Buying used furniture: what to check before you buy

Well-chosen used furniture is often sturdier than new furniture at the same price: it is made from solid wood or thick veneer, and time has already shown where its weak points are. But second-hand furniture is bought as it is, so five minutes of careful inspection pays off.

Start with measurements, not looks

Before you go to the shop, measure the spot where the piece will stand and the route to it: door openings, the stairwell and any turns in the hallway. Older furniture such as wardrobes, sideboards and sofas is often heavier and bulkier than modern pieces, and the turn in the stairs is where a purchase most often gets stuck.

Construction: stability and joints

• Give it a shake. A table, chair or cabinet should not wobble or creak. A loose joint can usually be fixed; a cracked leg or frame is a more expensive repair.
• Look at the joints. Dowels, mortise and tenon joints and dovetails in drawer corners point to careful work; staples and lots of glue point to cheaper manufacturing.
• Pull out every drawer and open every door. They should run and swing smoothly without sticking.
• Look underneath and at the back. That is where you see what the piece is really made of.

Surface and wood

Scratches, small stains and faded lacquer are cosmetic and can be refreshed. It is more serious when veneer has lifted in large pieces, the surface has swollen from damp, or the wood has small round holes with a little pile of fine wood dust beside them, which can mean active woodworm. Dry old holes with no dust are usually past, inactive history.

Upholstered furniture

• Sit down and shift about. Springs should not dig in or creak, and the seat should recover its shape.
• Smell the fabric and cushions. Damp, mould or pet odours never fully leave upholstery; only reupholstering removes them.
• Check the frame under the fabric. If the sofa wobbles, the problem is the wooden frame, not the fabric.
• Judge the fabric separately from the frame. A strong frame with worn fabric is a good buy, because once reupholstered it serves like new.

What is worth restoring and what is not

Worth restoring: solid wood furniture with a sound frame, classic wardrobes and chests of drawers, chairs with loose joints, and sofas with a good frame but worn fabric. Usually not worth it: cheap chipboard furniture with swollen edges, furniture with active woodworm, and pieces whose load-bearing parts have cracked.

Ask the seller

A good used furniture shop knows where a piece came from, what has been repaired and how to look after it. At our shop in Madona the furniture is brought from Germany, and every piece is inspected and checked before it reaches the floor. If something in the catalog catches your eye, ask us about its size and condition on Messenger or WhatsApp and we will send more photos.