Question:

I have been considering a twin sleeper chair or chair ½. I am considering BEST company’s Westney mission chair sleeper. Another is Pottery Barn’s which has the advantage of having washable covers.With freight cost it would be about the same cost as the BEST chair. A third and least expensive consideration has been a chair and a half twin sleeper on Amazon Stone and Beam Kristin chair sleeper. I am at a real impasse in deciding, am retired and this would be a big ticket purchase for me. Any opinion you have would help!

August 13, 2020

Answer:

All three of these sleeper chairs are similar in quality.

Sleepers have a different type of construction than reclining or stationary furniture. In this price range almost all sleepers use inexpensive generic sleeper mechanisms made in China (or other Asian countries) by Leggett & Platt.

Sleeper construction in this price range is pretty basic.

• The sleeper mechanism is bolted inside a plywood box.
• The arms and back are bolted to the plywood box from the outside.
• All three sleepers will have 1.8 density foam cushions.

A significant part of the price differential is because the Amazon chair is a basic upholstered piece. Pottery Barn is a basic upholstered chair plus a slipcover. The Mission Style wood frame on the Best Westney increases the price compared with a basic upholstered sofa.

Pottery Barn’s “washable covers” are not as much of an advantage as they used to be. All of these sleeper chairs should be available in inexpensive polyester or olefin “high performance” fabrics with built-in permanent stain resistance technology.

Pottery Barn probably has high performance fabrics available, but most of their slipcovers are cotton, which gets dirty more easily and needs to be cleaned periodically.

• Many types of stains will not come out of cotton, even when it is washed.
• The base fabric on slipcovered sofas is often muslin, which is very thin and cannot be cleaned. It is not very durable and should not be used without the slipcover.

The Amazon Kristin chair describes its frame as “solid hardwood and laminate wood frame.”

• There is very little solid wood.
• “Laminate” is a term that can be applied to either plywood or engineered wood products. I assume they use plywood for the sleeper, because the engineered wood products are not a good material for supporting heavy weights such as a sleeper mechanism.

In general, chairs will hold up better over the long term than larger pieces. The 1.8 density cushion will be the first part to wear out (3 – 5 years for most people.) When the time comes for replacement a better quality (higher density) foam core can give the chair many more years of comfortable seating.

One factor that can make a difference in which brand you choose is the quality of the mattress. I don’t have any information about that so you will have to determine for yourself whether one mattress is better than another.

These chair sleepers are not made for everyday sleeping. They are fine for occasional guests, but for everyday use you will need to spend substantially more for a better quality piece of furniture.

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