Sofa Won't Fit Up the Stairs? Measuring, Doors Off and Dismantling

In London, the sofa is the item most likely to stop a move. Victorian conversions have tight turns on the stairs. Mansion blocks have small lifts. New builds have fire doors that open one way. A sofa that came in years ago may not leave the same way, because a radiator, a banister or a door has changed since.

A sofa is long, deep and heavy, and it rarely bends. The problem is almost never the width of the stairs alone. It is the turn: a half-landing, a quarter-turn at the top, or a door straight after the last step. A sofa that is fine on a straight run can jam at the corner.

Common London pinch points:

• Turns on the stairs in converted houses, often with a low ceiling above
• Front doors set back behind a narrow porch or a step
• Fire doors in blocks, which are heavy and close on their own
• Small lifts in older blocks, too short for a sofa standing up
• Banisters and radiators that cut into the width at one point

Measure three things, with a tape measure rather than the product listing:

1. Height, from the floor to the top of the back
2. Depth, from the front of the seat to the back
3. Length, from arm to arm

Then measure the diagonal depth. Run the tape from the top back corner to the front edge of the seat. A sofa is usually carried on its back or end, so this diagonal is often the figure that decides whether it passes a doorway.

Write the figures down with and without the legs and the cushions. Removable legs can save several centimetres. Loose back cushions can make a sofa look deeper than its frame really is.

Walk the route from the room to the van, and measure the narrowest point at each stage:

• The width of every doorway, with the door open, from the door face to the opposite frame
• The height of each doorway
• The width of the stairs at the narrowest point, including the banister
• The height above the stairs at any turn, from a step to the ceiling
• The size of any half-landing where the sofa has to pivot
• The inside of the lift car, the lift door width and the weight limit on the plate

If the narrowest doorway is wider than the sofa's depth, it will usually go through on its back. If it is only just wider, the turn after the door decides it. Send us photos of each tight point with the measurements. It helps the crew plan before the day, not on the landing.

Removing a door from its hinges can add a few centimetres of width. Inside doors in a flat usually lift off once the hinge pins or screws are out. Keep the screws in a labelled bag and put the doors back once the sofa is through.

If you rent, ask your landlord or managing agent before you take any door off. In a block of flats, never remove or prop open a fire door in a shared corridor or stairwell. The London Fire Brigade says fire doors must not be left propped open. Ask the building manager how they want large items moved through those doors.

Many sofas have legs that unscrew or unbolt. Check underneath before moving day. Taking them off lowers the height and can be enough at a tight door. Some sofas also have arms or backs that lift off or unbolt. Look for bolts or brackets under the fabric flap at the back.

Bag and label any fixings, and tape the bag to the frame. Lost bolts are the most common reason a sofa cannot be put back together the same day.

If the legs alone do not do it, the sofa may come apart further. Modular and corner sofas separate into sections. Sofa beds can often have the mechanism taken out. Some fixed-frame sofas are not designed to come apart, and forcing them can damage the frame.

We dismantle and reassemble furniture as part of a removal, priced per item. These are guide prices from our rate card, confirmed in your quote. The minimum dismantling and reassembly booking is £90.

Prices assume the furniture is suitable for dismantling and that the original fixings can be reused. Dismantling is only offered with a removal, not on its own. What furniture needs dismantling before a move lists the other items that often need taking apart.

A lift only helps if the sofa fits inside it. Many lifts in older blocks are too short for a sofa to stand on end. Compare the inside height and the diagonal of the car with the sofa's length. Ask the managing agent whether there is a larger goods lift or a service entrance.

If the lift does not take the furniture, the crew carry it by the stairs. From the first floor up, stairs are charged at £10 per person, per flight, per hour, with 2 flights to a floor. Boxes can still go in the lift. Moving a flat in London explains how lifts and stairs change the price.

Some sofas only come in or out through a window, using ropes or a hoist. We do not offer this. We do not hoist furniture through windows and we do not take windows out. If a sofa cannot pass the stairs, doors or lift, even once dismantled, we will tell you before the day rather than try it on the day.

If a sofa came into your flat through a window, tell us when you ask for a quote. It is better to know early, so you can decide what to do with it before moving day.

Sometimes a sofa will not go into the new home at all. Measure the new route before you move, not after. If it will not fit, you have time to sell it, give it away or arrange a council bulky waste collection. We move the things you are keeping, but we do not take rubbish or unwanted furniture away.

If you are buying a new sofa for a London flat, check the delivery route first. Ask the seller about removable legs, arms and backs, or a modular design.

Send the sofa's measurements, photos of the tight points, the floor number and the lift size at both addresses. Tell us which items need dismantling. You will get a written quote within 24 hours, with dismantling as its own line. The team confirms the final price. Start from our flat removals in London page, or from house removals in London if you are moving a house.

For the full picture on cost, see London house removal costs or our house removals in London page.

With the measurements written down, walk the route in the order the sofa will travel, and ask one question at each point: which way up will it be here?

1. Out of the room. Most sofas leave a room on their back or on one end. Compare the doorway width with the sofa's depth, or with the diagonal depth if the back is tall
2. Along the hall. A sofa on its end needs ceiling height; on its back it needs length to turn into the next door. Measure the hall from the doorway you leave to the wall opposite
3. Onto the stairs. Check the height above the first few steps. A sofa tipped up for the stairs needs more headroom than you might think
4. At the turn. This is where most sofas stop. Measure the landing in both directions and the ceiling height above it
5. Out of the front door. Check for a step, a porch, a letter box cage or a door that only opens part way
6. To the van. A long carry along a pavement or through a courtyard is not a fit problem, but it adds time, so mention it

Then do the same at the new address. The question is not only whether the sofa leaves the old flat, but whether it gets into the new one. A sofa that comes out of a Victorian conversion may not fit a modern flat with a tight lobby, and the reverse is just as common.

Photograph each of the six points with a tape measure in the shot, and send the photos with your quote request. A crew who know the problem in advance can bring the right tools and allow the right time.

Sofas are the classic case, but they are not the only one. These are worth measuring too:

• Bed frames and headboards. A tall headboard bolted to the frame can be as awkward as a sofa. Most come apart
• Mattresses. King and super king mattresses bend a little, but a firm or pocket-sprung one does not like being folded. Measure the turn of the stairs
• Wardrobes. A tall wardrobe often cannot be tipped upright at a landing. Flat-pack wardrobes should be taken apart rather than carried whole
• American fridge freezers. Often too deep for a narrow doorway. Doors and handles can sometimes come off
• Desks and dining tables. Legs usually unbolt. Large glass tops are heavy and need careful wrapping

What furniture needs dismantling before a move covers how these come apart. Dismantling is booked with a removal, and we can also put the items back together at the new home through our furniture dismantling service.

If you are buying a new sofa, check the delivery route before you order, using the same steps as above. Ask the seller for the sofa's dimensions, including the diagonal depth, and whether the legs, arms or back come off. Modular sofas and sofas sold in sections are much easier to get into a flat with a tight stair.

Know your rights before you buy. Citizens Advice says that when you buy online, by phone or by mail order, you usually have a 14-day cooling-off period that starts the day after you receive the order, and the item does not need to be faulty. You then have another 14 days to send it back. But bespoke, made-to-measure and personalised items have no cooling-off period, and a sofa made to your choice of size or fabric may fall into that group. The seller must tell you before you buy if an item has no cooling-off period.

Citizens Advice also says that if the seller does not provide a prepaid returns label, you may have to pay to send the item back. For a sofa, that can be a significant cost. Measure first, and read the delivery and returns terms before you pay.

Buying in a shop is different again, so ask about the shop's own returns policy before you pay. Either way, measuring before buying is the best protection.

A sofa that only just fits is the one most likely to get a mark on the way through. A few steps reduce the risk:

• Take the cushions off and pack them separately in bags or boxes
• Wrap the frame in blankets or covers so the corners do not catch the walls
• Cover leather and light fabrics fully, because they mark easily on door frames
• Keep legs, bolts and brackets in one bag, taped to the frame
• Clear pictures, mirrors and lights from the walls along the route

Protect the building too. Walls at the turn of a stair and the edges of door frames take most of the knocks. Our crews protect floors, doorways and common areas. If the building is a block with fire doors, follow the building's rules for how large items pass through, and never take a fire door off its hinges.

If you help carry a sofa, the Health and Safety Executive's handling advice applies. Plan the lift first and clear the route. Keep the load close, with the heaviest side next to your body. Bend your knees and hips slightly at the start, do not twist, and turn with your feet instead. Do not carry more than you can easily manage.

On stairs, the person at the bottom takes more of the weight. Agree who leads, who calls the turns, and when to stop. If the sofa jams at a turn, put it down and measure again. Forcing a sofa round a tight landing is how frames crack and walls get gouged.