How to measure

A riser is made to the sizes you enter. Nobody checks your numbers before it is printed, so a few careful minutes here are worth it. The builder shows inches first and you can switch to millimeters. This page gives both.

What you need

• Calipers are best. A ruler or a tape measure works: choose the Roomy fit if you use one.
• For a round leg, a strip of paper and a pen work too.
• The weight the risers will carry: the furniture and everything on it or in it.
• Type a size the way your tape reads it. In inches, 1 3/8, 1-3/8 and 1.375 all mean the same thing to the builder.

Where to measure

Measure the widest part of the leg that will sit in the opening.

Measure every leg. Old furniture is rarely the same from corner to corner. Enter the largest size you find.

Square and rectangular legs

Example: a square leg that is 1-1/2 in (38 mm) wide and 1-1/2 in (38 mm) deep. For a rectangular leg enter both sizes as they are, such as 2 in by 1 in (51 mm by 25 mm).

Round legs

Tapered legs

Angled legs

Many chairs, sofas, sideboards and tables stand on legs that lean. The opening of a riser goes straight down, so a leaning leg needs more room than its foot takes up on the floor: room for the foot, and room for the lean.

1. Measure the foot where it stands on the floor: its length in the direction the leg leans, and its width across.
2. Measure the gap. Stand a hardback book or a box upright on the floor, touching the foot on the side the leg leans away from. On legs that splay outward, that is the outside of the foot. About 1-3/16 in (30 mm) up from the floor, measure the gap between the book and the leg. If the book touches the leg higher up and not at the foot, it is on the wrong side.
3. Add the gap to the length. Example: a foot 1-3/8 in (35 mm) long with a gap of 1/4 in (6 mm) needs 1-5/8 in (41 mm).
4. Enter it as a rectangle. In the builder choose Square or rectangle, even for a round leg. Enter the width as one size and the length with the gap added as the other. Choose the Roomy fit.

Measure the gap as high up as the opening is deep. That is 1-3/16 in (30 mm) unless you change it, and 1-3/4 in (45 mm) for a leveling riser with the usual depth.

When you fit the risers, turn each one so the long side of its opening runs the way the leg leans. The foot stands at one end of the opening and the leg leans over the rest. If a leg leans two ways at once, toward a corner of the furniture, measure a gap each way and add each to its own side.

The weight figure reads high for a leaning leg. The builder works the figure out from the sizes you enter, and for a leaning leg those include the gap. A leaning leg also presses on one end of the opening and not on the middle. So stay well under the figure, choose the smallest lift that does the job, and check that the furniture stands steady before you use it. If the legs lean a lot, risers may not suit the piece.

Legs with a glide or pad

Choosing the fit

The opening is your leg size plus a little room, so the leg drops in. You choose how much room:

• Snug: about 1/16 in (1.5 mm). Only if you measured with calipers and want a close fit.
• Regular: about 1/8 in (3 mm). Choose this if you measured with calipers. The builder starts on it.
• Roomy: about 1/4 in (6 mm). Choose this if you measured with a tape or a ruler, if the leg is between two marks, or if you are unsure.

The room is added once to each size, not on each side. Example: a leg 1-1/2 in (38 mm) wide with Regular fit gets an opening about 1-5/8 in (41 mm) wide.

The builder always shows the opening size before you pay. The opening size is what we guarantee, so check it against your leg. A leg that is a little loose still stands in its opening. A leg that is too big does not go in at all.

The outside is larger than the opening

Choosing the lift

The lift is how much taller the riser makes the leg. The builder asks for it as “How much taller”: enter the height you want to add. The builder tells you if a size is more than we can make, or too tall for its base.

• Choose the smallest lift that does the job. A taller riser is less steady and carries less.
• For a robot vacuum, measure the height of the vacuum and add about 1/2 in (13 mm). Then take away the gap the furniture already has.
• To match another piece, measure both heights and enter the difference. Example: a desk at 28-1/2 in (724 mm) next to one at 30 in (762 mm) needs a lift of 1-1/2 in (38 mm).

Order all of them the same height

Use the same lift on every leg, or the furniture will rock or lean. Most furniture needs a set of 4. Risers are sold one at a time, so count the legs first: some pieces have a fifth leg in the middle.

Order them together. The weight estimate is for the risers and the weight you order together.

If the floor itself is uneven, see leveling risers below.

Wall and base sizes are chosen for you

You do not choose the wall thickness or the base size. The builder works them out from your leg size and lift. Tapered sides make the base wider than the top, which is steadier. Straight sides take up less floor.

How much weight it carries

The builder shows a line such as “Estimated to carry about 45 lb per riser” and asks for the total weight the risers will carry.

• Add it all up. The furniture and everything on it or in it: full drawers, books, a TV, plants. If people sit or lie on it, add them too, at the most it will ever hold. Example: a bed and mattress at 150 lb (68 kg) with two adults at 180 lb (82 kg) each is 510 lb (231 kg). On 4 legs that is about 128 lb (58 kg) per riser.
• Divide by the number of legs. That is the weight on each riser. Example: a 120 lb (54 kg) dresser holding 60 lb (27 kg) of clothes weighs 180 lb (82 kg). On 4 legs that is 45 lb (about 20 kg) per riser.
• The figure is per riser. Each riser must carry no more than the estimate shown for it. We do not take an order that is over.
• The leg’s footprint matters. A wide leg spreads the weight, so it gets a higher figure, up to the most we make any riser for. A thin leg gets a lower one.
• Need it to carry more? Change the Strength. A Standard riser is a plain block, and its figure is a cautious one because the printer decides how the inside is filled. A Reinforced or Heavy duty riser has solid walls built into it under the leg, running from the floor up to the opening. Those walls carry the weight, so the figure is much higher. You will see small square holes under the base: that is the lattice, and it is meant to be there. Under Strength, the builder shows the figure and the price for each.
• The figure is for a flat-bottomed leg. It assumes the whole size you entered presses on the bottom of the opening. A leg that stands on a glide, a small foot or a hollow tube end presses on a smaller area and carries less: work your weight from the size of the part that touches, or take the glide off.
• Tall, narrow risers get a lower figure.
• How much room to leave. The figure already has a large safety margin built in, but weight is rarely shared evenly, so for furniture people sit or lie on, stay well under it. Things get added over time, too.
• Steady loads only. The estimate is for weight that sits still and presses straight down, with the riser flat on the floor. It is not for bumps, drops or dragging. Sitting down or getting into bed is ordinary use. Jumping on a bed or dropping onto a sofa is not. Lift furniture off its risers to move it.

The figure is an estimate worked out from the leg’s footprint and the strength of the plastic. It is not a tested rating and not a guarantee. Our terms say exactly what it means.

Material

In the builder you choose the plastic under Material, then a color. The colors on offer depend on the plastic.

• PETG holds a steady weight best, so it gets the higher weight figure. It has a slight gloss. Pick it for anything heavy. It stands ordinary room warmth better than PLA, but neither goes near heat.
• PLA carries less: the builder shows a lower weight figure for the same riser. It also softens in warmth, so keep it out of direct sun and away from heaters and radiators.

Where the builder lists Bambu colors, they are printed in Bambu Lab filament. TallerFeet is not affiliated with Bambu Lab.

Looks

The look is the outside of the riser. You choose it in the builder:

• Classic: smooth sides.
• Fluted: wide scallops running down the sides, like a column.
• Pinstripe: fine ridges running down the sides.
• Brick: a block of chunky bricks with a cap on top.
• Column: a little classical column, with a square plinth, a fluted shaft and a square slab on top.
• Scroll column: a plump column with a curled scroll at each corner of its top, a fluted shaft and a square plinth.

Classic, Fluted and Pinstripe come with straight or tapered sides. On Fluted and Pinstripe the grooves are cut into extra wall, so the riser is no thinner for them. It is a little larger on the outside. Brick, Column and Scroll column each have a shape of their own, and are larger again.

Every look is the same riser inside. The opening and the lift are the sizes you ordered. A larger outside does not raise the weight figure: for Brick, Column and Scroll column it is the same as for a Classic riser with straight sides. The builder shows the base size for the look you choose: check it if the furniture stands near a wall or close to another leg. Every look prints in any color.

The scroll column has two fronts. Its scrolls show their curled faces on the front and on the back, and a roll joins them along each side. On a rectangular leg the curled faces are on the two sides you entered as the width.

Felt pads

Where the builder offers them, you can add felt pads: one for each riser, cut from self-adhesive Scotch felt to the shape of that riser’s base. They protect hard floors and help the riser slide less noisily. The pads come loose in the box, for you to stick on: put each one on a clean, dry base and press firmly. A felt pad lets furniture slide more easily on a hard floor, so leave them off a piece that must not move. On a Reinforced or Heavy duty riser the pad also covers the small square holes under the base. Scotch is a trademark of 3M. TallerFeet is not affiliated with 3M.

Indoor use only

Risers are for rooms people live in. Keep them out of direct sunlight, away from heat, and out of freezing or damp unheated spaces such as sheds, porches and unheated garages. Sun through a window can make the plastic hot enough to soften.

Check stability after fitting

1. Empty the furniture and get help to lift it. Do not drag it onto the risers.
2. Stand the risers on a firm floor, flat on their bases, and lower each leg fully into its opening. On carpet or a rug, press each riser down until it sits flat and check that the furniture is steady. Do not use them on thick or soft carpet that lets a riser lean. For a floor that is not level, use leveling risers.
3. Check that every riser sits flat and that nothing rocks.
4. Push gently near the top from each side. If it tips or sways more than you like, take the risers off.
5. Anchor tall furniture, such as dressers, shelves and cabinets, to the wall. Raised furniture tips more easily, and children climb.
6. Look again after a day, and from time to time after that. Stop using a riser that cracks, leans or changes shape.

Leveling risers

You design them in the same builder as any other riser: tick Make these leveling risers. Open the builder with it ticked, or watch how leveling works.

You still measure the leg. There is nothing about the floor to measure, unless it is out by more than 5/8 in (15 mm). That case is covered below.

A leveling riser is still a riser, so it makes the furniture taller as well. The smallest lift is 3/8 in (10 mm): choose it if you only want the furniture level.

What comes in the box

• The riser. Its opening is 5/8 in (15 mm) deeper than a plain riser’s, to make room for the plates.
• Four plates for each riser. They are 1, 2, 4 and 8 mm thick (about 0.04, 0.08, 0.16 and 0.31 in). Each is twice as thick as the one before, so you can tell them apart side by side. A plate is the shape of the opening and a little smaller, so it drops in.

The plates for one riser come as one flat card, joined by small tabs. Snap them apart, or snip the tabs. For a wide leg the plates come as two cards, and for a very large leg as four separate plates.

How to level

1. Stand the furniture on its risers in the place where it will live. Start with no plates.
2. Put a level on top of the furniture. A phone’s level app works. Check it side to side and front to back.
3. Find the low legs. Lift each one out of its riser, drop plates into the opening, and lower the leg onto them. Get help to lift, and do not drag.
4. Check the level again. Add or swap plates until it reads level and the furniture does not rock.

Any whole millimeter from 0 to 15 (about 5/8 in) is some combination of the four plates. Examples:

• 3 mm = 1 + 2
• 5 mm = 1 + 4
• 7 mm = 1 + 2 + 4
• 11 mm = 1 + 2 + 8
• 15 mm = 1 + 2 + 4 + 8

Legs that share a low side get the same total. Example: if the whole left side is low by 6 mm (about 1/4 in), put the 2 and 4 mm plates under both left legs.

Lay the plates flat on the bottom of the opening, with the leg on top of them. Put nothing else in the opening, and nothing under the riser. A leveling riser still needs a firm floor under it, and every riser must sit flat on it.

If the floor is out by more than 5/8 in (15 mm)

The plates raise a leg by up to 5/8 in (15 mm). A leg that needs more gets a taller riser, and the plates do the rest. To order that, find out how far each low leg has to come up. Do this before you order, with the furniture standing on the floor:

1. Stand the furniture where it will live.
2. Prop up the low legs until it sits level and does not rock. Coins or pieces of cardboard work.
3. Note how much is under each leg. Measure the stack in inches or millimeters, or count the coins. A US quarter is 1.75 mm thick, so 13 quarters are about 23 mm (about 7/8 in).
4. In the builder, with Make these leveling risers ticked, set How many to the number of legs and open “My floor is out by more than 5/8 in”. Enter the figure for each low leg: in inches, in millimeters, or as a count of quarters.

The builder gives each of those legs a riser that is taller in steps of 3/8 in (10 mm), and leaves the rest to the plates. Example: a leg propped up 23 mm gets a riser 20 mm (about 3/4 in) taller, and you start with the 1 and 2 mm plates under it.

Risers that differ by 3/8 in (10 mm) are easy to tell apart by eye. The tallest goes under the lowest corner.

The coins and cardboard are only for measuring. Take them away before the risers go on.

How deep the leg sits

Each plate you add raises the leg in its opening, so the leg sits a little less deep. The deeper opening allows for that. With all four plates in, the leg still sits at least as deep as it would in a plain riser’s opening. With fewer plates it sits deeper.

So measure the leg a little higher up than you would for a plain riser. With the usual depth, measure the widest part of the bottom 1-3/4 in (45 mm) of the leg, not the bottom about 1-3/16 in (30 mm).

After you level

• Check stability. Go through the steps under Check stability after fitting again once the plates are in.
• Level again if you move the furniture. Another spot on the floor needs different plates.
• Keep the spare plates. You will want them if the furniture moves or the floor settles.

The same rules apply

Leveling risers follow every rule the plain ones do:

• The weight figure is an estimate, not a tested rating.
• If people sit or lie on the furniture, count them in the weight.
• Never under or near anything hot.
• Indoor use only.

The plates are loose parts under the leg. Check now and then that they still sit flat, and more often under a bed or a sofa.

How long it takes

Each riser is printed after you order, so it usually ships in 5 to 10 business days, often sooner. We don’t promise a delivery date; if your order hasn’t shipped within 30 days, we email you and you can cancel for a full refund.

What risers are not for

• Never under anything a person stands or climbs on: ladders, step stools, bunk beds or cribs.
• Never under or near anything hot: stoves, ovens, heaters, grills, fireplaces, wood stoves or hot appliances. The plastic softens with heat.
• Never outdoors, in direct sunlight, or in freezing or damp unheated spaces.
• Never with more weight than the estimate shown for the riser.

We guarantee the size of the opening and the lift. We can’t guarantee that a riser fits your furniture, because that depends on your measurement. The terms and the refund page have the details.

Questions? Write to [email protected].