This year American churches will purchase about 1.5 million seats in the form of church chairs, sanctuary seating, pews and theatre seats. Unfortunately, too many of these churches are uninformed about what to look for when buying church seating or how to evaluate those providing worship seating.
With competitive price and timely delivery, WINNER sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.
Many church chair and worship seating suppliers will play upon this lack of information and focus their advertising and sales pitch on wholesale prices and quick sales, regardless if it is in the best interest of the church or not. Here&#;s what you need to know about church seating to make an informed purchasing decision.
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Today nearly 85% of seating purchased for new church construction and renovation is stackable, upholstered metal frame chairs. Pews and expensive theatre seating made popular by the &#;mega-church&#; boom of recent years have rapidly declined in popularity. There are many reasons for this trend:
Pews are comparatively uncomfortable
Pews are expensive, and theatre seats can cost three to five times that of an equally durable quality stackable chair designed for sanctuary use
Because both pews and auditorium seating are anchored to the floor, your space is not able to be multi-purpose.
While there are many providers of chairs for worship and sanctuary use, not all provide the same quality of products. Here is a quick checklist of what your church should look for in a quality church chair or seating for your sanctuary.
Learn more about Church Chairs vs. Pews.
It&#;s best to get frames that are made of True 16 gauge heavy-duty cold-rolled steel. Stay away from 18 gauge steel, which is 30% weaker (the higher the gauge, the weaker the steel). And the chair must come with at least a 25-year to lifetime warranty on the entire frame &#; not just the welds.
Closely inspect the frame to make sure it&#;s free from rust. Remove the floor glide from the chair leg, run your finger inside, and look into the barrel. Poorly prepared steel will bleed rust in coming years and may have already started on a new chair.
The chairs need high-quality paint that&#;s laboratory-certified-safe from lead and other toxic chemicals. The paint should be an electrostatically applied powder coating.
All fabrics should be certified in writing by a third party or fabric manufacturer, ensuring double rub wear ability with a minimum of 100,000 double rubs per the Wyzenbeek test. Fabrics should be laboratory certified free from dangerous formaldehyde emissions and meet or exceed all government and industry standards for safety.
ALL Foam should be:
High density
Quality
Commercial-grade
Laboratory certified free from dangerous formaldehyde and TDCPP (fire retardant) emissions
Certified to meet or exceed all appropriate state fire code standards
Make sure all the foam is virgin foam. This is very important because remanufactured foam will break down in half the time or faster.
Foundations should be high quality industrial grade real plywood (and not cheaper imitation particle board) or quality Polymer foundations secured to the frame with the use of quality T-Nuts to assure long problem free use. Beware of the weaker strand board or artificial composites.
Any reputable chair manufacturer or company will have no problem sending a free sample chair to your church. If the chair provider refuses to do this, it&#;s probably because they do not want your church to see just how poorly and cheaply made their chair is. Be careful if a supplier won&#;t send a free sample or provide a warranty, stating the chairs you order will be exactly like the sample you receive.
A common &#;bait and switch&#; tactic is where you&#;ll be sent a chair &#;similar&#; to the sample, but not exactly like the one you are considering. Insist the provider assure you in writing the sample will match the chairs you wish to purchase. While there&#;s nothing wrong with a company asking for shipping charges to be borne by the church and then refunded if a purchase is made, offering a free chair affirms they are not fearful of having their chair compared to competitors.
Only buy from a provider that will send your church a free sample of the chair you are thinking of buying. Committee members can compare the sample side by side with other chairs you are considering for your church.
At ChurchPlaza, the sample chairs we provide always match the chair you will get when you make your purchase &#; contact us for a free sample!
If the seating provider does send you a sample, be sure to carefully evaluate the chair. Investigate the welding to see if it is done correctly. There should be welding on all sides of the metal rather than just a few. If the chair has a book rack, does it seem like it could hold enough without breaking? Purchasing new chairs only to have a welded spot give out is disappointing and wrong. Check the nuts and bolts. If they are wood or plastic then chances are they will not last as long as a solid steel fastening system.
Next, look into the foam. Determine the thickness and insist on virgin commercial foam and not reused foam. You may notice stains or writing if it is reused foam. Another piece to look for are the glides on the bottom of each leg. Self-leveling booted glides are a sign of quality while standard plastic glides may indicate cost cuts. These plastic glides are prone to break or fall off as the chair is used. This type of damage typically will not happen with the self-leveling glides as they have a different fastening system.
Lastly, have multiple persons of different sizes and body types sit in the chair for periods of time that are similar to your services. This will give you an idea of how comfortable the chair is.
Although larger seating may be more comfortable, you don&#;t want to end up with chairs that won&#;t fit in your facility properly. Make sure to factor in chair size when deciding on your layout and church chair spacing. At ChurchPlaza, we make this process easier by offering standard sizes for our chairs, as you can see in each model&#;s specs.
If you need seating quickly and don&#;t have enough time to sample and personalize your furniture, check out our quick ship Jericho chairs.
Make sure you receive an easy to understand chair warranty that will provide replacement chairs free of cost to you in case of any problems. Be particularly careful of a requirement that your church pay for the shipping of the defective chair and the replacement. This game assures the chair supplier you&#;ll never exercise your warranty, as it would be more expensive to ship the defective chair than to simply replace it.
A good warranty provides a chair frame lifetime warranty, workmanship warranty of 25 years and 10 years on foam and fabric.
Limit your purchases to established chair providers with proven long term reputations for sourcing quality products, service, and integrity. Check their financial backgrounds to see if there are prior bankruptcies, lawsuits, financial improprieties or failure to deliver paid-for products. Find out how long they have been in business. Be particularly wary of stocking warehouses providing discount church furniture, as their business model is based upon acquiring the cheapest chairs possible for resale.
Finding the right company is more than just how the chairs look and feel. Knowing their business practices and level of customer service is important as well. Getting answers in writing is highly recommended as then you&#;ll have a record of their claims. For any questions you may have about ChurchPlaza&#;s products, please don&#;t hesitate to contact us.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of Large Volume Auditorium Chair Supply. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.
There are many providers of seating for churches, but not everyone is created equally or does business in the same way. While some focus on providing quality products and service, others rely on re-selling the least expensive chairs possible, banking on the inexperience of most churches.
This contrast in quality is most evident with stocking warehouses that resell cheap chairs designed and manufactured by someone else. In addition to poor chair quality are potential problems with warranties and service after the sale.
Only buy from a well established and recognized supplier of church and sanctuary chairs &#; preferably one that has endorsements from many churches, national denominations and ministries. If possible, pick a provider who is responsible for the design and manufacturing of chairs for churches, not simply a reseller of someone else&#;s chair.
Only buy chairs that have their components certified by 3rd party laboratories for safety. Without that assurance, church chairs and sanctuary seating foundation, foam and fabrics could likely emit dangerous levels of formaldehyde and TDCPP, both cancer-causing agents.
ChurchPlaza was the first provider of church chairs to have laboratory certified that all components used in the manufacturing of their chairs meet or exceed all International, US, State and Association regulations and guidelines regarding the emission of proven dangerous carcinogenic fumes (including those associated formaldehyde and TDCPP).
Add up the total cost of the chairs to include component upgrades and shipping. THEN ask yourself if a couple of dollars per chair is worth not having the assurance of quality, safety, and warranty that a cheap no name church chair lacks. Chair manufacturers from all over the world often contact us seeking our business. As we have our own proprietary designs and very high standards, the manufacturer is usually not set up to manufacture chairs at our standards.
Your church&#;s chair purchase is a major investment. Seating is a major capital expenditure and deserves careful consideration. If done properly your church will enjoy many years of comfortable and trouble free use. If not done carefully, the result will be frustration, disruption in your ministry and the loss of thousands of dollars.
Visit our selection of church chairs for sale and request your free sample chair today!
Updated February 24, .
How powerful you say? Commandingly loud and distortion free: so much so, I&#;ve now limited their volume to 50%, and that still is a monstrous roar for such tiny speakers: I&#;d hate to blow them (and don&#;t need them anywhere near that level).
And they look gorgeous &#; I could get them in blue! Mine have a blue fabric outer, solid plastic front, and a blue and gold trimmed central component with their unique KEF appearance. Photos do not do these speakers justice: the finish and workmanship is stellar.
There was a wait of a few months, but was such an exciting day with that ultra-adult-level KEF box arrived. With the KEF P1 Desk Pads (fancy name for &#;angled stands&#;), of course an eye-watering extra purchase, they are sublime to listen to. Subtly toed-in, angled up at me as the listener, they offered such an incredible listening experience.
After my experiences so far, I was curious as to what a sub would add to the mix. So grabbed the home theatre sub, and discovered an incredibly immense foundation of richness that builds out the lower end. Without a sub, these speakers grab your attention and demand to be listened to. But with a sub, your entire soundstage demands respect and refuses to let go. Jaw-dropping.
Great, so now I needed to find a pairing sub.
Back to Melbourne HiFi I go, and the team there are superb to work with: I explain to them about my Q Acoustics issues with sub volumes, and because I&#;m well-researched, had a few units I wanted to hear, and also wanted to hear their recommendations.
They invited me to a room, and suggested in three contenders: the REL T-Zero mk III, the SVS Micro and the KEF KC62.
Now this is a great time to raise the KEF app. The KEF speakers can be controlled by their remote, but with more customisation available via the KEF app (and yes, runs on your M-chip MacBook too). This includes an incredible suite of subwoofer output options to help tune the frequency responsibilities of the speakers and the sub, as well as gain (to help in case the sub decides to fall asleep): all amazing features that would have been great with the Q Acoustics system.
Melbourne HiFi set me up in order of budget: REL first. And it sounded good&#; the soundscape had a bottom end which was decent, but then when they plugged in the SVS Micro, the difference was so pronounced. Bottom end with clarity, depth and richness, and without unnecessary boom, and absolutely free from distortion &#; even as those low frequencies hit.
Right, the REL is off the table. Easy.
The final comparison was between the SVS Micro and KEF&#;s KC62. This thing is absolutely tiny, and insanely hefty with its weight. No, really: it&#;s unexpectedly heavy. And that price tag. The price tag is more than the KEF LSX II speakers themselves. Yes, hefty in more than just weight.
Both of these subs feature dual woofers, set up in an opposing structure to help minimise vibrations. Both are incredibly compact, and offered a hair-splitting difference in performance. As I said, I&#;m no top-tier audiophile &#; I do love my sound, thrive on excellence &#; and while the KEF KC62 to me had a slight edge in sound, was it worth an extra $1,000 over the SVS?
The SVS also had an app to help tune it, and continued to receive impressive reviews. SVS are a sub company &#; they know their market &#; and these demos have proven that a subwoofer doesn&#;t need to be massive to get impact. But yes, that comes at a cost, but it can be done.
Black Friday was around the corner, and I was watching prices. If the KEF dropped below $2,000, I would have gone for it: but that was a massive discount to expect and, yep, it didn&#;t happen. With a retailer hinting at a major price rise incoming for SVS, some had specials on their existing stock of the SVS Micro, including one offer that was simply too good to refuse. So grabbed a bargain with a $1,300 SVS Micro sub.
Another heft box arrived, and the sub was set up. With two apps &#; one for the KEF and one for SVS &#; I had a wealth of possibilities to help tune for the setup and room. And yes, it took a little bit of time to blend it smoothy, and find the right placement. But with both speakers and sub having apps, I could stay in my listening position and tweak to my heart&#;s content.
Originally, the sub was under my desk&#; but never sounded quite right: at times it was just right, but others felt too much, and others too little. But with a slightly longer cable, it&#;s now behind the chair in the corner of my office. There&#;s no prominent &#;boom&#; throughout the room, it has blended and balanced perfectly, you can&#;t even see the sub unless you&#;re looking for it, and my entire soundstage is impressively broad, rich, detailed and crystal clear.
Even at the lowest of very low listening levels, I&#;ve never once had the SVS Micro go to sleep during use. It wakes up reliably every time I start listening, stays awake at all volumes, and delivers a tight and responsive low end.
While I don&#;t doubt the KEF KC62 would have been a great buy too, this is one time where logic took over: the SVS Micro is aggressively priced for being such a high performer. And I bet that if someone gave me a blind and tuned demo of the KEF LSX II paired with the KEF and SVS sub, I would struggle to tell them apart. Step away and not be able to listen to them side-by-side, I feel I&#;d be even less likely to tell them apart. Bang (boom?) for buck, the SVS Micro has delivered insane value.
So this is a bonus addition because, let&#;s face it, the KEF and SVS setup is not cheap. My other half had been using an Apple HomePod Mini pair, and was frustrated with the on-going issues, dropouts and delays. Time for something else.
During my research stage, I had AudioEngine on my short list, and had a bit of a chat with AudioEngine&#;s US-based team &#; and they were superb to talk to. Responsive and friendly support goes a long way for me. Reviews claim a high quality product, nice touches on delivery (such as the fabric speaker bags), but also that they do need a subwoofer to come alive.
With the KEF-level speaker way out of budget, and my partner didn&#;t want anything too big as they have a smaller desk than mine, it narrowed the scope to look at the AudioEngine A2+: their other speakers all started to get a bit too big.
While these were on my shortlist, their reviewed high recommendation for a subwoofer ruled it out for me (because I would have liked no sub, but I know, I know, I got one anyway), but thought maybe my partner would appreciate the clear 2.0 sound. After all, it would be nice to have a pure 2.0 setup with a well-rounded sound.
But you can&#;t cheat physics: and small speakers just don&#;t have the woofer capabilities to produce those low frequencies. And that&#;s not AudioEngine&#;s (or any other manufacturer&#;s) fault &#; it is the way it is.
But the A2+ look superb: a gloss white finish with black components, with AudioEngine-made black silicone stands to angle them up to the listener. On my partner&#;s desk, they look incredible: they&#;re compact, smart and not obtrusive &#; a great addition for a modern desk.
Are you interested in learning more about Waiting Seat? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!