Sofas, wardrobes, beds, desks
Check a piece of furniture against your door and hallway before delivery day: upright, on its back, stood on end or tilted through the frame, with the legs on or off.
Fits on its back, with the legs off
Needs 29 in (73.7 cm) of the 30 in (76.2 cm) clear width (1 in to spare) and 36 in (91.4 cm) of the height (44 in to spare).
The furniture is treated as a box. Whatever goes through a doorway has one side pointing through the opening and the other two across it: one must fit the door's clear width, the other its clear height. The checker tries the piece upright, on its back and on its side, then tilted in the frame, and with the legs off if you tick that box. With a hallway, it also works out the longest piece of that width that can be carried round a right-angled corner.
Sofas are not boxes: the seat sits lower than the back, so a sofa tipped onto its back can be narrower than its depth or height. Lay a straight edge from the top of the back to the front of the arm, then measure from the bottom of the back up to the straight edge at right angles. If that is less than the door's clear width, the sofa can usually be tilted back through.
Measure the clear opening, not the door: open the door fully and measure from the face of the door to the stop on the other side, at the narrowest point. Check handles, hinges and skirting that stick out, and allow for blankets or wrapping.
For the rest of the flat once the sofa is in.
How much space to leave round beds, sofas, desks, dining chairs and kitchen aisles, with sources.
A scale plan of your room: move furniture around and see clearances, overlaps and the door swing.
Evenly space shelves, hooks or picture frames, with the centre marks to measure.
Lumens for the room size and use, and how many bulbs that takes.
One small task a day, room by room, with a checklist that remembers your progress.
Two free services for the online side of moving and furnishing a small place.
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Try WebTraceCheckIn the sums, yes: a piece exactly as wide as the opening is shown as fitting with nothing to spare. In real life you need a little room for your hands, blankets and a slight wobble, so treat anything under about an inch (2.5 cm) as very tight and measure again.
A long, thin piece such as a mattress, headboard or tabletop can be turned in the plane of the door so it runs corner to corner across the frame. The checker searches every angle and tells you the one that leaves the most room, if any.
A long sofa has to swing round the corner as well as pass through the opening. In a narrow hallway the corner limits the length that can turn, so a piece can clear the door in theory and still jam at the turn. Standing it on end at the corner sometimes helps if the ceiling is high enough.
If the fit is close, it often helps: the open door and its hinges take up part of the opening. Ask your landlord first if you rent, keep the hinge pins and screws together, and measure again between the stops once the door is off.