This post may seem a bit counter-productive for us, since one of the services we offer is the repair and re-gluing of chairs. However, if more people used proper materials and techniques when doing their own re-gluing, then we would have an easier time doing the repairs that require the tools that are generally found only in a furniture shop such as ours. I must also confess that I am myself a DIYer, and understand the desire to tackle the simpler problems that happen around my house rather than pay a professional if I can help it. So, without further ado, here’s a brief explanation of how to repair your own chair.
First, we have to talk about materials. This is incredibly important! When we repair chairs, we have to think about the next person who will have to repair the chair, whether that be next year or in 200 years… Eventually something on the chair will break, and so the joints will have to come apart. So, we have to use water-soluble glues such as Elmer’s Carpenters Interior Wood Glue http://elmers.com/product/detail/e7010 . Never use epoxy, or gorilla glue or Titebond II or III when repairing a chair, as these products make it extremely difficult to repair in the future. When repairing a very old chair, you can use Hide Glue (actually made with animal hide), as that is the only product that will attach to the old hide glue used on period pieces. Also, do not use nails, screws, or steel brackets, unless they were very clearly part of the original construction of the chair; when used in joints, they will only weaken them by removing vital wood.
So, Step 1. Label all the pieces with masking tape. Left to right, front to back, with numbers on spindles or rungs. You may think you can lay them all out and remember where everything goes, but inevitably you WILL be distracted by something right after you get everything apart, and you won’t remember where things go.
Step 2. Check for nails or screws and remove them. If you don’t, you WILL break the chair, and the repair will get much more difficult.
Step 3. Take the wiggly old thing apart! Depending on how loose the chair is, this can be easy or hard. You will want to get the joints wet, and either use a rubber mallet to gently tap things apart, or use a hammer with a piece of pine between your hammer and your chair to protect your chair. Once you have some of it apart, you can wiggle round joints clock-wise so that they end up turning in the hole counter clock-wise and spin out, continuing to use a lot of water. (If you are dealing with a water-soluble glue, this will be easy, and your hands will be quite sticky by this point)
Step 4. Scrape any remaining glue out of the holes and ends of spindles with a standard screw-driver, old chisel, or knife (don’t cut yourself!).
Step 5. Assemble any and all clamps that you have (you will need at least 10-12) and dry clamp your chair back together, using pine blocks between your clamp and the chair to protect the chair. This is frustrating, since you have to take it apart again, but if you don’t do this, you may find in the middle of gluing your chair up that your clamps won’t hold and you can’t pull the joints back together tightly (if the joints aren’t tight, the chair will break!). Once you have done this, take the chair back apart and proceed!
Step 6. Put glue on each rung or spindle and its hole consecutively as you put them together. Start with the base, and move up the chair. (that is if it is a windsor or something like it. If it is a ladder back, start with the back and then move to the front.)
Step 7. Clamp it all together, and wipe any glue off of the chair that has squeezed out of the holes with a damp cloth (if there is no squeeze-out, chances are you didn’t put enough glue in!). You need to leave the clamps on it for an absolute minimum of 2 hours if you use yellow carpenter’s glue, and 12 hours if you used Hide Glue, and do not allow anyone to sit in it for 24 hours.
Now, just kick back, relax, and wait for the glue to dry! I hope this helped you in your quest to return your chair to it’s previous sturdiness! If at any point you find yourself in way over your head, give us a call at 978-281-6024 or bring your chair to our shop!
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