Help Desperately Needed

[lw136]

I bought a pair of wardrobes from Ikea. (Cheap, I know, but I'm not a woodworker, and I'm on a budget. Unfortunately, returning them is not an option). Anyway, they are made of white-finished particle board and I'm having a lot trouble getting them square. Because of that, I'm also having trouble getting the doors on straight.

So, here's what happened: first, I laid them down to assemble them, and the sides bowed inward. I used a triangle tool to get it as square as possible and then put in a couple of metal corner braces to try to hold the corners in place before I nailed the back on. But when I stand it up it still sways slightly. To complicate matters, the floor isn't level.

I tried putting the doors on hoping that maybe I could get thing to at least look straight, but they are not even close to even.

At this point I'm ready to pull my hair out trying to figure out how to fix this. If anyone has any advice, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Lisa

[Morris Dovey]

| At this point I'm ready to pull my hair out trying to figure out how | to fix this. If anyone has any advice, it would be greatly | appreciated.

Lisa...

My advice is to find a neighbor who _is_ a woodworker and ask them to supervise you and a friend in fixing (as much as is possible, since what you've described was pretty much junk from the outset) the wardrobe.

It's nearly impossible for anyone to help if they can't see the problem. You could use a digital camera to take photos to post to news:alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking so we can see (and hopefully understand) the specific problems - but a person on the scene is likely to be more help.

Don't pull your hair out. That won't fix anything. :-)

-- Morris Dovey DeSoto Solar DeSoto, Iowa USA

[fredfighter]

I suggest you take the back and corner braces off, and try to reassemble it _exactly_ per the instructions, laying it face down on the floor. It is possible that the corner braces stopped something from properly slipping into place.

Then when it is upright, use shims (thin pieces of material, usually wood under the feet) to level it. The DIY stores sell shims that are wedges, you use those in pairs, one on top of the other with the pointy parts at opposite ends so that sliding them against each other changes the thickness. Once you get all the shims right, you cut off the part that shows with a chisel or razer knife.

If that doesn't work. you probably need a sturdier back to hold the wardrobe square, or long diagonal braces across the back.

[Han]

[e-mail] wrote in news:1173635084.095023.307910 @c51g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

Some stuff from Ikea is great, for what it is supposed to be. "Billy" bookcases are one of the things. Some are not, such as our big drawer bedroom thing - the littler ones were OK, but the big one just couldn't keep its shape. You have to be your own judge as to what you will buy. In our case, assembly has not been a big problem, but stop if it feels you are forcing something into fitting. It probably means you should take things apart and start over, being careful to follow the directions as intended, not necessarily as read .

You may have to recycle the "wood" pieces from your wardrobes if they become damaged.

What is the item name of your wardrobe? Why is returning them not an option? I think that Ikea is OK with returning, but I know I would rather not if they didn't have a store at Rts 4 & 17, NJ, close to home.

[Old guy]

I've bought and assembled some Ikea shelf/cabinets, and been reasonably happy with the result.

They aren't strong enough to stay square if the floor they sit on isn't level.

Don't the instructions show the picture of the smiling little man on the phone to Ikea meaning that they will help you over the phone if you have troubles like this? (Not sure what they can do long distance, but at least they know how it SHOULD go together.)

Old Guy

[justinjoy11]

Hi. First time I visited this 'group' and am not signed up yet. Anyway I am a carpenter and cabinet-maker and right off the bat I wonder what kind of 'back' if any this wardrobe has. most cabinets have a 1/4 " piece of hardboard back that keeps everything square. You need to keep those sides from bowing. If the case has a back, maybe it needs more attachment (small nails, glue, etc.) If not, a simple easy solution may be to attach the sides to the wall somehow to keep them plumb. (straight up and down) Maybe even just put nails or screws into the wall next to the side of the book-case to wedge it straight. If it's just the front of the sides that's bowing, then maybe there's a shelf of some sort or divider that you could screw into through the sides to hold them straight. Of course you're going to have to level the whole thing somehow. Wood shims or adjustable feet would prob. be best, but folded paper, etc. may work.

This is Jerry-rigging. Do you have a handy friend who may be able to fabricate some braces and beef up the structure? If you're going to load this thing with a bunch of weight, get it right! I'd really recommend finding studs and attaching the whole thing to the wall--at least at the top and screw through something substantial like a cross- prace--not just the 1/4" back (?) Then call Ikea and give them a piece of your mind!

[Cal]

I've also bought a bit of furniture from Ikea over the years, and have never had a real problem. with a tall item, like a wardrobe, it's critical that you get the back on it straight, when it's square.

I suggest looking at the instructions again, and see if you missed a step or two. The back is probably "cardboard", or at the least, it's very thin. I suggest: Get the wardrobe onto a hard floor if possible, lay it face down and remove the back carefully (as well as your corner braces). Measure from corner to corner diagonally across the back. Push things around until the measurements are equal (be as accurate as humanly possible). Re-attach the back (often with small, thin nails) carefully, tacking it in each of the four corners first. Then use ALL of the nails or other fasteners they gave you to finish the job. The shims mentioned in another reply can be bought at any Home Depot or Lowes or whatever. They're used for shimming doors and windows during installation. A bundle of them will cost you ~$2.00. Shim the wardrobe on your uneven floor so it doesn't wobble, and then hang the doors. Hope this helps.