DIY sofa armrest repair

In detail: do-it-yourself sofa armrest repair from a real master for the site my.housecope.com.

Many people have an old sofa at home, which is a pity to throw away, because the frame of the sofa is still intact, the springs have not sagged, the locks work, but the appearance is no longer the same due to the frayed upholstery. In this case, you don’t want to order a sofa banner, because the old sofa is not so valuable. To resuscitate an old sofa, the best option is to do it yourself. The main thing before starting work is to make sure that the frame of the sofa is gone, otherwise time and effort will be wasted. Fabric for upholstering furniture can now be bought without any problems; there will be no difficulties with colors and choice of textures either. In this article, we will tell you how to do it yourself with minimal financial costs.

Fabric for upholstering furniture (tapestry or velor, 7 running meters, width 1.5 meters)
Thick fabric 1 meter wide and 2 meters long
Coat fabric 3 square meters
Metal cross piles, 32 pieces
Universal adhesive
One sheet of plywood 4 mm thick
Staples for a hand stapler, length 14 mm
Two woolen blankets
3 meters of galvanized steel wire, 1.6 mm in diameter
Sintepon or foam rubber
Palace with dimensions of 1.5 by 2 meters
Nylon thread
Self-tapping screws 5 * 40

We disassemble the sofa completely.

We are preparing the fabric for the upholstery of furniture (in our case velor).

Disassembling the frame of the sofa, we number all the details.

If necessary, we replace the frame parts, I replaced two planks: one was burst, the second bent from the time the sofa was used.

We assemble the frame of the sofa, coat the parts with universal glue.

Video (click to play).

We fix it with metal cross-shaped dowels.

We cut out parts from plywood according to old templates, which will later be attached to the frame.

We attach the plywood to the frame. First, we coat the frame with universal glue, then apply plywood and fasten it with staples using a stapler.

We fix the springs with a stapler so that they do not move.

We make brackets 2 cm long from galvanized steel wire.

We fix the springs with homemade brackets.

We fix the pre-tied thread at the top of the spring cloth.

According to the size of the upper part of the spring cloth, we cut out the carpet with an allowance of 4-5 cm on each side.

Bending the carpet, fix it with carnations so that during further work the carpet does not move.

Then we sew in a circle with a nylon thread, the seam step is 5 cm.

We take the second blanket and fasten it with an overlap of 5 cm.

We stretch the cover pre-cut with the help of templates and sewn, and fasten it from the back to the main frame.

We disassemble the main frame of the sofa, in order to reliably glue them together again.

We glue the grooved corners, smearing with universal glue, when assembling with a square, we check the perpendicularity.

We collect all the details of the main frame.

We attach the fabric to the front of the furniture to tighten the furniture.

In the inverted state, we fasten the mechanism to the frame using self-tapping screws.

We drag the sides of the sofa. First, we attach the coat fabric on both sides.

With the help of padding polyester, we add volume.

We attach dense fabric from the back of the sofa.

The armrests are an important part of the sofa, with the help of which convenience and comfort are created. The covering of these elements is carried out inseparably from the process of furniture upholstery as a whole. The armrests are initially designed in accordance with the overall design.

During operation, the upholstered fabric is subject to wear, contamination, subsidence and requires restoration or replacement of both the upholstery itself and the filler. Self-replacement has a number of advantages, primarily cost savings. The complexity of this process depends on the shape and quality of the armrests themselves.

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Upholstering sofa armrests requires great care when removing them, upholstering them and placing them back on the sofa. For these purposes, the following tools are required:

As materials, you need filler, upholstery, buttons, nails and hooks. For the constriction, a similar material is picked up as for the sofa itself: jacquard, chenille, flock, suede or leather, tapestry, velor, etc.

Fitting armrests can include the following types of work:

Repair of damaged areas;
Strengthening the structure;
Replacement of frayed upholstery.

Structurally, the armrests are a solid material that is upholstered on all sides with any material base of various thicknesses. If the wooden (plywood) base is damaged, a full repair, replacement or reinforcement will be required, depending on the degree of wear.

In any case, you need upholstery. Having decided and purchased the necessary material, you can start this process. First of all, the armrests should be removed. The upholstery is then carefully removed. This is done with a knife or other sharp object. It is advisable not to damage the old filler and upholstery at the same time, since they will be used to measure and cut off the new material.

An important aspect is the observance of the shape of the armrest. If there are bends, they should be repeated as accurately as possible when installing both filler and upholstery. In such cases, it is recommended to contact the atelier or the master, since it is very difficult to do this work on your own.

In simpler cases, installing foam rubber and new upholstery will not be difficult. The upholstery should be done in the same way as for the upholstery of the seat or back of the sofa. At the final stage, the degree of tension should be checked, it should be tight, after which the armrest can be mounted back on the sofa.

If you have any difficulties or you are not sure that you can handle it, contact the specialists of the atelier "Sofa Master". They have extensive experience in covering upholstered furniture, according to the client's preferences.

Any furniture, over time, loses its original properties, and the question of replacing it with another arises. Good quality furniture is quite expensive, and the base of the old module is strong, and the model fits the interior.

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Then do-it-yourself sofa repair becomes a popular and more economical option to get an updated piece of furniture. You can use the services of professional craftsmen or arm yourself with tools and materials and carry out all the work yourself.

Repair of an old sofa can be carried out in a complex or partial way. It all depends on the nature of the damage and their complexity.

A piece of furniture is subject to repair, which has preserved its main part - the frame, therefore it is not advisable to devote time and effort to a completely collapsed base.

To understand how to repair a sofa at home, you need to carefully study the properties of each component part and how to restore, renew or replace them.

The frame can only be repaired after removing the upholstery and filler, i.e. almost completely disassemble it. It is much easier if the seat and backrest are attached to the frame by a transformation mechanism. They can be simply removed by unscrewing a few screws and screws without touching the soft upholstery.

After access to the damage, the defects must be carefully examined and decided whether it is possible to restore the old part or is it better to replace it. To do this, self-tapping screws or bolts are unscrewed, the frame elements are measured, their exact copy is created and installed in place.

If another do-it-yourself sofa repair is carried out, it is recommended to strengthen the supporting structures in each individual case (put a wooden beam, add a couple of transverse boards, install metal corners). In addition, you can tighten the loose fittings of the sofa, treat the joints with glue to prevent their backlash in the future.

Sometimes it is necessary to restore the armrests from which some of the wood has broken off. To do this, collect all the fragments (if there are several of them), determine the location of each and glue them in place using PVA glue. Then it remains only to lightly sand the gluing place and cover it with a layer of varnish matched to the color.

If you need to repair the armrests with soft upholstery, the fabric and foam rubber are first removed, the broken part is detached. The purchased one is installed in its place. The filler and fabric are put back in place and the armrest is screwed onto the frame.

The spring block of the sofa is represented by a structure of many twisted elements located next to each other, interconnected from above and below, and also fixed along the entire perimeter with a rigid frame. The first sign of failure of the shock-absorbing system is the appearance of a squeak and sinking of the seat. Visually, this is immediately evident.

The restoration of the spring block is carried out by replacing some elements or restoring the connecting systems.

To access the insides of the sofa, you need to carefully remove the upholstery using a staple remover and remove the soft backing from the felt and foam rubber.

As soon as the mechanism becomes available for inspection and manipulation, problem areas and methods for their elimination are determined:

If the twisted elements are detached from each other or the frame, use a thin hardened wire and pliers to restore the fastening. The sharp edges of the material are bitten off and directed downward.
If the spring breaks or loses its elasticity, they acquire a part and replace it.
If the entire shock-absorbing system of the sofa has become unusable, the replacement of the spring block is required or the selection of another design, more reliable from the available furniture products.

If, during the inspection, weak points in the parts of the block were identified, repairing the spring in the sofa is inappropriate. After a short period of time, it will still break. Better to replace it immediately.If the structure makes unpleasant sounds during mechanical action, it should be pushed over its entire surface, and the source should be determined. A common option for eliminating squeaks is to install a spacer between the rubbing metal, but this is a temporary measure. It is best to replace such a part. The sound will appear again, and we do not repair the sofa every year.If during operation the back or seat does not fold, or it happens with great effort, they are skewed relative to each other, then repair of the transformation mechanism of the sofa-book is required.What are the dimensions of the problem, it will be possible to detect only after disassembling the product. To do this, you first need to remove the armrests (most often they are fastened with two bolts), in order to dismantle the moving parts, you need to unscrew the fasteners in the mechanism itself.The system is now fully visible, but still attached to the frame of the sofa. If all the components are intact, there is no backlash or other signs of loosening, you can simply lubricate it, raise the mounting bolt. Even the presence of rust does not mean complete failure. You can get rid of it with the help of special chemicals.In the event of a breakage of the rivets that connect the moving elements of the sofa-book mechanism, they can be easily replaced with others.Before that, you should remove the mechanism, clean it, get rid of the broken parts and put in a replacement.In extreme cases, especially when the sofa-book has been used for many years, the entire mechanism will have to be replaced. The design is easy to purchase at any furniture store at an affordable price.A feature of the Eurobook sofa is the presence of a double transformation mechanism, one part of which allows you to push the seat forward, the second lowers the back into the resulting space. Repair or replacement is carried out in the same way as in the case considered, with one difference: the retractable mechanism is equipped with bearings, which break most often. They will need to be replaced.The click-gag model has a metal frame base, to which all movable elements and lamellas are attached. If there are problems with unfolding or 1 rail has broken, you will first have to remove the upholstery, conduct a detailed inspection followed by repair work (replacing fasteners, broken slats, lubricating moving elements).The foam rubber in the sofa will be replaced when the filler has lost its elasticity and resilience, crumbled or torn from the inside due to broken springs.The sequence of actions is as follows: They acquire a filler 35-40 cm thick. When pressed, high-quality foam rubber slowly takes on its original shape, filled with small bubbles. If the upholstery has lost its aesthetic appearance: it has burnt out or is soiled that it cannot be cleaned, it is torn, etc., you can sew a cover and cover the sofa so that no one can see it, or you can drag the product with another material.

Various upholstery fabrics are used, you can take leather or a substitute. Regardless of the material, the process follows the same scenario:

The old sofa can be disassembled into its component parts (back, seat, armrests, frame).

The upholstery and filler are removed and further used as a mold.

If necessary, the sofa should be repaired: tighten the fasteners, lubricate the moving elements, install additional reinforcing structures.

If the foam rubber has not lost its properties, they return it to its place, having previously covered the wooden parts with a thin layer of adhesive.

Pieces of upholstery prepared in advance are laid on a flat surface. A detail is placed on top of it. Along the perimeter, the material is fastened with a construction stapler, making sure that the staples fit tightly to the end.

While nailing the fabric on the sofa, it needs to be stretched and leveled a little so that folds do not form and the surface turns out to be slightly stretched.

It is better to fold the part of the canvas where the staples are driven in, bringing the edges under the bottom, thereby excluding knocking out the threads and strengthening the seam.

All furniture elements are hanged in turn, and then they are assembled in reverse order: back, seat and armrests.

Marking scheme before upholstery.

The choice of fabric colors is very important from both aesthetic and practical points of view. When choosing a fabric, one should take into account the need to combine it on different elements of the sofa's structure and to place it on the area of the element itself. The smallest waste is achieved when using solid colors and fabrics with a small abstract pattern. Waste material occurs when cutting fabrics with large ornaments in the form of geometric shapes, lines and cells of different colors.