One of the considerations that sometimes gets forgotten when choosing new furniture is whether it’ll physically fit in your home. Narrow hallways, spiralling staircases and low ceilings can sometimes get in the way. It’s a question of logistics rather than lifestyle.
So, we’ve put together this short guide to help you check ahead of delivery day. We’ll walk you through everything you’ll need to think about, starting at the front door. Before you start, we recommend that you have a tape measure and your design’s measurements to hand. A roll of masking tape or brown paper can also come in handy when marking out your design’s final home.
Measure up
1. The front door
Provided the furniture won’t need to turn around a corner as soon as it enters your front door, find the design’s smallest measurement (usually the height of a sofa, the width of an armchair, or the depth of pieces like wardrobes and dressers). If the width of the door is greater than this, then it’ll fit through. Remember to take into account the door itself, unless you’re able to take it off its hinges or it can be opened 180°. And it’s always best to leave a little extra space (three–five centimetres) as wiggle room.
If there’s a wall opposite your front door that your piece will need to turn to avoid, it may be easier to take it in upright or on its side, especially if it’s a long, tall or wide design such as a sofa or wardrobe. In this case, as long as the height of the door frame is taller than your piece’s longest measurement, it’ll fit. Again, make sure to allow for wiggle room and be aware of any low-hanging light fittings.
Just so you know
Some of our larger and heavier designs (like dressers and kitchen cabinets) can be separated into sections to make delivery that bit easier.
2. Internal doors and hallways
Working out whether your piece will be able to make its way through your house to its final spot is very much the same as seeing if it’ll fit through your front door. If the width or height of the door or hallway (depending on which way the piece will be carried through) is greater than the furniture’s size, then it’ll fit.
Just be sure to remember any low-hanging or wall-mounted light fittings and obstacles that can’t be moved, such as radiators.
3. Up (or down) the stairs
If we’ll need to carry your design up or down a staircase, you’ll just need to make sure that the width of the stairs – or the space between the stairs and the ceiling – is greater than the piece of furniture.
Sometimes it’s necessary to lift a piece over the banister, especially if you have tight turns on your staircase. If you think that we’ll need to do this, just make sure there’s enough room between the banister and the ceiling.
4. Lifts
If you access your home using a lift, be sure to check that the piece of furniture will fit through the lift’s opening (the same as measuring for your front door), and that the depth of the lift will be able to fit the furniture in the way it’ll be carried (whether that’s lengthways or widthways).
And, as some of our pieces can be quite heavy, make sure that the lift’s maximum load can take the piece of furniture as well as two members of our delivery team.
The chosen spot
We know that it can be hard to imagine your new piece in your room, especially if it’s on the larger side. So, a little trick we’ve picked up along the way is to mark out its footprint on the floor with masking tape or brown paper. Then you can step back and take it in a bit better. If you didn’t do this when you chose your piece, it’s wise to do it before delivery day so that you can be sure you’ve made the right choice.
And don’t forget to measure ceiling heights, particularly in cosy cottages, eaves rooms and basements, for tall pieces like dressers, bookcases and wardrobes.
Preparing for your delivery
We’re very proud of our White Glove Service. We’ll send our own specially trained drivers to your home, who’ll take your piece to its room, take away all the packaging to be recycled, and assemble anything if need be. But there are a handful of things you can do before they arrive to make the process as smooth as possible…
1. If there’s anything that’s likely to get in the way that can be moved, such as other pieces of furniture, rugs or light fittings, pop them to one side.
2. The same goes for any doors that may need to come off their hinges. And if through the window is the only way your piece will fit, we just ask that this comes out ahead of time too.
3. The delivery team will always wear shoe protectors and needless to say, they’ll always take great care and attention when you welcome them into your home. But, if you have any floors that could mark easily, or anything around that’s fragile, it’s best to put these away or lay a protective covering to be on the safe side.
4. And while we always love to say hello to your pets and little ones, they’ll be much safer out of the way while heavy pieces are being carried.
See you very soon...
