Buying first sofa bed, advice needed

Hansaro

Hey all,
Having moved in a new flat I am slowly starting to put piece by piece in it. It's stressful and my current dilemma is the sofa bed.
What I need: 3 - 4 seater with 1.8m seating space as minimum
Fold out mattress bed ideally longer than 1.8m
Good frame quality
I started hunting willow and Hall but saw that they only do 2.5 seaters and the mattresses are short 1.8m.
Then saw sofa workshop, good size but again short mattress about £1500-1600
Then sofa.com - good sizes and a king size mattress as default.
Problem. Is the fabric choice
It goes in bands. Band 0 is the cheapest, they call it limited edition but tbh that could be a marketing tool. They are all synthetic fibers (polyester) £1645 and always excluded out of discount offers
Then, there is nothing I fancy in band 1
Band 2 has some decent 67% Cotton 33%linen '' brushed cotton'' fabrics which with the discount code come at £1720. Potential cashback as well plus guardsman fabric insurance for free this week.
My questions are: should I go for natural fibers and should I order this week or wait for the big black Friday etc.
Polyester from my experience is like a tank, no wrinkles no sagginess no stains. but it runs a bit hot. Found a colour and material I like but thinking I am spending a lot of money for plastic.
My profile: single with no pets. Will be used daily in the living area.
If you have other suggestions please let me know. I'm not really over the moon spending £1.7k on a sofa. Thanks

KateLiana27

We had an Ikea Manstad (the forerunner to Friheten) corner sofa which was very sturdy and comfortable both as a sofa - loads of seating space - and a full-size double bed (I slept on it myself and it's great, and very easy to change into a sofa). Only downside is self-assembly which I loathe. And definitely not natural fibres. But it looked fine and did the job perfectly. It was in our dining room but I would happily have had it as our main sofa.

Personally I would hesitate to spend 1.7K on a sofa bed. You might be a careful, child and pet free person but will you stay that way, and are all your guests going to be?

Also consider buying the sofa you really want and getting a separate good quality airbed (the type that forms a full height double with its own electric pump - they fold down tiny but make a comfortable, large bed in minutes). Sofa beds often involve a lot of compromise and expense.

sooty&sweep

Hi

I'd second the idea of considering an air bed instead of a sofa bed. Especially if it's going to be your main sofa.
A lot I've sat on aren't that comfortable.

Jen

Fire_Fox

I had an IKEA click-clack sofabed with the 'everyday' mattress option for a decade before it died. Very comfortable. Pale zip-off w ashable covers that came up really well.

Replaced with another click-clack from SCS for the length and ease of use over the pull/ fold out type sofabed.

Both £500 ish. I spill food/ drinks and have a cat, rather replace than overspend.

Neither model still made but IKEA will have similar I am sure. Much you can order online from stock. And get a new mattress after a few years, if still made (often are).

theonlywayisup

Similar info here, albeit not many replies https://www.hotukdeals.com/discussions/polyester-sofa-vs-cottonlinen-which-is-best-3084701

We have an Ikea sofa bed - it's not a comfy sofa but it's a comfy bed, it's in a spare room and seldom used as either.

Is this going to be your bed or a spare - sorry long post and I'm on a phone so can't read it all that easily.

Hansaro

I haven't thought about the airbed... Not surely something g I am very fond of... I slept on airbeds and it is a compromise whilst a medium firm sofa plus topper beats that. Yes.. I am a bit shy of IKEA. They don't have reviews in their website and I feel their life span is quite small. You all are suggesting a simple sofa but had a look again and the difference in price vs a sofabed is between 100 and 200 less for the sofa. I heard sofas are more comfortable but really don't know as I haven't tried and not even sure what makes them more comfortable. Maybe a rigid base for the seat cushions? Really a struggle this game... Almost 2 grand for a sofabed with lifetime warranty that you will only use 5 years... Imagine how many mortgage overpayment I'd put in with that money... Arghh...

Hansaro

The use will be 90% sofa. The bed part is for family or guests coming over.

that

Some of my fiends have had sofa beds. they were never comfortable beds or sofas.

being a big bloke, and having slept on an air bed too will vouch for the surprising comfortableness of them, even compared to a normal bed. Get one with a built in air pump though.

"just moved into a flat" - You bought a flat? If you rent, taking furniture to pieces often weakens it. if it does not come to bits, then it is hard to transport, and may not fit in your next flat either.

Fire_Fox

The more variables you have the more compromises: be that price, comfort, choice of finishes ... Expecting to need a mattress topper is just one compromise.

With a regular sofa the seating cushions and supporting structure dictates the comfort and durability. Compromises are often related to price and build quality.

With a fold out sofabed much of what is under the cushions is a bed which you may rarely benefit from! To be strong enough it may also be hard to sit on.

IKEA sell products at a wide range of price points and durabilities, and amazing value for money IMO. Popular products are sold worldwide for many years so it's easy to find opinions online. An IKEA store will have plenty of customers at any given time, whereas a sofa-focussed store has fewer customers to make a profit from.

Hansaro

Well, say I choose to go with sofa.com for a sofa. It will be 1550- 1600 and the same seat cushions and back. Cushions as a sofa bed. The only difference is that the sofa will have the cushions sat on a platform. Probably high end will have arches as well right?
That's what I mean.. The difference in price between sofa and sofa bed is small.
I'll look into those airbeds, see how big they are packed.
Yes, I have a mortgage as shared owner. Moving out shouldn't be a problem. If it doesn't fit in new home will sell it. I'll keep an eye out everywhere M, gumtree and eBay. What other shops would you guys recommend for sofas?

FreeBear

Hansaro wrote: »

I'll keep an eye out everywhere M, gumtree and eBay. What other shops would you guys recommend for sofas?

If you are contemplating second hand, places like Oxfam, British Heart Foundation, and countless other charity shops have a selection of good quality furniture. Most of them are quite picky about donations and refuse anything with stains & wear. They will always reject anything without tags (and quite rightly). Quite a bit of it comes from home owners wanting the latest decor every year or two. So good chance it will be from a kid/pet free house and had little use.

Got my solid oak framed leather three piece suite from Oxfam, including delivery, ~£100.