Which Futon Frame? – The Options
Futon Sofa Bed Frames
When it comes to choosing the right futon bed frame for your needs you will come across a number of options. There are three main materials used to make futon frames, there is metal, wood and a combination of both wood and metal.
Metal frames will perhaps be the most common ones that you will see. Many of the big box stores sells metal framed futons and as with most of the items you get from these stores, these beds are not very expensive, they are mass made to keep the costs down. The most common colors for these frames are black and silver, so that they will match as many décors as possible and therefore appeal to as many people as possible.
Metal futon frames, as the name suggests, are made entirely from metal, this has its upsides and down sides, one of the upsides is that they are able to feature sprung hinges, these means that the beds are easy to operate, so the owner needs to use less energy to pull the sofa into a bed and push it back into a sofa again. The downsides to using only metal is that the support beams that run from side to side, under the mattress, are metal too, making the bed very firm, so if you buy an inferior futon mattress you are going to feel these beams on your back and sides when lying on the bed making it quite uncomfortable over longer periods. This discomfort can be avoided though if a thicker, higher quality mattress is used on the bed. Though these mattresses do cost quite a lot of money so if you are buying a metal framed futon your budget is not likely to stretch far enough for an expensive mattress. If you can, I would suggest avoiding metal futon frames.
To get the benefit of the metal frame with its spring loaded hinges you could go for a hybrid of wood and metal. You will still have the frame but the beams across the piece can be made from wood, the wood flexes making it more comfortable to sleep on.
Bi-Fold Futon
Personally I think the best option is to go with a wooden futon frame. You could either get a softwood or a hardwood frame. If you went down the route of softwood then the most common wood used is pine. This option isn’t too much more expensive compared to a metal frame as many of the frames come in a raw finish, with no coating, so this keeps the costs down as much as possible, but it also lets you finish the furniture the exact way that you want, making it a perfect match to your home. The downside to using a softwood like pine is that it can be easily damaged and dented, also because these pieces are aimed at lower price points, lower quality fixtures and fittings will be used to build the futons, meaning they are more prone to breaking. This doesn’t mean they will fall apart as soon as you get home, but if you use the bed frequently then it might not be the most cost effective option.
Hardwoods are a different story though, these will be made using woods such as oak or maple. Futons made with hardwood will cost a bit more than the ones make using soft wood and considerably more than metal framed futons. But this extra cost is well worth it, higher quality fittings are going to be used and these futons will last many years. Most manufacturers are so confident about the quality of these pieces that they will offer lifetime guarantees with them. If anything goes wrong with the bed it will be fixed or replaced.
Futon Frame Styles
Tri-Fold Futon
There are also two futon styles for you to think about as well. There is either bi-fold or tri-fold futons. In the United States bi-fold futons seem to be pretty popular, perhaps because they look just like normal furniture. The bi fold gets its name from the fact the bed/sofa comes in two sections. To transform from a sofa to bed happens when the back of sofa flattens to come in line with base of the seat, it is a very simple design.
The tri-fold futon really isn’t all that different, just that is features a third section, and in some cases will fold a differently. Both of these beds are available in a range of sizes king size, queen, twin, single and so on. The only real difference is that the tri-fold futon will be a little better if you have a small space to work with as they can fold into a more compact shape.
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