How to Fix an Uncomfortable Couch | Lifehacker

Buying furnishings is like shopping for sneakers: What feels proper for 30 seconds within the retailer typically turns into an uncomfortable mistake when you get it residence. A sofa is a basic a part of the residing house—it’s the place we calm down, learn, watch TV, even eat dinner. There’s nothing extra comforting than with the ability to drop into a cushty sofa that envelopes you and helps you thru no matter exercise you’ve obtained cued up.

On the other finish of that spectrum is a hell sofa that hurts your again, slowly slides you onto the ground, or makes you’re feeling such as you’re sitting on a burlap sack. A foul sofa can convey down the remainder of your life, however couches are usually costly, cumbersome purchases that may be troublesome to return or substitute. If you’re residing with an uncomfortable sofa, don’t despair: There are a number of issues you are able to do to rework a horrible sofa into a cushty one.

Problem: Scratchy material

Upholstery material might be very troublesome to guage in a showroom—and in the event you’re procuring on-line, it’s not possible. You can search for knowledge like rub counts, however spending a number of seconds touching the material within the retailer won’t ever be the identical as really sitting on it frequently for weeks and months. And you possibly can actually be allergic to the upholstery of your furnishings—“sofa dermatitis” is a factor, and signs received’t all the time present after a really temporary encounter.

Solution: If your sofa makes you itchy, is disagreeable to the contact, or causes allergic reactions, a easy sofa cowl can clear up the issue fairly economically. Properly utilized, a sofa cowl will utterly conceal the offending material, and you may in all probability discover one which mimics the unique colour fairly intently. If you don’t have any further money to throw round on fancy covers, a blanket or two draped over the sofa and pushed neatly into the cushions will get the job performed.

Problem: Too onerous or tender

Determining whether or not a sofa is just too onerous or too tender takes time. Couches that really feel like dreamy clouds in a retailer can turn out to be uncomfortably mushy over longer intervals of time, and a brilliant onerous sofa may really feel supportive at first however take a toll in your backbone over the lengthy haul.

Solution: The most complete strategy could be to swap out the froth cushions contained in the covers (assuming you possibly can simply unzip the covers and take away the froth). Pull out the cushions and measure them, then both order some alternative foam and lower new cushions your self or go to an organization that can lower customized cushions for you. Once you might have your replacements, simply push them into the covers, re-zip, and substitute.

If that’s extra of a venture than you need, there are some simpler methods to attempt:

• For couches which might be too onerous, you possibly can attempt a little bit endurance, rotating the cushions each few days. Over time, flipping them round could soften them up evenly, eliminating that uncomfortable stiffness. You also can attempt layering a thick blanket on high of the seat cushions, and soften the again with some throw pillows or one other thick blanket.

• For a sofa that’s too tender, you possibly can attempt placing a skinny layer of agency foam on high of the present cushion; this may increasingly provide you with simply sufficient assist.

Problem: Not deep sufficient

You get your new sofa residence and uncover that sitting on it forces you to lean ahead barely as a result of it’s not deep sufficient to lean again comfortably. You’re doomed to a lifetime of actually leaning in to each TV present you watch.

Solution: You can attempt a number of issues to regulate the expertise:

• Unzip the again cushions and examine the froth cushion. If it’s layers of separate items, attempt eradicating one layer at a time till you attain the specified depth. Alternatively, substitute the froth completely with a thinner batch. Or, in the event you’re determined, take away the again cushions completely and use some bigger throw pillows as a substitute.

• Add some footstools or ottomans. These can act as extensions of the sofa, letting you stretch out extra even when the seat of the sofa is a little bit slim. Pro tip bonus: Buy a storage ottoman and cope with your litter on the identical time.

Problem: Sagging or sliding cushions

Sometimes a sofa is stealthily uncomfortable. Brand new, it feels nice, and it stays that means for some time. Slowly, nevertheless, the cushions slide, folding you in half in unnoticeable increments, or the entire seat begins to sag till climbing out of your sofa doubles as a core exercise.

Solution: These are fairly widespread issues with couches, and fashionable capitalism has jumped into the fray. For sagging cushions, a product like a SagsAway insert may help. Placed contained in the cushion cowl, this stiff foam insert can convey your cushions again to agency, supportive life. If your seat cushion is one lengthy piece or you possibly can’t or don’t wish to open them up, you can even buy merchandise designed to slip underneath the cushions that may provide the identical stiffening impact—in actual fact, a bit of scrap plywood lower to dimension can have the same affect.

For cushions that appear to get pleasure from slowly disgorging you onto the ground, some nonslip padding underneath your cushions can present sufficient friction to carry them in place (when you have rug pads mendacity round, these will work simply as properly). If that’s not ample, some hook-and-loop (aka Velcro) adhesive tape can maintain your cushions in place very successfully.

Problem: Wrong peak

If you’re feeling like you possibly can by no means get comfy in your sofa however can’t determine why, it’s in all probability the improper peak. We typically don’t take into consideration peak when choosing out a sofa, and lots of fashionable designs have embraced a low-to-the-floor, glossy profile that isn’t all the time probably the most comfy.

Solution: A easy, low-cost answer is to choose up some furnishings risers and lift your sofa a number of inches. Make positive you buy adjustable risers that may go greater or decrease so you possibly can experiment with completely different heights to see at what stage you’re most comfy.

If the sofa appears too tall, you possibly can take away the legs and place the sofa straight on the ground (be cognizant of staples or different metallic elements on the underside of the sofa that may scratch your flooring—putting a mat of some kind beneath is advisable). You also can substitute the legs with shorter variations if yow will discover some that match your furnishings’s fashion. If the legs received’t come off, you possibly can think about sawing down picket legs, however that might affect future use of the sofa and also you’ll solely get one likelihood to guess the appropriate peak, so proceed with warning.