They're Talking About Us
You may have seen Way Basics discussed on your favorite television morning show your newspaper or seen a review on a popular website. Our revolutionary easy eco modular furniture is making waves and has been seen on: MSNBC ABC Kids Today The Washington Post The Los Angeles Times Daily Candy Apartment Therapy to name a few.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What do I do with the backer board that came with my furniture?
A:When you’re done assembling your Way Basics furniture piece place the backer board at the rear of your furniture. This sturdy paper board is the essential framing piece that holds it all together. It’s designed to adhere neatly stabilize your furniture and create a finished look.
Q: How can I customize my Way Basics Furniture?
A: The possibilities are endless! We designed our modular building blocks to inspire creativity and possibility. Here are a few ideas:
- zBoard dividers are available to create organization and playful possibilities.
- Stack different bookshelves in different colors next to each other to create you own design.
- Add stickers!
- Mix and match zBoards of different hues to add a charge of color to any room.
- Build a multi-colored bookshelf or insert multiple zBoard dividers for a great look.
- Rest a horizontal zBoard on top of any two of our lower pre-configured pieces and voila! You’ve got a table or desk.
- Get fancy and spice it up with casters or wheels to make your furniture mobile. (you will need a screwdriver to affix casters)
- Visit the Design Gallery on waybasics.com for more ideas!
Q: Made from paper...is it strong? How much weight can zBoards hold?
A: It’s very strong indeed! zBoards are constructed through our patented process and are made from multiple overlapping layers of paperboard and corrugated paper that combine to withstand tremendous pressure. We like to describe the zBoard as carbon fiber of paper. For instance our founder weighs 195 pounds and when he stands on our Cube it can easily bear his weight.
zBoards are just as strong as common particle board constructed furniture. Our furniture is designed for use in common storage home and work purposes. With Way Basics furniture you can easily add a divider/support zBoard and hold up to 100 pounds per shelf for your really big and heavy things. We recommend adding divider/support zBoards starting from the lowest shelf to support the heaving books or objects above.
Q: Is your packaging recycled too?
A: Yes even our packaging is recycled. We use materials made from 90% post-consumer waste. Since packaging is just to safely transport and protect your furniture we’d rather keep it basic recycled and completely recyclable to ease the load on our environment. Please reuse or recycle your packaging when you’re done with it too. Thanks!
Q: How strong is the double-sided adhesive tape?
A: Very very strong. We use only 3M industrial-strength heavy-duty adhesive tape on our products. To take full advantage of all that sticking power and get optimum adhesion make sure your bonding adhesive surfaces are clean dry and properly joined. It works best if you put together your furniture in a room that’s between 70° F to 100° F (21° C to 38° C). This super-tape’s bonds get stronger during the first 24 hours so we recommend that you let your furniture sit in place for the first day.
Q: Are zBoards water resistant?
A: Yes the exterior layers of the board are treated with a water resistant material just like other finished wood veneers. If water gets on the zBoard surface it will dry (though of course it’s best if you wipe it up like all spills). You’ll want to keep water away from the furniture’s edges and corners where it’s a little more vulnerable to moisture. Again we hate to sound like your mom but if water spills just wipe it up!
Q: Does Way Basics furniture off-gas?
A: No Way Basics furniture does not "off-gas". Off-gasing occurs in the manufacturing process of particle poard and MDF in which various types of formaldehyde are used. There is no formaldehyde in our products. Have no fear our products don't pass gas!
Q: What are the differences between zBoards particleboard plywood solid wood and MDF?
A: zBoards are made almost entirely (99%) from post-consumer recycled paper and do not consume additional natural resources like trees and the enormous amounts of water needed to make virgin paper. While very strong paper zBoards are made from the lightest form of wood byproduct.
Particleboard is made from wood particles (like wood chips sawmill shavings or sawdust) which is bound together with synthetic resin or other materials then pressed and extruded. It is fairly heavy.
Plywood is engineered from thin sheets of wood veneer in layers that are glued together. It’s fairly heavy and expensive. It also means that trees must be chopped down to harvest the wood.
Solid wood is made directly from lumber which means chopping down thousands of trees and continuing the deforestation of large areas of our planet. Solid wood furniture is heavy and generally very expensive.
MDF stands for medium density fiberboard a variety of particleboard. It’s made by breaking down softwood into small wood fibers and particles that are then bound together with wax and resin. The panels are formed by applying high temperature and pressure. This manufacturing process uses lots of energy resources and puts contaminants into the environment.
And when you buy Way Basics furniture you’re helping improve the world in other ways too. We work with furniture banks around the country to help those families in desperate need -- victims of natural disasters who’ve lost everything they owned women and children escaping from domestic violence working families below the poverty line and others requiring a hand up — not a handout.
