5 key rules for using glue to fix furniture

Repairing old and worn wooden furniture can be tricky. This is because repairing wooden furniture takes as much patience as skill since using glue is the best way to make lasting repairs. To help you out with this job, here are five key rules for using glue to fix furniture.

• Some breakages are the result of accidents, but most are caused by the stresses of everyday use on loosened joints.
• For that reason it's vital to fix a joint as soon as it becomes loose.
• One loose joint leads to another and, as you continue to use the piece, the wobbling will wear, weaken, distort or crack the wood.
• The next thing you know, a problem that could have had a simple fix becomes a major issue.

• Wooden furniture parts should be joined by glue – metal add-ons are just a temporary fix before the total failure of a joint.
• But there are exceptions.
• Some pieces of wood furniture are put together with screws, and some that are predominantly glued have screw joints.
• For example, there are usually screw joints where chair arms attach to the backrest.
• Also, some drawers are held together with small nails.

• Glue adheres by soaking in and attaching itself to wood fibres.
• Glue is extremely strong on wood, but has almost no holding power on old glue.
• So, take the weakened joint apart and scrape off any old glue with a sharp knife, chisel, file or small paint scraper.
• Coarse sandpaper only works on glue that is fairly loose or flaky.

• For most furniture, you can use ordinary PVA glue, or a high-strength grade PVA.
• Before the 1960s, animal glue was used in furniture making.
• If you want to keep your furniture original, you should reassemble with animal (or hide) glue.
• But, using animal glue is tricky because this kind of glue has to be heated – and it's smelly!
• Avoid epoxy glue or the super-bond glues for routine fixes, as these will not penetrate your furniture's wood fibres.

• An unclamped joint is a lost cause.
• However, this doesn't mean you need a workshop full of clamps.
• Instead, hold glued-up parts together using weights; sticks or boards used as wedges; o ratchet or elastic straps.
• Clamping pressure must be sufficient to bring the two pieces of wood together securely and accurately, just as they were in the original configuration of the piece.

Keep these five key rules for using glue to fix furniture in mind, and the job will be all the easier. But don't forget to be patient, too!