Moving? How to prevent damaging your leather furniture
It’s moving day! While exciting, to be sure, it’s also a lot of work to move your belongings from one home to another. Furniture, especially pieces like upholstered leather, can easily be damaged during transport, so it’s essential to prep beforehand to ensure the process goes as smoothly as possible. Here are six things to take into consideration before the big day.
1. Start Conditioning
And we don’t mean lifting weights, although it wouldn’t hurt to build a little muscle before the move! Approximately one week before moving, you’ll want to make sure your sofa, chair or ottoman are properly conditioned. You can pick up any leather conditioner, but here are some top choices from the tried, true and trustworthy home advice guru, Bob Vila.
The key is to find that perfect balance of allowing enough time for the conditioner to sink in and excess moisture to evaporate. To help the process along, you can always wipe down your furniture with a dry cloth.
2. Break It Down
The obvious: Disassemble sectional sofas into individual components. The not-so obvious: Remove smaller pieces, secure them in bubble wrap and place them in a labeled box for easy identification.
For instance, many pieces of furniture have removable legs to facilitate easy maneuvering through doors. Remember where you placed them, so you don’t arrive at your new home with a legless leather couch.
3. Make a Blanket Statement
Cover furnishings in a moving blanket, carefully tucking in the ends. This heavyweight cloth (typically made from polyester mesh and cotton) protects leather upholstery from accidental scratches while cushioning the impact of an item that falls on or collides with another piece.
These blankets are also master guardians at protecting your walls from rub marks and your hardwood floors from scuffs. Be sure to tape them securely, being mindful to ensure the tape does not come in contact with any leather or wood.
4. Wrap ‘Em Up
Designed to reduce movement, shrink wrap – or even good, old-fashioned plastic wrap – holds moving blankets firmly in place. A bonus? It also protects leather upholstery from a light drizzle.
Like the tape used to secure the furniture blankets, make sure the plastic doesn’t touch the leather. For a tight fit, consider using the buddy system when wrapping.
5. Make Your Move
Measure the doorways of your new home beforehand to make certain larger pieces like a sofa, recliner or ottoman can fit through, keeping in mind furniture blankets will add some extra bulk. It might be wise to bring in the big guns, like a professional moving company, to save you the stress, not to mention your back, for oversized furnishings.
6. What’s in Store
Escrows can be tricky in terms of timing everything just right, and there may be some work that needs to be done to your new house before moving in. If you need to temporarily keep your furniture in a storage facility, choose one that is climate-controlled.
Leather is a natural material that can be adversely affected by extreme shifts in temperature. Too hot? It will crack and fade. Too humid? It could start sprouting mold and mildew.
Elevate your furniture on top of wood pallets just in case there is any flooding around the storage unit. And don’t place anything on top of it. Over time, the weight can create indentations or cause the leather to stretch.
Need Help With Your Move?
We’re always here to answer questions and provide expert advice on all things leather. Come to Florida Leather Gallery or reach out to one of our Leaxperts™.
