to pay for restoration and repair or move on and purchase a new piece of furniture. 

FURNITURE RESTORATION SERVICES AND FURNITURE REPAIR AND REFINISHING SERVICES – CHOOSING THE RIGHT COMPANY

When it comes to choosing the right furniture restoration services or furniture repair and refinishing services company for a given job, many consumers don’t know what to look for, especially if they’ve never dealt with one of these types of companies before. Fortunately, as with most home services companies, there are a few key areas worth considering before selecting any given company for the job.

SUMMARY ABOUT FURNITURE REPAIR

Damage and wear-and-tear can render even the best furniture useless, or at least in need of some serious work to return it to like-new condition. Expert craftsmen from furniture restoration services and furniture repair and refinishing services can bring some techniques, materials, equipment, and skills to bear, and help to repair, refinish, restore the furniture to its former glory. In most cases, these companies provide free estimates of both the cost and time involved, so consumers have nothing to lose in consulting these experts. In the worst case, you may find it is more expensive to repair or restore a piece than replacing it, but at least you’ll know your options and be able to make an informed decision for yourself.

FURNITURE ASSEMBLY AND DELIVERY SERVICES - TYPES

There are several different types of furniture assembly and delivery services, which are segregated primarily based on their affiliation (or lack thereof) with a furniture store.

With large chain stores or more up-scale stores, they often have their furniture assembly and delivery services contractors that work for the store to perform these tasks. Alternatively, they may have third-party furniture assembly and delivery services with whom they routinely contract. In both cases, consumers typically have very little input or choice in the process. Following the purchase, the company will arrange the furniture assembly and delivery with its associated service provider. Usually, on the day of the furniture delivery, the service provider will contact the consumer to let them know that they are on their way, and then offload, place, and assemble the furniture in the consumer’s home or office.

By contrast, more limited chain stores or stand-alone, boutique-type stores almost always rely on third-party contracted furniture assembly and delivery services to perform these tasks. Some may or may not offer consumers a list or choice of companies to choose from. In some cases, they may not have an infrastructure in place at all for this kind of activity and leave it up to consumers to either haul the furniture themselves or hire a service to deliver and assemble the furniture. That is most typical with small, boutique-type stores, or larger warehouse stores that explicitly avoid getting involved in the furniture assembly/delivery portion of the business. It is also more common in rural areas, or areas where infrequent purchases make it impractical to keep any in-house or third-party furniture assembly and delivery services on retainer.

FURNITURE ASSEMBLY AND DELIVERY SERVICES – SERVICES OFFERED

Regardless of which type of service is offered by your chosen furniture dealer, or whether you have a choice in selecting the furniture assembly and delivery services company that will deliver and assemble your furniture, most companies offer similar levels of service to consumers. In general, the provided services typically include:

• Pickup of the furniture from the dealer store or warehouse location
• Transportation to the destination home or office location
• Offloading of furniture from the truck, and bring into the home or office
• Placing the furniture in the intended final destination room(s)
• Performing any necessary furniture assembly tasks or finishing work such as installing shelves, doors, glass elements, connecting sections, etc.

In cases where existing furniture is present and been replaced, furniture assembly and delivery services may offer complementary haul-away services, meaning they will take the existing furniture that is to be trashed and remove it from the home and dispose of it. That can be a nice perk if available, as furniture is often hard to get rid of through normal trash means – most items are considered as large or irregular by trash removal services and require special arrangements and fees to have picked up. 

FURNITURE ASSEMBLY AND DELIVERY SERVICES – PREPARING FOR DELIVERY

When a consumer has a scheduled appointment with a furniture assembly and delivery services company, they should ensure they take some time before the service’s arrival to prepare their home or office for the delivery. That includes things like ensuring that pets are secured in the house, the house is easily accessible from the outside, and pathways the delivery personnel need to use are clear. Interior lights should be available and turned on to allow for any furniture assembly tasks that need to be undertaken. Furniture assembly and delivery services also appreciate when consumers have made some effort to clean up any unnecessary items out of the area so that they can maneuver furniture through doorways and tight spaces. That can be a difficult task with large pieces such as couches, and a little preparation can provide the entire furniture delivery and assembly process comfortable and hassle-free for both the consumer and furniture assembly and delivery services personnel.

FURNITURE ASSEMBLY AND DELIVERY SERVICES – SOME HELPFUL TIPS

In addition to preparing the home or office for delivery before the arrival of furniture assembly and delivery services companies, there are several other helpful tips or pieces of advice for consumers that will help with the overall furniture purchase, transport, delivery, and assembly process.

• Ensure, if possible, you fully understand who is arranging the delivery – if you must contact a furniture assembly and delivery service on your own.
• Be sure that all parties involved have accurate contact information for all other parties. If you are arranging furniture assembly and delivery services contractors to pick up the furniture from a store and transport it to your home for assembly, then you should ensure they have both the store’s contact information as well as your own. Likewise, the store has your contact information and that of the furniture assembly and delivery services company.
• Often, when ordering furniture, especially in-person in stores, there is a significant wait time between the order date and when the furniture arrives at the seller’s local warehouse for delivery to the customer. In many cases, this can be a 6 to 8-week period or longer. Consumers can forget which furniture they ordered and how it is supposed to look, complicating delivery confirmation (especially when there are multiple deliveries on a truck). Just as a hedge against this kind of occurrence, it is recommended that consumers snap some pictures of the furniture model they ordered so that they have them on-hand to review when the delivery occurs, to ensure they received what ordered.
• At least in the US, it is often the customary practice to give tips to furniture assembly and delivery services personnel, commensurate with the services and quality of service they provide. 

FURNITURE ASSEMBLY AND DELIVERY SERVICES – CHOOSING THE RIGHT SERVICE

If you are provided a furniture assembly and delivery services company or contractor as part of your purchase of furniture through a store, then you generally aren’t going to have any real choice in the matter. However, many stores, especially smaller, do not necessarily have their dedicated furniture assembly and delivery services, or their staff/contractors to perform these tasks. In these cases, consumers will have to arrange furniture assembly and delivery services company on their own. That can seem like a little daunting task, especially for new homeowners who may never have dealt with purchasing furniture before. Fortunately, looking at some basic criteria and asking some simple questions can help you choose the best furniture assembly and delivery services to meet your needs.

SUMMARY ABOUT FURNITURE ASSEMBLY AND DELIVERY SERVICES

In summary, whether you are assigned a furniture assembly and delivery services company as part of a furniture purchase from a major chain store or must seek out a furniture assembly and delivery services company to transport your furniture from a store, we hope this guide helps provide an overview of what these professionals offer. With some effort in preparing for delivery, and some common courtesy and forethought/planning, consumers can be well-prepared for their furniture delivery and assembly appointment, and ensure that they get the furniture they ordered, delivered safely, and assembled professionally. And hopefully, with the information we’ve provided, consumers who need to find appropriate furniture assembly and delivery services company know what to look for, what questions to ask, and hope to pick the best furniture assembly company to suit their needs. Furniture assembly and delivery services are the last link in the chain in getting your chosen furniture into your home or office and set up where it belongs so that you can start enjoying it!

Custom Furniture Building

Furniture is the central aspect of any interior design plan for a home or office. Good quality furniture is both functional and fits the design aesthetic and the overall décor/theme of the room where it is placed. While there are many furniture chain stores, selling off-the-shelf designs to fit many different styles, another option (for those who can afford it) is custom furniture. Custom furniture building services and custom furniture designing services are professional companies that work with clients to bring their custom furniture ideas to life. In this article, we’ll discuss the difference between custom furniture building services and custom furniture designing services, talk about what each of these kinds of companies do for clients, what their services typically cost, and how long the process usually takes.