How to Repair Furniture: Chairs

You can repair a good wooden chair with simple equipment and wood glue.

Wood furniture can last for many years, and some good pieces can even be passed down to other generations. You can find wonderful wood furniture pieces at garage sales, consignment shops and antique stores. Some of these may have good structure and wonderful lines, but need a little repair to make them serviceable again. Repair and refinishing is a good way to bring older furniture back into use. Often, wood chairs may have broken spindles that need repair or replacement. The right tools and equipment help to make these furniture repairs easier and faster.

Things You'll Need

• Water
• Dishwashing liquid
• Scraper, chisel or knife
• White or yellow wood glue
• Clamps
• Wood replacement parts, if necessary
• Dowel
• Drill, 1/4- or 3/8-inch bit
• Cloths
• Plumbing flux brush

Instructions

Fixing a Broken Spindle

1. Wash the chair surface with a solution of 1 teaspoon of dishwashing liquid to 1 gallon of water to remove surface stains and dirt. Allow the chair to dry for 2 hours.

2. Separate the spindle from the top rail and the seat. Pry the wood from its seating, carefully breaking the glue bond and removing any screws or nails that hold it place. Gently work the pieces apart being careful not to break the wood any further.

3. Remove stuck spindles by drilling a hole into the bottom of the fitting, then tapping the drilled chamber with a chisel and tap to loosen the spindle.

4. Remove old, dried glue from the spindle and setting with a chisel, knife or paint scraper. Ensure wood is clean and free of debris.

5. Drill a narrow chamber in both ends of the broken spindle, taking care not to break off surrounding wood. The chamber should be narrow enough for a thin dowel, 1/4- to 3/8-inch diameter, to be inserted to support the rest of the spindle.

6. Insert a small piece of dowel into the drilled chamber. It should be the correct length to allow the broken pieces of the spindle to fit together neatly. Remove the dowel.

7. Apply wood glue to the dowel on both ends and secure into the drilled chamber.

8. Apply wood glue to the broken wood of the spindle and fit it together as it was originally.

9. Remove excess glue with a cloth.

10. Clamp the spindle and allow the glue to dry overnight.

11. Remove clamp and refinish the chair as needed.

Tips & Warnings

• White or yellow wood glue can be used for repairing wood chairs. White glue sets in about 15 minutes. Yellow glue sets in about 8 to 10 minutes.

• You can replace some wood parts with material from your local home improvement store. More complex parts can be obtained from a woodworker's catalog or online store. If necessary, a local millwork shop may be able to duplicate a spindle.

• Work in sections to glue and replace wooden parts.

• A plumbing flux brush works well to clean old glue out of wood crevices.

• Do not apply fresh glue on top of dried glue that remains on the wood surface. It will not stick properly.

• Repair loose joints as soon as found to avoid further breaking parts, creating a bigger repair problem.

References

• Handyman Teacher: Wood Furniture Repair
• Ron Hazelton's House Calls: How To Refinish & Repair an Antique Chair
• Pro Handyman: Wood Chair Repair