The Woodworking Life

Lessons From A Delivery Guy: Four Problem Pieces

John Broomall, Contributor

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Read about four hard-to-deliver furniture types including four-poster beds. To help avoid problems with the design pictured above, Lonnie Bird gave it knock-down construction so it can be moved.

Photo: Thomas McKenna

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Part three in our series on how to build durable furniture that will stand the test of time... and the trip to the client's house: Lessons From A Delivery Guy.

No matter how carefully you plan, there are some pieces that routinely cause problems. It might pay for you to invest in some insulation board and duct tape to build a dimensional model. Not only will you know if it fits, you’ll know how to maneuver into its new home.

Any piece with a single measurement beyond 77”
Seventy seven inches is getting close to the height of a standard door opening. Going in on its side, you may not be able to turn or stand the piece upright. A bookcase measuring 82”x 44” could need as much as 94” clearance to be raised. Measure your diagonals, they can make the difference between a functional piece of furniture and a ceiling wedge.

Four Poster Beds
It’s not the height of the posts, it’s having posts glued to the headboard as a single unit. Problems can start with posts as short as 72”. Even with two people, this unwieldy assembly can be a nightmare on stairs.

Tall Corner Entertainment Units 
These three dimensional triangles may not fit through the door if the sides measure more than 33”. One of the worst situations is to get through the door into a small entry hall with a ceiling fixture where you are unable to raise the piece or make a turn. I’ve always thought that someone should design these things as a shallow trapezoid. Electronic equipment only needs about 18” so you could keep the sides short but stretch the front to fit even a large flat-screen TV.

Tables
Like everyone else, your dining table is probably centered under a light fixture. Some electricians hang these in the exact center of the room and some offset them to allow for an unobstructed passage. If your table starts to impinge on the pass-through, moves chairs too close to the wall, or interferes with the alignment with lighting, people will notice, and they won’t like it. 

Next time: Construction Tips

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Comments (2)

wolflover writes: a friend of mine built a beautiful pencil post bed of maple and had to saw it in half to deliver...lucky the owner wasn't home...we've all been there in one way or another...the old adage is true about learning from one's mistakes and if you're lucky...from someone else's
Posted: 6:22 pm on April 2nd

Rudolf_Hucker writes: Don't fit your piece with brass feet or wheels if it's going onto a marble floor (especially dark coloured marble)
Guess how I know?
Posted: 9:23 pm on March 24th

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