Removal of upholstery staples is a necessary skill when you want to reupholster furniture or if you want to salvage materials from an upholstered piece of furniture. Regardless of your intent, removal of upholstery staples is simple and requires little elbow grease together with one or two specific tools.
Reupholstering helps to eliminate the need to buy new furniture because it offers the option of refurbishing, updating, or redecorating your current furniture. Initially, you are required to remove the old material from the frame of the furniture, which includes the removal of staples that hold the fabric in place. Prying up staples can be tedious and time-consuming. However, using the right technique and tools will help to make the removal process simple.
Upholstery Tools
- An Upholstery Staple Remover
An upholstery staple remover is an essential tool that can be found at most home and garden supplies or in hardware stores as well as stores that specifically deal with upholstery furniture. An upholstery staple remover simplifies the process of removing upholstery staples. It is specifically designed to ensure you can grasp the dimensions and specific style of various upholstery staples.
The tool allows you to easily grasp the upholstery staple and effectively hold onto the staple until it has been pulled free from the upholstered furniture. An upholstery staple remover will remove the intact upholstery staple, thus saving you the energy needed to dig or pry up any remaining metal from the furniture.
2. Needle-Nose Pliers
Needle-nose pliers will work if you do not have an upholstery staple remover. It is important to note that the tool is not made for reupholstering. Therefore, you may be required to put more effort to hold onto the staple and pull it from the piece of upholstered furniture. In some instances, the staple may break when you use a pair of needle-nose pliers, which makes it necessary to pry the remainder of the broken staple out using the same tool. The process can be daunting if you cannot find an upholstery staple remover. However, this makes a pair of needle-nose pliers the second-best option to using an upholstery staple remover.
Here are the steps for removing upholstery staples:
- Insert the working end of a blade puller staple remover under the flat head of the staple embedded in the softwood or fabric. Hit the end of the handle of the tool with a wooden mallet or rubber. This will help to drive the blade under the staple. Use controlled motion to ensure that you do not hit your hand.
- Push down the handle of the remover while you hold the frame of furniture steady. Pry the head of the staple upward and out of the piece of furniture. Position yourself to and from the side of the area you are working on. Do not lean over the staple or the tool because it might come out quickly when you pull.
- Insert the working end of a prolonged-end staple remover under the head of a staple sitting in hardwood. Using a mallet, tap the end of the handle of the remover to drive prongs underneath the staple. Ensure that you move the mallet using controlled strokes. Stand to the right of the staple to ensure that you remain clear of the path of the staple if it breaks and jumps into the air. Make sure that your face is not directly over the area. Push the handle of the remover down while twisting it to the left to pry up the staple of the wood.
- Grasp the arched portion of the staple using a pair of pincers if it gets stuck in the wood or fabric. Ensure that you position the blades of the pincer horizontally across the raised portion of the staple. Pull upward on the handle of the pincer while twisting the tool to the right to pull the staple out of the furniture completely. Position yourself opposite the direction you twist the staple to avoid injuries if the tool slips or if the staple breaks
- Pull the fabric off of any broken prongs that remain stuck in the frame of the piece of furniture. Tap a hammer against the sides of the broken staple prongs, to ensure that you drive it flat against the frame of the piece of furniture. Hold the frame steady using your opposite hand, at least 4 inches away from the staple.
Final Thoughts
You can use different tools to remove upholstery staples from an upholstered piece of furniture. For instance, you can use an upholstery staple remover or a pair of needle-nose pliers. Make sure you have this necessary skill of removing upholstery staples, especially if you are a DIY lover.
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