How To Repair Wooden Chair Back

Do you have chairs in your domicile that have loose joints or are broken and need to exist repaired? Nosotros'll testify you how to fix them the right way so they volition last the examination of time.

In the video How to Fix a Loose Chair is where I teach people how to repair any chair problem. Information technology's the base of operations level knowledge you lot need to repair a chair with broken parts. Yous will learn the beefcake of a chair, how it comes autonomously, and how it goes back together. In one case you lot've learned the basics here, you tin move on to Tools & Tips to Ready Wooden Chairs.

First thing I usually do with any chair repair is to cheque the dorsum of the chair to see if its secure. If it is, and so I leave it. If it'south loose, then we need to take the legs off kickoff before you take the back off. On many chairs, the legs and stretchers are in the fashion, so the back can't be removed when they're in place.

Make certain to put some kind of padding on the top and forepart of your work surface so you're able to turn the chair upside down on the work demote without damaging the woods on the seat or the dorsum.

Label the Chair Parts

Before you do annihilation, exist sure to characterization all the parts with masking tape so y'all know exactly how the pieces become back together. I use a labelling system where I label the legs:

FL = Front Left
FR = Forepart Right
BL = Back Left
BR = Back Right

So I characterization the spindles (technically, these are called stretchers) so the masking tape is facing up (which is the bottom when the chair is upright). This is then when you put the chair back together, y'all will ensure the spindles are the exact same manner before you took it apart. This is an important item as spindles are commonly worn down on the meridian from people putting their feet on them. If y'all put them dorsum together and some are upside downwardly, you will likely notice a deviation. I label these (picket the video at ii:24 to watch chair part labelling) so that the tape on the left and right side are near the forepart legs and I characterization them this way:

TFL – Top Forepart Left (left spindle on the summit, where there are two spindles on the aforementioned side)
BFL – Bottom Front end Left (left spindle on the bottom)
TFR – Elevation Front Correct
BFR – Bottom Front Right
For the forepart and back spindles, I just characterization them Front and Back.

If you lot think you might mix up where all these keep the chair lesser, label that too so the legs go in the correct spot.

Begin taking the chair autonomously past using a spreader clench to elevator the legs of the chair out of the seat. Always begin with the front end chair legs, especially if the back legs are on an bending (referred to equally splayed legs). Y'all can see in detail how to exercise this in the video.

Once the bottom is taken apart, you tin can now take the back off if needed. One time this is complete, the procedure is to clean off the joints, exam fit everything, and so add mucilage and put information technology back together.

Clean Off Chair Joints

Clean tenon with file

The hole where a circular part is inserted is chosen the mortise and the round part that goes into the hole is chosen a tenon. Information technology's important to make clean off the mortise and tenon every bit there is probable quondam mucilage, clay, or finish on the parts. Because new glue won't stick to old glue or finish, you want to expose new wood so you lot have a good surface for the mucilage to adhere to.

In that location are two means to remove one-time gum and dirt from the tenon. One is to take a strip of sand paper and sand information technology off. A faster method is to use a file. Just brand sure you don't accept off t00 much wood or you volition finish upwardly with a very loose joint that won't mucilage well.

On the mortise, you lot can do the same thing with the sand paper – merely plow it inside out and turn it around in the hole, but over again, I adopt a circular file, its much faster but be very careful not to ruin the surface and open up the pigsty. You want to file simply enough to take off the onetime glue and whatsoever dirt that would be in there. If the mortise doesn't go all the mode through, it'southward more challenging. I use a forcner drill bit to clean those out, and y'all can run across how to do that in theTools & Tips to Ready Wooden Chairs video.

Exam Fit the Chair Joints

In one case all the chair joints are cleaned up, you're set to put it back together. I recommend putting the chair together without glue first. Recollect of it as a examination run. In woodworking, this is referred to as a test fit. Once you have glue on the parts, you have to movement apace, so take the time now to await for problem spots and organize where your parts go.

Gum up the Chair

Apply glue on chair spindle For the glue up, showtime with spreading glue on the mortise first, and then the tenon. That mode you lot won't be tempted to set downwardly the function with the tenon that has gum on information technology. I use an artist brush, which is the best tool I have found for being able to really coat the inside of the mortise. I use carpenter's PVA glue when doing chair repairs unless it'due south an antique… just that's a different story. I prefer the Lee Valley make as I can wash out the artist brush and reuse it, even if I forget about information technology and it dries upward. It's important to make sure when putting the glue on that you are roofing all the sides actually well. Non putting enough glue in a chair joint, is a common mistake people make that causes the articulation to fail over again.

Get together the chair in the contrary order you took it autonomously. Install the back, if y'all had to take it off. And then assemble the legs and spindles/stretchers. I place all the legs in the right spot as per your labels to start with, then I glue the joints a few at a time. Put the front together first, then the back and then the sides. The whole leg associates then goes into the chair seat. A give-and-take of circumspection – don't be tempted to glue these upwards in stages and then let them dry as you could end up with an unbalanced chair.

In one case the chair is all reassembled with glue, stand up it upright, clamp the chair joints (gluing wood requires some pressure), and place a heavy object on the seat to settle the chair on the four legs. Without a heavy object on the seat, you're likely going to take a wobbly chair where one of the legs doesn't touch the flooring.

I hope this gives yous a articulate understanding of how to fix loose chair joints. For more than furniture repair information, see our furniture page.