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I've had a consistently bad experience with Ikea furniture. Bedroom dressers - the bottoms fall out of the drawers and should ideally be glued in place (the in

I've had a consistently bad experience with Ikea furniture. Bedroom dressers - the bottoms fall out of the drawers and should ideally be glued in place (the instructions don't suggest this). Even with glue, they sag after a year or so. Kitchenware - their handles on their pots and pans are very heat conductive so make sure you're wearing an oven mitt. Their kitchen block furniture with the thick wood top is well made, though it should be stained and varnished to avoid stains. Chairs - maybe half the chairs I've gotten from Ikea had poorly drilled screw holes such that the chair couldn't be assembled correctly. Fortunately, the benches are made of such soft pine (read: scratchable) that you can drill your own hole easily. Sometimes Ikea will eliminate a part (eg: a supporting brace for a dresser) but not redesign the assembly instructions. You might think you're missing that part, when in fact it was omitted deliberately. They save money where they can by selling you disposable furniture.

culturestate 14y ago
> They save money where they can by selling you disposable furniture. Well, yes, that's the general idea of most items in their catalog. You buy their well-designed version instead of Wal-Mart's poorly-designed version. Their target market is not exactly people who would otherwise shop at Restoration Hardware. In my case, Ikea is a lifesaver. I move around quite a bit, and when I need a piece for a new apartment I'd rather not spend a bunch of money when I'm going to be leaving it behind in a year or less. I've probably bought that damn perforated aluminum cutlery holder 8 times on 3 continents.
ericdykstra 14y ago
Really? I've had pretty good luck. I've been using one of their shelving units [1] for more than 5 years, and it's held up very well. My wife and I are using their dining set that was just $100 for the table and two chairs, and it's fantastic [2]. We're also using an Ikea bed. I was a little skeptical about getting a bed from Ikea at first, but it's more comfortable than any regular mattress I've ever tried, or the Select Comfort bed I used for a number of years (it's one of the foam mattresses with slats). Sure, it's a pain to put some of them together (especially the bed frame and slats... yikes), but I've had consistently good quality. The only problem is that you really need to check the box before you go home. There are often missing or wrong parts. Just my experience, though. The furniture is good, but shopping there is an adventure I'd rather not go through again. 1. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10196431/ http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10196431/ 2. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80157129/ http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80157129/
- masklinn 14y ago
  > Really? I've had pretty good luck. I've been using one of their shelving units [1] Same here, although only 2 years so far the Expedit feels like a beast, and the modularity is great. Plus it's fun moving baskets around.
notatoad 14y ago
i think you might be setting your expectations a little too high. It's ikea furniture, yes the drawer bottoms sag a bit, but it's not hard to grab a hammer and put a brace in there. You get what you pay for, ikea saves money by selling you 'disposable' furniture, but unlike most companies they actually do pass the savings on to you. And butcher-block kitchen furnishings are designed to get stained and look used and broken-in, that's the style. Please don't varnish it.
- BklynJay 14y ago
  Ikea recommends that you varnish the butcher-block kitchen furnishings for sanitary reasons. Wood is very good at absorbing all sorts of contaminants that you'd rather not ingest and an absorbent wood surface is difficult if not impossible to sanitize. I completely agree with you regarding the stained and broken-in style. That's why I got it!
MartinCron 14y ago
My IKEA rule is "no moving parts"and that has served me well after a dresser disaster. Stepstools, picture frames, meatballs are all very sturdy.
- BklynJay 14y ago
  I've had the same experience with their meatballs.
grn 14y ago
As far as I know they subcontract to local manufacturers, so quality may depend on where you live or buy.
skystorm 14y ago
I've found that the cheaper items at Ikea are just that -- cheap, and often not very durable. Once you move up to their higher-priced choices, however, things are a lot more solid in my experience. My parents recently retired a full set of tall bookshelves that was probably 25+ years old and still in very good shape. My computer desk here is still going strong after 10 years or so, and our extendable dining table, while basic, has taken some abuse over the years and is holding up well.
jblock 14y ago
"They save money where they can by selling you disposable furniture." Done. That's why most people go to Ikea. They aren't looking for bulletproof furniture. They're making stuff for people that want to have some furniture for a while and feel no guilt when they chuck it after a year or so.
adastra 14y ago
I can strongly recommend the large Galant desk. It's basically indestructible, and a nice design (just one giant smooth flat surface, with nicely adjustable legs). I basically don't use anything else to work on now if I can help it. Also have bought some large sturdy wardrobes. Can't speak for the rest of their stuff as it never seemed sturdy enough in the store to buy anything else.
nodata 14y ago
At Ikea, you need to know what to look for. The drawers are a problem. Solved by specifically looking for sturdier drawers.
ZoFreX 14y ago
I really don't see how this is relevant to the submitted article?

culturestate 14y ago

> They save money where they can by selling you disposable furniture. Well, yes, that's the general idea of most items in their catalog. You buy their well-designed version instead of Wal-Mart's poorly-designed version. Their target market is not exactly people who would otherwise shop at Restoration Hardware. In my case, Ikea is a lifesaver. I move around quite a bit, and when I need a piece for a new apartment I'd rather not spend a bunch of money when I'm going to be leaving it behind in a year or less. I've probably bought that damn perforated aluminum cutlery holder 8 times on 3 continents.

ericdykstra 14y ago

Really? I've had pretty good luck. I've been using one of their shelving units [1] for more than 5 years, and it's held up very well. My wife and I are using their dining set that was just $100 for the table and two chairs, and it's fantastic [2]. We're also using an Ikea bed. I was a little skeptical about getting a bed from Ikea at first, but it's more comfortable than any regular mattress I've ever tried, or the Select Comfort bed I used for a number of years (it's one of the foam mattresses with slats). Sure, it's a pain to put some of them together (especially the bed frame and slats... yikes), but I've had consistently good quality. The only problem is that you really need to check the box before you go home. There are often missing or wrong parts. Just my experience, though. The furniture is good, but shopping there is an adventure I'd rather not go through again. 1. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10196431/ http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10196431/ 2. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80157129/ http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80157129/

masklinn 14y ago
> Really? I've had pretty good luck. I've been using one of their shelving units [1] Same here, although only 2 years so far the Expedit feels like a beast, and the modularity is great. Plus it's fun moving baskets around.

notatoad 14y ago

i think you might be setting your expectations a little too high. It's ikea furniture, yes the drawer bottoms sag a bit, but it's not hard to grab a hammer and put a brace in there. You get what you pay for, ikea saves money by selling you 'disposable' furniture, but unlike most companies they actually do pass the savings on to you. And butcher-block kitchen furnishings are designed to get stained and look used and broken-in, that's the style. Please don't varnish it.

BklynJay 14y ago
Ikea recommends that you varnish the butcher-block kitchen furnishings for sanitary reasons. Wood is very good at absorbing all sorts of contaminants that you'd rather not ingest and an absorbent wood surface is difficult if not impossible to sanitize. I completely agree with you regarding the stained and broken-in style. That's why I got it!

MartinCron 14y ago

My IKEA rule is "no moving parts"and that has served me well after a dresser disaster. Stepstools, picture frames, meatballs are all very sturdy.

BklynJay 14y ago
I've had the same experience with their meatballs.

grn 14y ago

As far as I know they subcontract to local manufacturers, so quality may depend on where you live or buy.

skystorm 14y ago

I've found that the cheaper items at Ikea are just that -- cheap, and often not very durable. Once you move up to their higher-priced choices, however, things are a lot more solid in my experience. My parents recently retired a full set of tall bookshelves that was probably 25+ years old and still in very good shape. My computer desk here is still going strong after 10 years or so, and our extendable dining table, while basic, has taken some abuse over the years and is holding up well.

jblock 14y ago

"They save money where they can by selling you disposable furniture." Done. That's why most people go to Ikea. They aren't looking for bulletproof furniture. They're making stuff for people that want to have some furniture for a while and feel no guilt when they chuck it after a year or so.

adastra 14y ago

I can strongly recommend the large Galant desk. It's basically indestructible, and a nice design (just one giant smooth flat surface, with nicely adjustable legs). I basically don't use anything else to work on now if I can help it. Also have bought some large sturdy wardrobes. Can't speak for the rest of their stuff as it never seemed sturdy enough in the store to buy anything else.

nodata 14y ago

At Ikea, you need to know what to look for. The drawers are a problem. Solved by specifically looking for sturdier drawers.

ZoFreX 14y ago

I really don't see how this is relevant to the submitted article?