Any Have Problems With Mouldy Ikea Furniture?

[Sad 0]

Hi all,

I really like the design of IKEA products. They look modern and simple. Hence when i got my new flat, I got the bulk of my home needs from there.

Here's a list of what i got(not all together but from time to time starting late 2007 til now):

- lighting for whole house.

-1 coffee table

-2 wall shelves

-1 study table

-1 2-sliding door wardrobe ( ard 2 by 2m)

-1 2-door wardrobe

-1 billy book case

-1`toddler bed complete with mattress and set of bedding

-1 kids shelving

-1 kids table with 2 chairs

-1 expedit bookcase

- shoe rack

-1 metal drawer

- kitchen utensils (cutlery set, scissors, cooking pots, knives, grater, water flasks, thermos flask, and plenty others more.)

And for all the stuff i got I got myself an IKEA friends card. All purchases I make should be in the record of this card right so as to accumulate points for exchange of gifts...

And here i thought I was ready to move into my new place.

When the 2 wardrobes and coffee table arrived, I was telling the contractors about the furniture which seem to have been afflicted with what seem to be little black spots of mould. The contractors assured me it was nothing and to just clean it off with a piece of cloth. He said that if it persists, Call IKEA up they will change for me.

True to his word, the mould came off easily enough when i wiped it down. However, a few weeks later, it grew back with a vengeance. I was really upset as I have not even moved in yet. My apartment definitely have a humidity level much lower than any other places in Singapore. In fact it was dry and dusty.

Paranoid as I have 1 infant and 1 toddler to think about, i set about checking ALL my furniture. Coincidentally, My 2 PAX wardrobes, My LACK coffee table, My BILLY bookcase, my MIKAEL(not sure if this is the model) study table are all mouldy. I checked all other furniture i had like the following:

- my Barang Barang side table- fine

- my wooden dining table (not from IKEA) - fine

- the 6 accompanying wooden dining chair - fine

- My V.hive dresser table - fine

- My built in kitchen cabinet from UHome - fine

- My other study table from some antique shop i forgot the name of - fine

- My wooden treasure chest again from the antique shop - fine

-IKEA console- fine

-IKEA expedit bookcase - fine

-My wooden baby bed from Kiddy Palace - fine

-IKEA toddler bed - fine

-IKEA kids shelve -fine

So the conclusion was.. some but NOT all IKEA stuff I bought between late last year(2007) and early this year (2008) turned mouldy.

So the nightmares have started...

I called up IKEA and told the staff about it. Needless to say, I had to repeat my story again and again before I got my case exclusively handled by someone. Before that as i was unable to produce the receipt thinking that they should have the records of my purchases in my IKEA Friends acct. But i was sooo wrong. They told me due to the fact that i bought my items before and was assembled by the old contractors they used they had totally no record of my purchase. The contractors they are using currently is a different one. One man I spoke to on the phone even suggested that i got my items from the "As Is" section and was trying to get a refund with full priced items. I was really disappointed. How could a reputable company like IKEA hire staff that spoke so insultingly?

anyway, a helpful girl i spoke to at IKEA decided that a carpenter should come by to look at my furniture. the carpenter took 2 weeks to swing by my place for 5 minutes...

Carpenter told me a change will be needed. So again waited for their 3-5 working days for the girl to call me back.

when she called me back she said that IKEa will be replacing my mouldy boards BUT at a fee. when i ask her what the fees are for, she said they are because the boards are specially made for it.. I mean what does she mean specially made? It is still the same boards for those std sized PAX wardrobes right? should be simple as replace moudly ones with new ones right? cos the boards were already mouldy when it arrived at my place.. not that i did something to it...

So she told me she'll check. Later she got back to me and told me that they will replace it free of charge. So i asked her what about the tables? The coffee tables and the study tables.. To my huge surprise, she forgot about it.

So she called me back yet again to tell me she can only refund me 70% of the actual cost cos it is already assembled. right.. I paid the 5% for the IKEA contractors to assemble too and i can forget it but here they are not refunding me totally for their defective, improperly treated products. And they will be refunding me IKEA vouchers.. I am so afraid to have to go thru all the calling again.

Despite all these 70% refund, the girl on the phone say it is out of the company's "goodwill" that they refund me.. I can't help but feel offence when they use the word goodwill as it implies that they are completely not at fault but just to humour me. Which customer will not be agitated when they purchase products that are defective even before first use.

I have moved boxes of books and clothing to my new place but have reframed from putting them away in the mouldy furniture.

Looks like my move will have to wait.

anyway, tml, she ask me to talk to her Manager.. So will call tml and update .

[Sad 0]

Hi all,

I really like the design of IKEA products. They look modern and simple. Hence when i got my new flat, I got the bulk of my home needs from there.

Here's a list of what i got(not all together but from time to time starting late 2007 til now):

- lighting for whole house.

-1 coffee table

-2 wall shelves

-1 study table

-1 2-sliding door wardrobe ( ard 2 by 2m)

-1 2-door wardrobe

-1 billy book case

-1`toddler bed complete with mattress and set of bedding

-1 kids shelving

-1 kids table with 2 chairs

-1 expedit bookcase

- shoe rack

-1 TV console

-1 metal drawer

- kitchen utensils (cutlery set, scissors, cooking pots, knives, grater, water flasks, thermos flask, and plenty others more.)

And for all the stuff i got I got myself an IKEA friends card. All purchases I make should be in the record of this card right so as to accumulate points for exchange of gifts...

And here i thought I was ready to move into my new place.

When the 2 wardrobes and coffee table arrived, I was telling the contractors about the furniture which seem to have been afflicted with what seem to be little black spots of mould. The contractors assured me it was nothing and to just clean it off with a piece of cloth. He said that if it persists, Call IKEA up they will change for me.

True to his word, the mould came off easily enough when i wiped it down. However, a few weeks later, it grew back with a vengeance. I was really upset as I have not even moved in yet. My apartment definitely have a humidity level much lower than any other places in Singapore. In fact it was dry and dusty.

Paranoid as I have 1 infant and 1 toddler to think about, i set about checking ALL my furniture. Coincidentally, My 2 PAX wardrobes, My LACK coffee table, My BILLY bookcase, my MIKAEL(not sure if this is the model) study table are all mouldy. I checked all other furniture i had like the following:

- my Barang Barang side table- fine

- my wooden dining table (not from IKEA) - fine

- the 6 accompanying wooden dining chair - fine

- My V.hive dresser table - fine

- My built in kitchen cabinet from UHome - fine

- My other study table from some antique shop i forgot the name of - fine

- My wooden treasure chest again from the antique shop - fine

-IKEA console- fine

-IKEA expedit bookcase - fine

-My wooden baby bed from Kiddy Palace - fine

-IKEA toddler bed - fine

-IKEA kids shelve -fine

So the conclusion was.. some but NOT all IKEA stuff I bought between late last year(2007) and early this year (2008) turned mouldy.

So the nightmares have started...

I called up IKEA and told the staff about it. Needless to say, I had to repeat my story again and again before I got my case exclusively handled by someone. Before that as i was unable to produce the receipt thinking that they should have the records of my purchases in my IKEA Friends acct. But i was sooo wrong. They told me due to the fact that i bought my items before and was assembled by the old contractors they used they had totally no record of my purchase. The contractors they are using currently is a different one. One man I spoke to on the phone even suggested that i got my items from the "As Is" section and was trying to get a refund with full priced items. I was really disappointed. How could a reputable company like IKEA hire staff that spoke so insultingly?

anyway, a helpful girl i spoke to at IKEA decided that a carpenter should come by to look at my furniture. the carpenter took 2 weeks to swing by my place for 5 minutes...

Carpenter told me a change will be needed. So again waited for their 3-5 working days for the girl to call me back.

when she called me back she said that IKEa will be replacing my mouldy boards BUT at a fee. when i ask her what the fees are for, she said they are because the boards are specially made for it.. I mean what does she mean specially made? It is still the same boards for those std sized PAX wardrobes right? should be simple as replace moudly ones with new ones right? cos the boards were already mouldy when it arrived at my place.. not that i did something to it...

So she told me she'll check. Later she got back to me and told me that they will replace it free of charge. So i asked her what about the tables? The coffee tables and the study tables.. To my huge surprise, she forgot about it.

So she called me back yet again to tell me she can only refund me 70% of the actual cost cos it is already assembled. right.. I paid the 5% for the IKEA contractors to assemble too and i can forget it but here they are not refunding me totally for their defective, improperly treated products. And they will be refunding me IKEA vouchers.. I am so afraid to have to go thru all the calling again.

Despite all these 70% refund, the girl on the phone say it is out of the company's "goodwill" that they refund me.. I can't help but feel offence when they use the word goodwill as it implies that they are completely not at fault but just to humour me. Which customer will not be agitated when they purchase products that are defective even before first use.

I have moved boxes of books and clothing to my new place but have reframed from putting them away in the mouldy furniture.

Looks like my move will have to wait.

anyway, tml, she ask me to talk to her Manager.. So will call tml and update .

by the way, I will also post some pics for all to see.. Let me know if any of you have the same problem and how you dealt with it..

Are there any over the counter mould control spray/paint to stop the growth of mould? Cos the man who delivered my new bed said I could get it and furniture that grew mould like this is not treated properly.

I got a few friends who have bought from IKEA but not as many things as i have and they told me they thot maybe the mouldy problem was the house problem. so they did not bring it up with IKEA.

All suggestions welcome!

thanks!

[keltong 4]

Hi Sad,

I so sorry to hear about your problem. I have bought Ikea items for some time now without any problem. My returns have been smooth and recently my boss who bought a dining table with some slight defects also have a smooth time with the customer service officer. But I guess every situation is different.

as for mouldy furniture from Ikea, I have no such problem before. My list of items from Ikea includes (but not limited to):

2 queen size bed

single bed

underside bed

wardrobe

various sizes chest of drawers

multimedia racks

5 billy bookcase including corner units

dining chairs

work tables

coffee tables

tv console

foldable table

cd rack

leather sofa

non billy bookshelves

wooden step stool

wooden gate

stools

many other accessories

I have not have any problem so far. And a lot of it I am still using after almost 10 years. Some are newer but have been more than 2 years. The billy bookcases for example I bought and use since 1998 and have moved 3 places, the original room, to another room after reno 2 years back, than to my mum's place while waiting for my new home, will be moving to my new place soon. My 1st wooden queen size bed frame from Ikea (bought in 1998 also) I have pass it to my mum after 8 years when her old bed (bought from downstairs furniture shop) collapse. And that bed is still working fine. My 2nd queen size bed frame is also in excellent condition and will be moved to my new place.

But this may not help in your situation which may be unique, and every batch of products the quality may also varies. Just hope your problem get resolve soon.

[Sad 0]

Hi Sad,

I so sorry to hear about your problem. I have bought Ikea items for some time now without any problem. My returns have been smooth and recently my boss who bought a dining table with some slight defects also have a smooth time with the customer service officer. But I guess every situation is different.

as for mouldy furniture from Ikea, I have no such problem before. My list of items from Ikea includes (but not limited to):

2 queen size bed

single bed

underside bed

wardrobe

various sizes chest of drawers

multimedia racks

5 billy bookcase including corner units

dining chairs

work tables

coffee tables

tv console

foldable table

cd rack

leather sofa

non billy bookshelves

wooden step stool

wooden gate

stools

many other accessories

I have not have any problem so far. And a lot of it I am still using after almost 10 years. Some are newer but have been more than 2 years. The billy bookcases for example I bought and use since 1998 and have moved 3 places, the original room, to another room after reno 2 years back, than to my mum's place while waiting for my new home, will be moving to my new place soon. My 1st wooden queen size bed frame from Ikea (bought in 1998 also) I have pass it to my mum after 8 years when her old bed (bought from downstairs furniture shop) collapse. And that bed is still working fine. My 2nd queen size bed frame is also in excellent condition and will be moved to my new place.

But this may not help in your situation which may be unique, and every batch of products the quality may also varies. Just hope your problem get resolve soon.

Thanks for the reply. Yea I have been IKEA fan too. At my mom's place all IKEA stuff and some stuff have been around for really long. If you've noticed my post, the problem are those items bought late 2007 til early this year. The others i bought early 2007 are okie. I am so sad as buying house la, reno la and now dunno why these furniture are giving me so much trouble.

[keltong 4]

Thanks for the reply. Yea I have been IKEA fan too. At my mom's place all IKEA stuff and some stuff have been around for really long. If you've noticed my post, the problem are those items bought late 2007 til early this year. The others i bought early 2007 are okie. I am so sad as buying house la, reno la and now dunno why these furniture are giving me so much trouble.

I know, this is the last thing you want to happen, especially from IKEA. But their customer service usually quite ok leh, not sure why this time like that. Sigh...I did notice in the IKEA friend's website that there is another complain about their customer service. Maybe they have grown too big so can't train everyone properly? But you already escalated higher up. Hope everything will turn out well for you.

[Guest our-home]

Sorry to hear about your new furniture, such a headache.

We have a Vika Amon study table for over 10 years, still ok. But the chest of drawers had yellow mouldy marks inside, on the white laminate, after 2 years. I would empty the contents, wipe with a slightly damp cloth with a bit of detergent, then over again with water and leave it open to air for almost a day. Still over time, the mould will appear. But this was the same for the insides of my built-in wardrobes.

My daughter's Billy bookcase bought last year, has some small whitish spots after a few months. So we have to clean and air it regularly. I've tried dehumidifiers (both disposable and chargeable ones) but they don't seem to work for us.

Hope things work out.

[keltong 4]

Sorry to hear about your new furniture, such a headache.

We have a Vika Amon study table for over 10 years, still ok. But the chest of drawers had yellow mouldy marks inside, on the white laminate, after 2 years. I would empty the contents, wipe with a slightly damp cloth with a bit of detergent, then over again with water and leave it open to air for almost a day. Still over time, the mould will appear. But this was the same for the insides of my built-in wardrobes.

My daughter's Billy bookcase bought last year, has some small whitish spots after a few months. So we have to clean and air it regularly. I've tried dehumidifiers (both disposable and chargeable ones) but they don't seem to work for us.

Hope things work out.

Think I need a through check on my furnitures for any mouldy stuff liao...

[LadyLuck 0]

those furniture which i bot from vihive,Carefour & Ikea which i transfer from my mum place to my new house all mouldy lioa , duno isit i stay near sea

[korea 0]

i never buy ikea furniture bcos not long lasting. i only bought ikea lamps and bulbs. but hor, the lamp stand got rusty very fast. sigh. i also bought ikea plates and they're d-a-m-n heavy!

[keltong 4]

i never buy ikea furniture bcos not long lasting. i only bought ikea lamps and bulbs. but hor, the lamp stand got rusty very fast. sigh. i also bought ikea plates and they're d-a-m-n heavy!

I think every furniture shop got the more lasting and less lasting furnitures. Coz many different type of woods are used which resulted in different pricing. To say that all Ikea furnitures are not lasting is not a very fair statement.

I'm sure there are many here who have Ikea items that lasted very long. I for example have 4 Ikea Billy Bookcase and 1 corner units. All have lasted for almost 10 years and still in very good condition. None of the shelves have warp. And I do put very heavy books like encyclopedia even on the top shelves. This is just one example of the many items from Ikea that lasted very long for me. Of coz, some of the furniture RIP liao but those when I bought it I know it will not last long becoz of the price.

[cheong 0]

Actually for most of you who got Ikea furnitures, do you get them to install or DIY?

I am in the progress of fixing up a cabinet and have ordered a some others which will be fixing myself also. Think it just takes more time, and since you are fixing it, you will tend to know how much to load it.

If you get the delivery guys to do it, will they do it exactly the same way per the instructions? Or will they just use their own screws, staples etc etc??

[GoalHome 1]

I've an IKEA chest of drawers that is still serving me well after more than 10 years.

I think every furniture shop got the more lasting and less lasting furnitures. Coz many different type of woods are used which resulted in different pricing. To say that all Ikea furnitures are not lasting is not a very fair statement.

[keltong 4]

Actually for most of you who got Ikea furnitures, do you get them to install or DIY?

I am in the progress of fixing up a cabinet and have ordered a some others which will be fixing myself also. Think it just takes more time, and since you are fixing it, you will tend to know how much to load it.

If you get the delivery guys to do it, will they do it exactly the same way per the instructions? Or will they just use their own screws, staples etc etc??

I actually do most of the installation myself, except for those heavy items I feel I may not be able to do it alone. For example, there is this glass cabinet I bought from them I could not even carry down to put on the trolley myself, that is the sign for them to fix...heehee....They are quite pro and quite fast in fixing up and they don't refer to instruction like us, guess they are quite pro liao...I see them using mostly screws that come with the package.

I did fix all the billy bookcases single-handedly but that was 10 years ago when I was younger, slimmer, and stronger.

If you are fixing yourself, I suggest getting an electric screwdriver (of decent standard one), as it will save you a lot of time. But you do need to use the screwdrivers/alley keys for the final tightening. And remember not to over tighten it. Also recommended that every half a year to one year to tighten those screws again.

[cheong 0]

I actually do most of the installation myself, except for those heavy items I feel I may not be able to do it alone. For example, there is this glass cabinet I bought from them I could not even carry down to put on the trolley myself, that is the sign for them to fix...heehee....They are quite pro and quite fast in fixing up and they don't refer to instruction like us, guess they are quite pro liao...I see them using mostly screws that come with the package.

I did fix all the billy bookcases single-handedly but that was 10 years ago when I was younger, slimmer, and stronger.

If you are fixing yourself, I suggest getting an electric screwdriver (of decent standard one), as it will save you a lot of time. But you do need to use the screwdrivers/alley keys for the final tightening. And remember not to over tighten it. Also recommended that every half a year to one year to tighten those screws again.

I think that's why your furnitures lasted that long! Proper fixing is not enough, need proper maintainance also

Quite true on the electric screwdriver especially if you are fixing a lot of items. On the over tightening, I think the screw heads themselves can't take that kind of force, so it is probably a good way to control people not to over tighten.

[keltong 4]

I think that's why your furnitures lasted that long! Proper fixing is not enough, need proper maintainance also

Quite true on the electric screwdriver especially if you are fixing a lot of items. On the over tightening, I think the screw heads themselves can't take that kind of force, so it is probably a good way to control people not to over tighten.

Haha...hmm...maybe...never thought of that...I actually enjoy fixing, so maybe that's why me and Ikea are a good fit....hahaha....