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Hacking IKEA Furniture

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Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#161

Post by vintagedave »

rustyminnow wrote: post #115
nunez wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IKEA furniture can hold up very well if you follow the instructions precisely and don't disassemble them (in most cases). We have furniture from IKEA that we bought at least five years ago that still functions great. A mattress we got from them is absolutely stellar with a memory foam topper; all of our guests love it. I think our coffee table is ten years old now. However, everything goes to hell once you try to tak…

I've started wood-gluing together my IKEA and other flat-pack furniture to try and increase its usable life since - as you said - it's counterproductive to dis/re-assemble most of it anyways. I've not been at it long enough to claim effectiveness, but so far nothing has started to wobble.

I do the same. I don’t plan to take it apart but wood glue is part of any woodworking shop and I don’t see why assembling Ikea should be qualitatively different. I want my assemblies to stay together, not vibrate, to feel sound. Gluing joints is fundamental.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#162

Post by vintagedave »

riffraff wrote: post #56
nunez wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IKEA furniture can hold up very well if you follow the instructions precisely and don't disassemble them (in most cases). We have furniture from IKEA that we bought at least five years ago that still functions great. A mattress we got from them is absolutely stellar with a memory foam topper; all of our guests love it. I think our coffee table is ten years old now. However, everything goes to hell once you try to tak…

For what is worth, I had an IKEA kitchen for 12+ years, we disassembled it and gave it to some people that could reuse it, and it's still fine. OTOH my IKEA couch fell apart in half that time, but my wife fixed it up and it lasted until we renovated. We gave that away too. IKEA has a wide range of products, some fall apart quickly, some last longer.

I’ve heard their kitchens are far higher quality than the rest of their products. Why - not sure.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#163

Post by throwaway219450 »

MomsAVoxell wrote: post #131
clickety_clack wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IKEA is fine when you’re just starting out, but after years, you realize that it’s got a shelf life. Good furniture really is better. You can get great stuff for very reasonable prices on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace, and it’s much more solid, durable and interesting than the cookiecutter ikea stuff.

While helping friends move, as one does, I often challenge them to disassemble and reassemble their IKEA gear and still have it tight on the other side, so to speak, of the particle board .. Some do it with grace, some of us with a bit of duct tape. Others, not at all.

It depends very much on the furniture, I think citation needed on exactly which items you’re talking about. Name and shame!

The big wardrobes? They are the worst combination of impossibly heavy, awkward to disassemble and expensive to repurchase - best bet is to sell to the next occupant. On the other hand I have a solid table and chairs and they flat pack and reassemble perfectly. Same with bed frames. Shelving units go straight in the van. I wish the office desktops had metal threaded inserts for the legs instead of nylon, but otherwise also have moved several times and no real issue.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#164

Post by leni536 »

ludicrousdispla wrote: post #127
bborud wrote: post #69

An architect friend of mine once said that he admired IKEA above all other furniture manufacturers because it made a modern range of aesthetics available to the masses. IKEA had done more to evolve the public taste than any other manufacturer. And I do have to agree. I can remember what ghastly furniture most shops used to have around here. There was a lot of what we call "cabin furniture" - which isn't made to look…

The one criticism I can offer on IKEA furniture is that some of it doesn't move well, specifically the particle board stuff which will fall apart at the joints if it's not carefully handled. Having said that, I also tend to not buy the particle board stuff. I'd prefer it if IKEA offered more options (dimensionally) on their durable furnishings.

They move OK if you dismantle them.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#165

Post by dbdoug »

clickety_clack wrote: post #125
MomsAVoxell wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>IKEA had done more to evolve the public taste than any other manufacturer. I have lived and worked around a fair chunk of the western world, establishing my local headquarters each time, building myself a home. Long, long ago, I gave up on IKEA for everything except cookware and meatballs. The reason? I grew rapidly tired with seeing my living room everywhere. Move across the US, get invited over for dinner with new…

IKEA is fine when you’re just starting out, but after years, you realize that it’s got a shelf life. Good furniture really is better. You can get great stuff for very reasonable prices on Craigslist and Facebook marketplace, and it’s much more solid, durable and interesting than the cookiecutter ikea stuff.

Shelf life? I have items from Ikea that I have had for over 40 years, like Ivar shelving and Poang chairs. And they'll be handed down to my kids....

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#166

Post by BeetleB »

nkrisc wrote: post #153
bborud wrote: post #69

An architect friend of mine once said that he admired IKEA above all other furniture manufacturers because it made a modern range of aesthetics available to the masses. IKEA had done more to evolve the public taste than any other manufacturer. And I do have to agree. I can remember what ghastly furniture most shops used to have around here. There was a lot of what we call "cabin furniture" - which isn't made to look…

IKEA is great for stuff where I'm willing to sacrifice some quality for a proportionally large price discount. But for furniture where quality is more of a concern, and I'm willing to go up a rung on the price ladder, I've been very happy with both Crate & Barrel and Room & Board (noun & noun) here in the US. I have a C&B sectional sofa and quite a few pieces from R&B such as our king size bed, dresser, nightstands,…

Couch: I'd never get from IKEA. Comfort really matters.

I have 2 IKEA beds. Quite happy with them!

Ditto dressers and nightstands.

I don't see why I'd get something more expensive.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#167

Post by anjel »

unsupp0rted wrote: post #136
MomsAVoxell wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>IKEA had done more to evolve the public taste than any other manufacturer. I have lived and worked around a fair chunk of the western world, establishing my local headquarters each time, building myself a home. Long, long ago, I gave up on IKEA for everything except cookware and meatballs. The reason? I grew rapidly tired with seeing my living room everywhere. Move across the US, get invited over for dinner with new…

I don’t understand this at all. Everybody has my phone and my AirPods, or a model close to them, and that’s fine. I don’t need my AirPods to have a monogamous relationship with me.

Back in the 1990s, it seemed literally like every other person had that Ikea bentwood rocking chair. So I relate to your point. Ikeas poor-sellers remain obscure though.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#168

Post by TacticalCoder »

varispeed wrote: post #113
bborud wrote: post #69

An architect friend of mine once said that he admired IKEA above all other furniture manufacturers because it made a modern range of aesthetics available to the masses. IKEA had done more to evolve the public taste than any other manufacturer. And I do have to agree. I can remember what ghastly furniture most shops used to have around here. There was a lot of what we call "cabin furniture" - which isn't made to look…

I love IKEA because I could furnish entire office (apart from chairs, they don't have anything of Herman Miller quality) with practical and good looking desks and other fixtures and I didn't spend a fortune. I don't know what it would look like if I had to use other suppliers. Not many showroom if at all, long lead times, often problematic assembly.

> For those of you who look down on IKEA furniture, I'd like to hear about what alternatives you think need mentioning.

Word! My desk at home is a very wide T-shaped desk made of three Kallax and two kitchen countertops: I share it with my wife and there are four monitors, two desktop PC towers (inside modded Kallax), two laptops, one shared printer, etc. and we've still got plenty of room on the desk.

Our chairs: we've each got an Aeron (mine is just out of warranty, 13 years old and the wife's got an used one, don't know how old but older than mine). That's quality stuff (it took me a few minutes to set up correctly: when you put your hands behind your head, an Aeron should lean back and then when you put your hands above the keyboard, it should move forward)... Fun fact: neighbor's kid sat in my chair (by himself, I wasn't offering him to try it) and exclamed "wow, that's a good chair!". My Aeron has already been to four countries with me. The "hit hurts my leg" is bullshit from people who haven't spend the 15 minutes needed to read the manual to set it up correctly.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#169

Post by BeetleB »

cannonpr wrote: post #146
bborud wrote: post #69

An architect friend of mine once said that he admired IKEA above all other furniture manufacturers because it made a modern range of aesthetics available to the masses. IKEA had done more to evolve the public taste than any other manufacturer. And I do have to agree. I can remember what ghastly furniture most shops used to have around here. There was a lot of what we call "cabin furniture" - which isn't made to look…

I’m not sure I understand this perspective, I’m looking forward to inheriting some of my parents furnitures and getting rid of some of the ikea crap.. they are furniture that have been in the family in some cases for over 200 years, and I learned to maintain them and care for them as a kid just as a regular part of housework. Some have had amusing changes in use as the times changed, like an old wardrobe being turned…

> I’m looking forward to inheriting some of my parents furnitures and getting rid of some of the ikea crap.. they are furniture that have been in the family in some cases for over 200 years, and I learned to maintain them and care for them as a kid just as a regular part of housework.

Your experience is an extreme outlier.

Most people don't have parents with such old, valuable furniture.

Of those who do, most don't value it themselves.

Of those who do, most don't know how to take care of it.

The reality: Kids often live far away, in smaller houses/apartments. They're married and their spouses may not like the old furniture - they've already invested in the furniture they bought. Also, as people get old, they often need to downsize, so they have to get rid of much of the furniture while alive.

When you have 3+ kids, you can hope at least one of the kids will value it. These days, having 3 kids is an outlier.

For me, personally: I just don't like heavy furniture. I wouldn't want to figure out how to get it into my house, positioned where it's needed, and who's going to move it later if I decide to change the layout of my rooms? Pain, pain, pain.

Re: Hacking IKEA Furniture

#170

Post by BeetleB »

jbm wrote: post #126
bborud wrote: post #69

An architect friend of mine once said that he admired IKEA above all other furniture manufacturers because it made a modern range of aesthetics available to the masses. IKEA had done more to evolve the public taste than any other manufacturer. And I do have to agree. I can remember what ghastly furniture most shops used to have around here. There was a lot of what we call "cabin furniture" - which isn't made to look…

Nitpick but solid wood furniture does not weigh more than the particleboard furniture from Ikea. Also, my 2 cents, but it is high time for a return to utilitarianism in furniture. Just getting a basic leather sofa without cup holders and other e-garbage is a huge pain. (Ironically, Ikea is ok for this.)

> Nitpick but solid wood furniture does not weigh more than the particleboard furniture from Ikea.

While perhaps IKEA sells some heavy wood furniture, most of it is fairly light.

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