Things to do

Putting together flat pack furniture can be a real challenge, especially if like me you’re not the most mechanically minded. As my half is in the process of moving into my house, I’ve recently made countless trips to Ikea and spent many long hours assembling wardrobes, shelves, bookcases and clothes rails. Here are my top ten tips for making it all as painless as possible:

1. Research
   While it’s always nice to spend a few hours browsing around the store to get inspiration, if your time is limited use the store catalogue and website to do as much research as you can at home, and make a list. Ikea’s website allows you to check the level of stock at your local store and it lists the location numbers of each item, so you can head straight to the warehouse with your list all ready to go. Some things, such as the range of finishes on doors, are best viewed in store before you buy. Once you’ve chosen, speak to an assistant and they will print out a full list for you.
2. Measurements
   Make sure you measure your room carefully, to check everything will fit. Ikea have some really good room planning software on their site that you download onto your PC, then plan out exactly what you can fit where. I did this recently when I needed to fit lots more wardrobe space into my rather awkwardly shaped bedroom. After entering the dimensions of your room, you can drag and drop wireframe items from the virtual catalogue, position them correctly in the room and then view it in 3D from every angle. You can save your design to Ikea’s server and print off a list with all the items and prices. I chose two sets of these Ikea Pax wardrobes, and used the Planner to work out exactly how many drawers, shelves, rails and baskets to buy to go inside them. If you’re buying large pieces of furniture, you should check that you have enough height in the room to assemble it. With very tall wardrobes like the ones I bought, you’ll most probably be assembling them on their back, so make sure you have enough ceiling clearance to tip them up into place.
3. Transport
   If you’re buying larger items, think about how you’re going to get them home before you get to the till. There’s nothing worse than getting to your car and finding they just can’t quite fit, especially if you don’t have a mate with a van who can rescue you at short notice. If you can’t get them home yourself, you’ll need to go back in and arrange for home delivery. This cost me about £35 last time I went to Ikea, as my mate Dave and his van sadly wasn’t available to help.
4. Assembly space
   Take the time to clear a large flat area for assembly close to where you want the furniture, as you don’t want to be squeezing past things or dragging the finished item across the floor once it’s put together.
5. Instructions
   Read the instructions from cover to cover before you start so you’ve got an idea of where you’re heading. Always count out all the parts and screws before you start to check that you’ve got all the items listed. I recently put together a clothes rack in my loft (by torchlight!) and realised that two parts were missing, as the fittings bag had a small hole in it. I phoned Ikea who offered to post me the missing parts free of charge – you just give them the item code of any the parts, which you can find in the instructions alongside their images.
6. Tools
   Before you start building, check the instructions to see if you’ll need any tools. A lot of flat packs come with alum keys for tightening screws but some need a Phillips screwdriver. Occasionally you’ll also need a drill – I did for fixing my wardrobes to each other and then to the wall. I also have a handy rubber mallet that is great for gently knocking parts together – remember to be gentle though!
7. Get some help
   Most flat packs are much quicker to put together if there are two of you, as one can hold the parts in place while the other tightens the screws. Some big items, like my wardrobes, are definitely a two-man job as they are just too heavy for one person to move around safely.
8. Read carefully
   Compare the parts to their images in the instructions carefully before screwing anything together, looking at the positions of all the holes to check you’ve got everything the right way round. There’s nothing worse than realising you’ve put a section together back to front or upside down because you didn’t check the pictures carefully enough. (I’m sure we’ve all been there at least once!)
9. Tighten it up
   Make sure everything is screwed together nice and tightly. If the flat pack has wooden dowels, you might want to fix these in place with wood glue. The advantage is that the furniture will be a lot stronger – I’d definitely recommend doing this with small bedside drawers, as I’ve had several of these fall apart over the years, probably due to stuffing too much into them! The disadvantage is that you won’t easily be able to take the furniture apart again to easily move it to another location – worth thinking about if you’re in student digs or you move around a lot.
10. Check angles
    Use a spirit level to check everything is square and level. My new wardrobes were leaning slightly forward once they’d been pushed up to the wall, so I used small squares of wood under the feet to chock them up slightly at the front. Adjust any door hinges to make sure the doors hang correctly and they open and close smoothly, without catching or leaving any gaps.