Patio Furniture Rehab customer installed examples:
See our Customer Responses
How are Patio Furniture Rehab replacement slings made and installed?
This page is designed to instruct and encourage our customers regarding how we produce and install custom made slings. Below you will see the steps we take from the measurements you give to us via our online store when ordering new replacement patio furniture slings and then we will illustrate how they are installed.
We trust this information will help many of you who are unsure of how this sling replacement will work for you.
Our Sling Policy:
Here at A+Redemption Patio Furniture Rehab we have been making and installing quality slings with success for over a decade now. We do know how to make them as needed according to your given measurements. The final measurements of your finished sling (without the splines in yet) may or may not be the same due to the stretch-ability of your choice of fabric taken into consideration before manufacturing as some fabrics stretch more than others. If you have any trouble installing your new slings be sure to read all our website information first before emailing us for assistance. We are here to help you with your Patio Furniture Rehab. You may leave your phone number if you would like to have us contact you this way. Because we have to have some time frame of working with custom made slings, please understand that we can only offer adjustments on our slings within a period of 10 days from the day UPS or USPS records indicate you have received your package. If you email us within this time we can offer adjustments on slings within the policy mentioned below. Any adjustments requested after this time and then also approved by us for return will have a fee of $20 per sling plus shipping. No adjustment can be made after 30 days from the day of delivery.
Please note: There are no refunds on any custom made sling. All custom made slings are manufactured in accordance with the measurements and fabric that you submit in the order. Due to more stretching on certain fabrics, we may make some custom ordered slings slightly narrower in width than others. If we did not do this your slings would sag more than normal after some use. It is important to understand that replacement slings are installed with high tension on the fabric as you bolt them in. If your sling does not seem to fit properly, please review our Sling Installation Page first, then if you still need help email us with your concerns. It is possible to make adjustments to the slings (see next paragraph) for a small fee ($5 to $10 per sling) if they are returned to our shop after our approval. The customer is responsible to pay all shipping charges on slings needing adjustments due to a wrong measurement submitted on the order but we will cover the cost if we made the mistake.
Please understand that if a wrong measurement is submitted by the customer which is to short on the length or narrow on the width it may be necessary to purchase completely new slings on another order as there will not be enough fabric to work for an adjustment of more than 1/4" on some slings. However, if the slings are oversized due to a wrong measurement it is possible to make adjustments for the small fees mentioned above.
No sling damaged by the customer due to improper installation or mishandling can be repaired or adjusted. These slings must be purchased again in our online store to be replaced. We carefully inspect and document each custom made sling before it leaves our shop, but if you discover any manufacturing flaw with the sling material or stitching on any sling we send out, this must be confirmed by us. If it is confirmed to be our fault, we will then work with your order to correct this at no extra expense to you. It is necessary to email us before returning any sling for any reason. Please understand that there can be no guarantee with slings returned to us without our acknowledgment.
Please read carefully to understand how sling manufacturing and installation works.
The pictures on this page are the property of Patio Furniture Rehab and A+Redemption, Inc.
To install your new slings, you will need the following types of tools:
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A spreader bar tool available at certain hardware stores or Lowe's online store (If this link fails you may type in the words Quick-Grip spreader bar at the Lowes website or Google search)
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Liquid soap mixed with water
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The specific bolt tool needed for your furniture
Other tools may be helpful, but these are the most commonly needed. Sling installation also takes some muscle and some patience.
The example given below is just one specific type of sling frame. Many sling frames have one or two curved back bar(s) for support like this example. Some other sling furniture frames have a straight support bar which is installed differently. At the bottom of this page there is an example of the straight bar sling installation. You may email us with questions regarding any other type of sling installation not seen on our websites.
First we measure the slings as seen on our Proper Measuring Page:
In this example, we have measured the width before removing the old sling, and then we measured again, after we refinished the frame. The measurement here was the same both times, but we suggest measuring with the old sling on, if possible.
From this measurement, we look at the fabric chosen (for this example we are using one of our specialty fabrics) and determine from the stretch-ability of this specific fabric what the correct width and length adjustments will be. In the example above, we see that the measurements of this Winston Key West Sling Chair are 20-1/8" width X 41-3/4" length.
Now we will explain how, from that measurement and according to the fabric chosen, that we end up with a sling which measures (without the splines installed yet) 19-7/8" width X 42" length. When the splines are in the sling fabric this width is even less. The width is reduced because of the stretch-ability of this fabric. If we made this wider, it might be easier to install but sling fabric will sag too much after use if this tension is not applied properly according to each different fabric. Believe it or not, after installing the splines this high tensile strength double-stitched fabric will stretch into the frame as shown below. Some think that it will take a magic trick for this to work, but it is simply the nature of the fabric to handle this stretching without affecting its integrity. About 1/4" is added to the length on a chair sling, because the curve at the seat causes a small loss in the length which is compensated for by making it slightly longer than the chair rail measurement.
After installing the splines into the sling:
We then install the sling into the rails by removing the frame bolts and support bar(s) and sliding each side in the correct way. Using a little soapy water at the curve may help the sling install easier.
When it is completely in on both sides we will stretch the length of the sling out to reach the ends of the rails.
Using some lubricant like WD-40 will help prevent the bolts from stripping and will also make the tightening easier.
Alternating between the bolts, we then begin to screw them into the frame a little at a time so that the bolts will catch and have a good grip at every point of connection. You should not tighten one side in all the way before starting the other side or this could damage your frame connections or bolts. (There are some exceptions to this as in the frames manufactured with a weld on one side and a long bolt on the other). After you have a good grip on both sides you may continue to tighten the bolts (alternating on them) until they are in all the way.
NOTE: Be careful to be sure you have good quality frames before attempting this sling replacement as some manufacturers did not build frames as well as others and they may not handle the stress of replacement slings. Generally names like Winston, Woodard, Tropitone, Mallin, Innova, Carter Grandle, Brown Jordan, and Telescope are among the better built frames. It is not suggested that you try to replace a sling on a low quality frame, though it is possible to succeed with this as well.
Also, keep in mind that when you are working with used patio furniture, even the best of them could have some structural damage which may have occurred through use over time and this may cause some trouble during installation. Bent bolts from too much pressure placed on the frame at some point is an example. If you have bent bolts, be sure to replace them with stainless steel replacements available at your local hardware store. If you try to use the bent bolts you will potentially damage your frame or the rivnut (hidden nut in the frame). In most cases repairs can be made if this damage occurs and you may email us with any questions regarding the details of such a problem and how to remedy it.
If you need to replace your bolts, a common size bolt for patio furniture slings is the 1/4" dia. X 20 thread and the length can vary. Telescope frames may have a larger bolts with wider threads and some other manufacturers may have larger bolts as well. Be sure to get the right stainless steel bolt size by taking your old one in to a nearby HomeDepot or some other store that carries these.
After your bolts are completely in place you will need to replace the support bar(s). This Key West chair example has 2 support bars, one in the back and one under the seat. If you are very careful about it you can pre-bend the bars slightly before installing if they are open too much to put back into place. But if you have a very good spreader bar tool and some muscle you may not need to do this. The spreader bar tool in the pictures was purchased at a Lowe's store and is the best we have found yet for this job.
Be careful not to over expand the bar tool but spread the rails just enough to help you replace the curved support bars in the proper holes. Keep good control of the bars as you replace them so that you do not damage the frame or the sling.
