Furniture bags and covers, sized to the piece you are protecting

What are furniture bags and covers used for?

Furniture bags and covers are polythene bags and sheets used to protect upholstery, timber and painted surfaces while furniture is moved or stored. A removals firm bags a sofa before it goes down a hallway and into a van. A storage operator bags everything going into a container so months of settled dust does not end up in the fabric. A furniture manufacturer bags finished pieces off the line so they reach the retailer or the customer unmarked.

The damage they prevent is mostly cosmetic and mostly avoidable: rain between the van and the front door, grit picked up off a warehouse floor, a scuff from a door frame, dust settling into a light-coloured fabric over a winter in storage. Marks show on furniture in a way they never do on a boxed product, which is why bagging is standard practice on anything upholstered or finished.

How do I work out what size furniture bag I need?

Furniture bags are specified by layflat width, length and gusset. Measure the piece at its widest point, then its height, then its depth front to back, and add clearance so the bag goes on without stretching over corners and feet. The gusset is what lets a bag pass over a deep item like a three-seat sofa or a wardrobe instead of splitting on the way down.

We manufacture to the dimensions you give us rather than to a fixed size list, so awkward pieces are straightforward. If you handle a mixed range, the practical approach is to settle on two or three sizes that cover most of what you move, rather than a different bag for every item. Send us the biggest and most common pieces in your range and we will suggest a small set of sizes that covers them.

What gauge of furniture cover should I choose?

We manufacture furniture bags and covers from 40 to 120 micron. The lighter end suits factory and showroom bagging, where the cover goes on in a clean environment, sees one journey and comes off at the customer. The heavier end suits removals and storage, where the bag is dragged past door frames, loaded onto a tail lift, stacked against other items and expected to survive several handling cycles.

Bags used in the field take far more abuse than most people expect, so if your crew bags on site, specify up. We can also tune strength, elasticity, stiffness and slip in the film itself, which matters when bagged items have to slide past each other in a loaded container. Tell us how the covers are used and we will recommend a gauge rather than defaulting to the thickest option.

How are furniture bags and covers supplied?

Furniture bags are supplied flat packed in cases, or on a roll where a packing station or a van kit works better that way. Open-ended bags pull down over the item from above, which is the fastest way to bag a chair or a cabinet. Flat covers and sheeting suit pieces that are too large or too awkward to bag, where the film is draped and taped instead.

Print and colour are both options. Printed bags carry a removals company name, a job reference or handling wording, which is useful when items from several jobs share a warehouse. Clear film is the usual choice because it keeps items identifiable without unwrapping them, and we can manufacture in a colour you specify where you want contents hidden or need to separate jobs at a glance.

Common applications for furniture bags and covers

• Removals and household relocation
• Self-storage and container storage
• Furniture manufacturing and despatch
• Furniture retail and home delivery
• Office fit-out and commercial relocation contractors
• Auction houses and house clearance
• Upholstery and reupholstery workshops
• Student and rental property turnarounds

Questions

Furniture bags and covers FAQs

What size bag do I need for a three-seat sofa?

Measure the sofa at its widest point including the arms, then the height to the top of the back cushions, then the depth front to back. Those three figures give the layflat width, the length and the gusset, plus a little clearance so the bag slides on cleanly. Send us the measurements for the largest sofa you move and we will quote a bag that covers it and everything smaller.

Is it safe to store furniture in polythene bags long term?

Polythene keeps dust and airborne damp off furniture, which is exactly what you want in a storage unit, but it also holds in any moisture already in the item. Make sure upholstery and timber are completely dry before bagging, and for long storage leave the bag open at the bottom so air can move rather than sealing it shut. In an unheated unit, that one habit prevents most of the mould problems people blame on the wrapping.

Can furniture bags be made with a gusset for deep or L-shaped pieces?

Yes. A gusset is what lets a bag open out to pass over a deep item such as a corner sofa, a wardrobe or a stacked set of chairs, instead of straining across the corners. We manufacture gusseted bags to the depth you specify. Give us the widest, tallest and deepest dimensions of the piece and we will work out the gusset for you.

Do you print furniture bags with our company name?

Yes. We print to your artwork, so removals firms and storage operators can run their own name, contact details or job wording on the bags. Printed bags are genuinely useful in a shared warehouse where items from several jobs sit alongside each other. Send the artwork with your enquiry and we will quote the printed version against the plain one so you can compare.