"we finished furnishing our one-bed apartment with exclusively ikea furniture and just when i thought everything was perfect, we found out that we have to move out of state! i want to take everything with me, but there is no way to get the ikea bed (malm) out of our bedroom unless we take it apart. is there some place where we can get instructions on dis-assembling IKEA furniture?
we also have the following:1. lillberg sofa
2. a futon no longer shown on the ikea site
3. magiker sideboard
but the bed is the one i really need to take apart if I hope to vacate my apartment. please help! thanks." - tweety
(tweety also wrote to ikea's customer service and the 'official' reply is that they "are unable to give advice on how to dismantle ikea products as they are not made to be taken apart once assembled.")
tweety,
not sure if i'm much of a help either. i guess i'll just back-track how i put it together. anyone?
I´ve taken all my IKEA funiture apart several times when moving. Its usually easy both taking apart and putting back together without any instructions. For some reason most IKEA furiture is best put upside down before taking apart. I think the only way to get any form of instruktions is by taking the assemblyinstruktions a do them backwards.
ReplyDelete/anna from sweden with a hole house full of IKEA furniture
Start with the screws and bolts that are openly visible and take note where you got them from. You can tape the bolts or screws with scotch tape close to the place where they are supposed to go but that might be impractical when moving. Watch out for those round-the-corner things, where you have this bolt inside the hole and then another thing goes in to make an angle. (I just can't make myself clear here!) The bolts stick in the hole but not quite! Best to tape the hole shut so you don't lose them when you move everything.
ReplyDeleteWe disassembled our Malm bed (not completely, dont do that!) in August when we moved, and reassembled it. It has been dissasembled and reassembled since then by my sister when she took it. So it can be done. My advice, don't take those stupid metal cross beams apart, just disconnect them from the sides of the bed and fold them up with the middle metal bar. Once you've gotten the metal piece out, just unbolt the four "wood" pieces and keep track of the hardware in a ziplock. You'll be left with a total of 5 pieces to move.You seriously don't need instructions to reassemble, it is a piece of cake.
ReplyDeleteThe bed comes apart quite easily. The only things to be careful of are:
ReplyDelete1) Store the metal strips carefully ... they bend easily ... not that I've worked out what purpose they serve!
2) The nuts hidden away at the foot of the bed require a small spanner (ideally the one which came with the bed). Trying to undo these nuts with a spanner which doesn't really fit normally results in losing skin from your hand!
3) Make sure you have a correctly sized key (hex I think) for the screws in the head of the bed ... you should still have one, but a hardware store will sell you one cheaply if you don't.
Just undo everything you can! There's the bolts at the bottom and screws at the top. If you have two people, it makes things easier. When I had to do it on my own, I placed books under the centre of the two edges of the bed ... this takes some of the weight and stops everything falling to the floor with a large crash.
Leave the metal 'L' shaped bits of metal attached to the sides of the bed ... it's just the bolts/screws at either end which matter.
I've taken our Malm bed apart and put it back together several times. The only problem I have had is that it tends to creak for several weeks before it settles down again. Has anyone else had this problem? Any solutions?
ReplyDeleteI have taken all my IKEA stuff apart tons of times. Take them apart in the way that seems easiest and most logical.
ReplyDeleteMy advice is to save the instructions of how to put them together if you thought it was hard to put together in the first place, but most IKEA things are easy. Then take them apart completely and save all small things in small bags, one for each furniture. Then you just move all small parts which are easy to pack and easy to carry and then take some hours to rebuild your home at the new place.
IKEA furniture is complete crap. We purchased the HOPEN bedroom series about 2 years ago and one wardrobe broke and one of the bed rails just cracked in half, so we totally wasted money here. I'd rather have no furniture than this crap from IKEA!!!
ReplyDeleteIf you need instructions, this site has them in PDF:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ikeafans.com/instructions.htm
Thanks everyone! This is so encouraging...We did save all the instructions, so I'm guessing we'll be able to manage. Shall update you all when we're done.
ReplyDeleteJules...thanks for posting my question!
Late to the game on this, but the easiest thing to do is just to go in and ask them for the instruction manuals. Don't mention that you're taking it apart, state that you moved, you went to put it together, and the directions are lost. They keep them on a MASSIVE server at ikea HQ, and can just download and print you new copies - sometimes for stuff that's been discontinued for years. I asked them once why they didn't just put the whole damn thing on their website - the answer was that it's a copyright issue.
ReplyDeleteI have dismanteled all of my IKEA furniture umpteen times without any problems.
ReplyDeleteIn 1993 we bought a bed, two bedside tables and two chest of drawers from Ikea in England. In 1998 the bedroom furniture and a tv cabinet and coffee table , made the move to Seattle USA! Since then we have bought more beds, more drawers, book shelves etc.
between 1998 and 2006 all of our Ikea furniture has made 5 more house moves and now finally resides in Michigan!
A newspaper article in 2006 made me laugh when it stated that ikea furniture was not made to last or make moves! Our only problem now is that we have a UK sized bed of which the matress desparately needs renewing. Unfortunately we cannot buy a mattress to fit and reluctantly we are looking at buying a whole new Ikea set.
So, as long as you didnt glue the bits together then i cannot see any reason why taking apart your furniture should be unsuccessful! I make a point of keeping all instructions and spare bits and bobs.
I am moving in August and have been really stressed about wether I would be able to move my malm bed as well. I'm so glad to know that it can be easily taken apart and reassembled. You all don't know how much a relief I feel! Thank You!
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone know what size the allen/hex wrench is? I've lost mine and I need to get a replacement. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI am also moving at the end of August - and I was stressing out about finding info on the net about how to disassemble my Malm bed too! :) Taking it apart isnt really the issue, i just want to make sure when I put it back together it isnt a rickety mess. Thanks for all of the helpful comments everyone.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, not all assemblies can be reversed. I'm desperately trying to disassemble an ALLAK swivel chair.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that the pneumatic telescope tube is simply pushed into both the five-arm star bottom and the seat support. I could not find in me the strength needed to pull these elements apart :(
I guess the chair will stay here and I'll get a new one :/
Most Ikea stuff might be crap, but I LURVE my Malm bed! Hopefully now it'll make it down the hallway when I switch bedrooms next week...
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tips!
Does anyone know what the NHS and Bupa do with all their old hospital furniture? They must auction it off somewhere.
ReplyDeleteI work for a theatre and we need for some new props for a hospital based play by the way.
Anyone got any advice on dismantling an IKEA RAKKE wardrobe?
ReplyDeleteIt is a TOTAL nightmare and I am not even sure it is possible!
It would be great to know if at least it has been done by someone, somewhere....
Thanks!
May be out of topic but to those who had the MALM bed - are the beds sturdy? I have read mixed reviews about it and am planning to purchase for me and my kids, would appreciate your feedback. thanks
ReplyDeleteIt can be tricky if you don't keep track of the bolts and what fits where, good idea to take some pics as you take each one apart. Here's a useful
ReplyDeleteIKEA resource: http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_US/customer_service/assembly_instructions.html
John Taylor,
liverpool blinds quick tips on selecting the right shape and styling your room
Hi Guys--I have the Pax closet system and want to take it with me--two, two door units hooked together and bolted to the wall. Is it worth trying to take with me?
ReplyDeleteSanctuary:
ReplyDeleteYou can take them with you, no priblems, just take the doors and inner shelves, etc. out before moving them.
The IKEA wrenches are 13mm. They're designed to help you build the furniture easier, but any 13mm wrench should do.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone know how to get the huge screws out of the middle shelf in the large MAGIKER bookcase? I have everything else taken apart, but these just barely turn in either direction. I looked at the directions online and they just show the weird screw?
ReplyDeleteI have just ordered 2 Alvros 2-seat sofas. Now I'm worried they won't fit down my narrow hallway (76cm) when delivered. I know they will fit through the doorways as they have been widened to 86cm for wheelchair access. Has anyone attempted to take the arms off this sofa or to disassemble it in any way?
ReplyDeleteI would love advice on how to remove those plastic screws without breaking the furniture? Some stuff seems designed to fit together but never comes apart again.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ikea.com/ms/en_US/customer_service/assembly_instructions.html
ReplyDeleteDOWNLOAD THE ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS AND BACKTRACK...
CHECK IT OUT
I used a specialist service last week to do it all for me. they even went and picked up my items for me, delivered them and put them together...
ReplyDeleteI spoke to them and they also help with removals (de-assembly & re-assembly) - might be worth consideration ... www.accompli.com.au/ikea
I found a good website called www.missingscrew.co.uk which has ikea camparitive spare parts on it such as cam locks, cam dowels, wooden dowels and cabinet jointers it even has ikea part no's on it on some descriptions might be useful if peopelive far away from ikea or lose any spare parts
ReplyDeleteHelp, cannot take apart a rationell drawer. The main device? That gels the front of the drawer (the one that clicks) doesn't seem to be able to come out.
ReplyDeleteDid you find this?
DeleteI need this info too
ReplyDeleteJust bought a used wicker bed frame.Think I may have gotten screwed.There are no bolts,screws or anything.There are 2 side rails with pegs at the end of them which connect to the headboard and foot board.How do they stay in??????...just have to tough it and it falls down
ReplyDeletethey do slide in but there is nothing to hold them in
anyone have ideas????????????
these are the #'s on the bed frame
Dokka 0227
900-565-49
12587
NLC 200208
HELP???
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI'm just trying to dismantle our giant IKEA wardrobe. I think it's called PAX. Most of it is coming apart easy enough but i'm puzzled about how to take out those screws that kind-of lovk into place. I think their called CAM screws.
Anyone got anby experience of this?
Thanks,
Ad.
IF they are the ones I'm thinking of, when you turn them clockwise they engage with the head of a metal dowel in the other piece they are connecting with. To undo, just turn them a half turn anti-clockwise, and they will disengage. You may have to tap the other part to free it completely.
Delete