During the many years that you own your home, you can practically guarantee that, at some point, your furniture will be needing repairs. So, how do you determine if the best course of action is repairing it or simply replacing it? Here are a few tips and hints from the furniture building and repair experts at Pro Furniture Repair by Tampa Bay Salvage.
Repairing or Replacing?
When you’re deciding whether to repair or replace a piece of furniture, you should start by considering several important factors. First, you need to gauge the value of the piece, not just monetarily, but also its sentimental value. For example, your grandmother’s old rocking chair might not be very expensive to replace, but it just might hold great sentimental value for you, especially if she used it for rocking several generations of family to sleep through the years.
On the other hand, if there’s no sentimental attachment to a particular piece and you’re only making a comparison between the cost of repair and the cost of replacement, then the decision is much simpler. Often, a piece of furniture is in such bad shape that repairs would be more than purchasing a replacement. Then, you might want to either consider pricing professional repairs or purchasing a custom piece from Pro Furniture Repair by Tampa Bay Salvage. Here are a few other considerations.
Is It Cosmetic or Structural?
There is a major difference between repairing a piece of furniture that just looks bad or having to repair structural damage. For example, repairing scratches on a table’s surface costs quite a bit less than replacement of a broken leg. So, when you’re considering repairs, start by determining whether the repair is cosmetic or structural. Here are a few common examples:
Cosmetic repairs include issues like:
- Minor scratches and/or dents in the wood,
- Small upholstery tears, splits, or frays,
- Minor cracks in the wood,
- Minor stains or spots on the wood.
Structural repairs include issues like:
- Large breaks, cracks, or splits in the wood,
- Bent chair, recliner, or sofa frames,
- Broken springs.
What Type of Furniture Is It?
There are a number of different types when it comes to pieces of furniture needing repairs. The most common area of furniture repair generally involves dining room tables, recliners, and sofas. So, let’s just look at dining room tables for now.
Dining Room Table Repairs
Tabletops
In some homes, this table is a catch-all for everything from grocery bags to the kids’ school books and everything in-between. All the stuff that comes through the door seems to end up stopping there even if just temporarily. This leads to dents and scratches on the surface. If those scratches aren’t too deep, a scratch repair kit might do the trick. However, if they’re deeper and really unsightly, then the top may need professional refinishing to bring it back to its former glory.
Table Legs
Another common dining room table repair involves the repair or replacement of one or more table legs. Over time, table legs can become split or wobbly, making putting weight on them a bit unsafe. Generally, if your table legs start becoming wobbly, you can possibly tighten them up yourself.
On the other hand, in many cases, the problem may be that your table leg or legs are structurally unsound due to a large break or crack. If this occurs, then replacing the table leg and possibly repairing the bracketing securing it to the table could be necessary. The cost of replacement of that damaged leg depends on a number of different factors, including:
- The type of wood,
- Difficulty in matching the leg’s style,
- Difficulty in matching the leg’s finish.
When to Trash It
Basically, if your dining room table requires both top and leg repairs or refinishing, then it might be time to replace it. And, if it definitely looks like it’s seen better days, a new one from Pro Furniture Repair by Tampa Bay Salvage just might be the facelift that your tired old dining room needs. A beautiful live edge table could be the perfect choice so that just might be something to think about.
Get More Info Today
If you’re in a quandary about whether to repair or replace a piece of furniture in your home, contact Tampa Bay Salvage in Palm Harbor at 727-942-2106 or via email at tampabaysalvage@gmail.com for some help with your decision. They have 25-years of experience and the expertise to help you in either case.
