If you have to move your recliner sofa through a tight space, you don't need to worry.Most reclining sofas are easy to disassemble.The seat backs are secured by locking levers.Lifting the back fabric panel or feeling in between the rear seams will allow you to remove the seats.Some models have bars bolted to the base that can be removed.Take pictures as you disassemble the sofa, keep your hardware in plastic bags, and label your sofa's disassembled components to make it easier to reassemble.
Step 1: Lift the rear upholstery strip.
The back of the sofa has to face up into the air.Many sofas have a back panel that can be lifted to expose the inner frame.Lift up the upholstered panel with the help of the velcro strips or snaps that secure the fabric to the frame.
Step 2: Look for the rear locking levers.
The locking levers should be checked on the frames on each side of the sofa.There is a metal lever pointing in a downward position at each side of the sofa.You should see levers on the frames between the seats if your sofa has a center console.
Step 3: The locking levers are between the rear seams.
If your sofa does not have strips of fabric that expose the frame, stick your hands into the rear seams on the left and right sides.If there are any seams between the center console and seats, check them.The locking lever is pointed in a down position.
Step 4: The seat backs can be unlocked by lifting the locking levers.
In a pinch, use a flat head screwdriver to loosen the lever and release the seat backs.Lift the back out of the frame after you unlocked the levers.Lift each individual seat and console out of the sofa's housing if it has a pair of seats divided by a center console.
Step 5: The base bars can be found by turning the sofa over.
The back of the sofa should face up toward the ceiling.If it has base bars, look under the sofa.If they are present, you should see two or three bars bolted from one end of the sofa's base to the other.
Step 6: The bolts on the base bars need to be unfastened.
Make sure the base bars are secured with the heads of the screws or bolts.The base bars have screws and bolts that need to be unfastened.Base bars are secured with square Robertson screws, so you will probably need Robertson drive bits.
Step 7: As you remove the last bar, have a helpers hold the sofa.
It is best to have someone help you remove the base bars of the sofa.The seats and console will come apart when you detach the last bar.stabilizing the sofa will help keep it from rolling away, getting damaged, or damaging nearby objects.
Step 8: Take pictures when you disassemble the sofa.
Take pictures of the frame, base, and other relevant features when you first lift the sofa's rear upholstery panel.You will know what the sofa is supposed to look like when you put it back together.If you are unsure about your mechanical abilities, you could take pictures at each step of the process.
Step 9: Bolts, screws, and other hardware can be kept in separate plastic bags.
When you unfasten any screws or bolts, have plastic bags or containers on hand.As soon as you remove your hardware, put it in a bag.It is easier to sort through the screws, bolts, nuts, and washers if you keep separate bags for each base bar's hardware.You will know where to put the left seat back and the top base bar when you label your disassembled parts.
Step 10: The top bar needs to be reinstalled first during reassembly.
Line up the parts of the base so that they face the ceiling.Line the bar up with the holes on the sofa's base that are pre-drilled.Attach the top bar's center screws to the center part of the sofa, then detach the bar from the base of each sofa part.Drive the screws into the remaining bars to reassemble the sofa base after securing the top bar.
Step 11: Remove the backs and lock the levers.
The sofa should be placed in a normal position.Carefully slide the detached seat back into its housing, jiggle it a bit, and then slide it all the way into place.The back of the sofa should face toward the ceiling and the locking levers should be pushed down to lock the seat.