Guide
Assembly: time, tools and second pairs of hands
What the specifications say about putting these together, and the parts of the job that genuinely need two people.
Flat-pack furniture is assembled by the person who buys it, so it is worth knowing what that involves before the boxes arrive rather than after.
What the specifications say
- 103 of 165 pieces mention assembly instructions or numbered parts in their specification.
- 45 state that the tools needed are included.
- Where a piece is described with numbered components and labelled hardware, that usually means the instructions are step-numbered rather than exploded-diagram only. It makes a real difference at hour two.
The parts that genuinely need two people
- Standing a bed frame upright. Assembled flat, then raised. One person can build it and still not be able to lift it safely.
- Fitting the upper bunk. Holding a rail level while the fixings go in is a two-handed job, and you only have two hands.
- Anything that must be square before it is tightened. Bolts go in loose, the frame gets squared, then everything is tightened. That order is the difference between a bed that creaks and one that does not.
Do this before you start
Unpack against the parts list and count the hardware before the first bolt goes in. A missing fixing found at the start is a phone call. Found at step eleven, it is a weekend.
