Advise Me: Futon/Guest Bed Solutions (NGKUR)

[shadesofgold]

Do you love your futon? Have another creative guest bed solution to recommend? Try something you absolutely hated? I want to hear about it! 




We host guests several times a year (often couples) and want to offer them something more sturdy than an air mattress. Our guest room is MH's office most of the time, so we prefer something that can be folded up and not take up too much space. And, of course, it has to be comfy!

Thanks in advance!

[Deleted]

If you go the fold out couch or futon route, I recommend buying a better mattress. It can make a cheap couch/futon totally worth it.

[tincupchalice]

I have a loveseat sofa bed from JC Pennys. It's great for us because our space can't take a full-size pull out couch, but I wanted something nicer than a futon.

[joy]

I would get a pullout loveseat.

I have a futon from my immediate post-college days. It screams "I'm a young 20-something with no money!" even though it's a nice, wooden futon (not a metal, crappy one). I'm partial to it because I've had it for so long but my husband is basically offended by its existence.

A pullout loveseat I think will just end up being more timeless and a good investment.

[pbandj714]

We have this pull-out couch and also the pull-out loveseat in our family room as an extra bed for guests. It's a fairly thin mattress, but I've laid on it a few times comfortably, and none of our guests have complained. They have queen, full, and twin pull-out varieties, and they're super affordable. I like the look of a couch better than a futon.

[mcktymck]

We recently purchased a futon for our guest room/future nursery, simply because we figured it took up a lot less space than a typical bed. It's definitely not the most uncomfortable thing in the world (DH might disagree). The mattress does however try to swallow you up and pulls you into the center of it. But then it's sort of like a hammock, and who doesn't love sleeping in a hammock?

[piccyami]

We have one of those upholstered futons in H's media room. It isn't particularly comfortable anymore, but we don't want to get rid of it because it fits through the door (we have some odd doorway orientations). If we were buying something to replace it and needed the extra bed, I would go with a pull-out couch/loveseat.

[kawaiikitsune]

We have an old hide-a-bed couch but the mattress is murder. We don't have guests very frequently but on the occasion that we do, I hate them having to sleep on that thing. I don't know why it never occurred to me that I could replace the mattress with a better one until this thread (thank you so much @led).

[joy]

Aug 3, 2015 13:38:16 GMT -5 kawaiikitsune said:

We have an old hide-a-bed couch but the mattress is murder. We don't have guests very frequently but on the occasion that we do, I hate them having to sleep on that thing. I don't know why it never occurred to me that I could replace the mattress with a better one until this thread (thank you so much @led).

I've always assumed that a nicer mattress wouldn't bend like it needed to for those pull-outs.  But, I'm sure a company exists that has rectified this issue!

[renbee]

This is a little expensive, but... It is seriously the most comfortable air mattress EVAR.

Grandin Road EZ Bed

My parents have one. It really might be more comfortable than some of the actual mattresses in my house.

[babycowbell]

We have a wall bed, or Murphy bed as some call it, that pulls down from the wall. When it's not down it just looks like storage cabinets. It came with additional storage on the side of the actual bed part with shelves and cabinets. There is a very wide range in price and visual appeal in wall beds, but for our layout it made more sense for a guest bed than a futon or pull out couch.

[shadesofgold]

Aug 3, 2015 14:13:53 GMT -5 renbee said:

This is a little expensive, but... It is seriously the most comfortable air mattress EVAR.

Grandin Road EZ Bed

My parents have one. It really might be more comfortable than some of the actual mattresses in my house.

Wow, that seems too good to be true. Nothing but good things to say?

[renbee]

Aug 3, 2015 14:21:41 GMT -5 shadesofgold said:

Aug 3, 2015 14:13:53 GMT -5 renbee said:

This is a little expensive, but... It is seriously the most comfortable air mattress EVAR.

Grandin Road EZ Bed

My parents have one. It really might be more comfortable than some of the actual mattresses in my house.

Wow, that seems too good to be true. Nothing but good things to say?

No, it's seriously awesome. It doesn't lose air like normal air mattresses, so it stays nice and firm. Blows up in about 5 minutes with just the flip of a switch, and it basically folds itself back up into a fairly compact package for easy storage. I think it sounds like a great solution for you!

[BurritosAtEveryMeal]

I vote for a pull out couch/love seat or maybe a daybed if you like the look. A couch/love seat can always move to a different room down the road. We always rearrange.

[mosdub]

I bought a thick memory foam topper to put on our futon mattress when guests came and that helped.

The best I've ever slept on was a daybed with trundle like this:
ETA - removed pic because it was huge - just google "daybed trundle"

It's nice because you can use it just as a twin, pull out the trundle bed for 2 twins, or raise the trundle to match the height and you would have a "king mattress" for a couple to share.

[emilie]

To be completely honest, the queen-sized Aerobed (the one that looks like a double-decker) is more comfortable than any futon or pull-out I've ever slept on.

[cheshie6]

I have a futon and recently acquired a full size bed. I like having both! We used the futon for a very long time, both are from Ikea. Our friends who have slept on it regularly and didn't mind it. I'm sure my BFF loves the full size bed more but didn't mind the futon. My mom didn't even know she was on a futon 2 years ago, so I would guess that's good. I've slept on both good and bad futons. The best futons are the ones with slats in the sit/sleep area, not rounded bars!

[samanthasays]

Aug 3, 2015 14:23:59 GMT -5 renbee said:

Aug 3, 2015 14:21:41 GMT -5 shadesofgold said:

Wow, that seems too good to be true. Nothing but good things to say?

No, it's seriously awesome. It doesn't lose air like normal air mattresses, so it stays nice and firm. Blows up in about 5 minutes with just the flip of a switch, and it basically folds itself back up into a fairly compact package for easy storage. I think it sounds like a great solution for you!

I just wanted to thank you renbee for this amazing recommendation! My parents are flying out at the end of the month to help us move, and I didnt know how we were going to set up our guest room. I was thinking about putting a queen bed in our spare room, but then I wouldn't have room for anything else. So I was considering a pull out couch or futon, but those seem so college student to me. Ideally I want to use the room as a yoga/pilates room when we don't have company, this is such an amazing solution! I can leave it in the closet 99% of the time and just pull it out when we have overnight guests  

[shadesofgold]

Aug 4, 2015 13:32:06 GMT -5 samanthasays said:

Aug 3, 2015 14:23:59 GMT -5 renbee said:

No, it's seriously awesome. It doesn't lose air like normal air mattresses, so it stays nice and firm. Blows up in about 5 minutes with just the flip of a switch, and it basically folds itself back up into a fairly compact package for easy storage. I think it sounds like a great solution for you!

I just wanted to thank you renbee for this amazing recommendation! My parents are flying out at the end of the month to help us move, and I didnt know how we were going to set up our guest room. I was thinking about putting a queen bed in our spare room, but then I wouldn't have room for anything else. So I was considering a pull out couch or futon, but those seem so college student to me. Ideally I want to use the room as a yoga/pilates room when we don't have company, this is such an amazing solution! I can leave it in the closet 99% of the time and just pull it out when we have overnight guests  

And I should thank you too, renbee! We ended up ordering the queen EZ Bed based on your rec! I wanted to go the sleeper loveseat route, but MH was really excited about something that had great reviews, was like 1/3 of the cost, and could be put away. (The guest room is his office most of the time, so he gets to make that call.) Thanks again! Can't wait to watch it inflate and deflate on its own over and over again.

[renbee]

Man, I wish I was getting commission or something! ;-)

Glad I could help! Hope you enjoy your purchase samanthasays and shadesofgold!

[samanthasays]

Aug 4, 2015 13:46:24 GMT -5 shadesofgold said:

Aug 4, 2015 13:32:06 GMT -5 samanthasays said:

I just wanted to thank you renbee for this amazing recommendation! My parents are flying out at the end of the month to help us move, and I didnt know how we were going to set up our guest room. I was thinking about putting a queen bed in our spare room, but then I wouldn't have room for anything else. So I was considering a pull out couch or futon, but those seem so college student to me. Ideally I want to use the room as a yoga/pilates room when we don't have company, this is such an amazing solution! I can leave it in the closet 99% of the time and just pull it out when we have overnight guests  

And I should thank you too, renbee! We ended up ordering the queen EZ Bed based on your rec! I wanted to go the sleeper loveseat route, but MH was really excited about something that had great reviews, was like 1/3 of the cost, and could be put away. (The guest room is his office most of the time, so he gets to make that call.) Thanks again! Can't wait to watch it inflate and deflate on its own over and over again.

For real to the cost savings! My wallet is happy