Expert: Mark H. Miller - 11/26/2006

Question
Hi Mark:

I have a 5 year old leather recliner that sustained damage today when a 300 lb.+ individual sat in it, reclined and caused damage. The foot rest pops open when it is not supposed to and the arm rest is out of alignment. My question is, are there professionals that repair such damage? Thanks in advance.

Answer
Hi,   recliners are considered disposable furniture in the industry.  That means that they are inexpensively mass produced and not meant to be reupholstered when the fabric wears out.  There are a few exceptions to that such as the recliners that also have motors to massage.  A higher end recliner should be able to support the weight of a 300# individual.  A lesser expensive recliner would not,  so now to answer your question.  No, there are no upholstery shops equipped to repair the broken metal parts of a recliner, even if they say they can I would not trust them.  Most likely the metal parts are either bent out of shape, or rivets have popped.  To take that to a metal shop is also futile because they can't open the fabric to get to the metal parts.  To involve both an upholsterer and a metal shop would cost more than the average recliner is worth.

So I am sorry, but in my opinion a broken recliner can and should not be repaired - doing so is rarely possible and not cost effective.

Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have further questions or concerns.

I hope this information will assist you in making a more informed decision.

Mark Miller.