Move Flat Pack Furniture? Yes or No?
When faced with the decision of whether or not to move flat pack furniture, there is much to consider. Because flat pack has democratized furniture buying, you can buy inexpensive piece of furniture that looks nice once assembled. And psychologists tell us we increase our pride of ownership if you participate in the assembly.
Consequently, that piece of economical furniture is designed to be easily shipped and assembled. It is not designed to be moved. The construction that makes it easy to ship have difficulty withstanding the stress that furniture goes through when it is moved. The underlying material, particle board, is notoriously weak if it encounters any unusual stress.
It is very easy to pull the screws out of particle board with a minimum of applied pressure. Lifting a piece upward where the construction is designed to have force applied downward will pull the screws out very quickly. Moving a piece of furniture puts very different stresses on it than its intended use sitting in the corner of the room.
Furniture built with particle board can be moved, and you can shave for a month with a disposable razor. In both cases you should set your expectations for what type of results you will get.
Options to Move Flat Pack
If you are moving particle board furniture yourself, consider reinforcing the connecting pieces. If having a professional company move your piece, work with them by removing any items from the pieces to reduce strain and talk to them to ensure you have realistic expectations about what may happen.
A professional moving company will be licensed and have liability insurance. If a piece is damaged, the standard liability will be $.60 per pound per article. That means you will not automatically have a piece replaced at full value if damages. Due to the risks, most professional moving companies will not accept higher liability for particle board furniture.
Should you move your particle board pieces? As always, it depends if you consider the risk and the cost. You are paying for space on a moving truck. And that space is filled with pieces that have a higher risk of the pieces not being able to survive the journey. If pieces are older, or not absolutely critical to your new circumstances perhaps it is a more efficient decision to not move those items and buying a fresh set on the other end. Look on the bright side and consider it a well deserved upgrade.
