Don’t Get Too Comfortable
If You’ve Decided On Pews, There’s a Few Things You Need to Know Before You Buy

by Bruce Boyers

Many a pastor, priest, deacon and elder has braved the task of ensuring pews will be attractive and fit into the overall visual theme of their sanctuaries. They must make sure pews will be arranged for optimum line-of-sight and hearing, and that they provide adequate comfort for the duration of a worship service.

Borrowing from their experience, you should consider these tried-and-true tips.

Go with an expert. While at first glance a church pew might seem like a simple undertaking for any experienced carpenter, there are many aspects to pew design and placement which make it the better province of experts.

Yes, a pew is essentially an elongated wooden bench, but anyone who’s been engaged in the building of a sanctuary can tell you that numerous questions can arise at the outset.

• What wood or woods will last the longest?
• How far apart should pews be spaced?
• To which what type of floor (carpeted, tiled, etc.) will the pews be anchored? How is that done without damaging the floor or the pews?
• What happens if a beam or other architectural necessity ends up being placed where a pew is supposed to go?

Understand the basic science of pew design. There’s a science to pew design, and it begins with structural integrity.

For example, the back of the pew is exactly constructed and pitched so that 1) it will fully support the person seated in it, and 2) it will support worshipers behind the pew using the pew back as support to raise to their feet.

As another example, it might be assumed that solid wood — being the traditional pew material — is the ultimate in pew-end design, but solid wood has many detriments. Chief among them is the fact that it expands and contracts from heat, cold and humidity, causing it to crack, split and warp.

Modern advances have brought pew-ends made of plywood and medium-density fiberboard (MDF), with just veneers of hardwood. This combination brings the beauty of hardwood to pew design, but with far better stability. It also allows the manufacturer to warrantee the pews for the life of the building. These pew ends are virtually indistinguishable from solid wood.

Make sure the pew manufacturer will work directly with the builder and, if possible, the architect. Since your pew manufacturer will be working hand-in-glove with your building contractor, it’s vital they form a mutual understanding and are able to work together.

One common example of the problems solved by forming this chain relationship is when an architect — forgetting he or she is dealing with an inclined floor — lays down a row of pews right across a break in the incline of the floor. A pew expert will catch this problem before it’s too late, having encountered it many times before.

While it’s not always possible to have an architect name the manufacturer right in the church building plans, it helpful in the long run if he or she coordinates with the pew manufacturer at the outset. This ensures that what’s laid out in the plans is what’s actually installed in the church.

Choose flexibility. Many architect errors aren’t committed in malice; building codes and issues involved would only be familiar to someone who works with pew manufacturing on a regular basis. Hence, having someone who has “traveled this road” many times work with a church builder is a considerable advantage.

Make sure you receive your pews exactly as you ordered them — and on time. To complete the building project on time and accurately, reliable, accurate delivery is crucial. If pews are delivered on time, and as specified, you can be sure the crucial first service in the new sanctuary will happen as scheduled.

Bruce Boyers — a Glendale, Calif.-based technical writer — represents Imperial Woodworks, Inc., providers of pews, chairs, pulpits, Communion tables and re-upholstery services. Visit www.imperialww.com or call 800.234.6624.