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Why are most sofas so bad?

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Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#571

Post by jonah »

andirk wrote: post #133
jonah wrote: post #128

I just spent about $700 having new cushions made for a 50+ year old Danish Teak sofa that I inherited from my grandparents. The original cushions were long gone, but the wooden frame was still in great condition. I sourced high-quality foam and wool upholstery fabric from Maharam and took those to one of the best upholsterers/furniture restorers in Los Angeles. They did a wonderful job and now I have a super-comforta…

Is it super heavy? I've noticed weight often equals how long something will last in good condition, and old furniture is often way heavier and bulkier.

As others mentioned, it's quite light. Here are some pictures I found online of ones similar one to mine:

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a2/c9/50/a2c9506ff9f3d65541d5...

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZrMM8Wa1DuU/UkRPE9INzeI/AAAAAAAAC...

I wrote my original post in haste - the cost was for doing the couch and a matching chair (same side-profile, just narrower.)

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#572

Post by pierat »

dazc wrote: post #513
maximus-decimus wrote: post #479

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just put the sofa in the dryer. But seriously, I wonder if there's some heat treatment possible. surely it should be possible and put the sofa in a giant plastic bag and heat the air inside or something.

The critical temperature for killing bugs is 60 degrees centigrade, not many sofas are going to withstand that.

Put it in a Uhaul box for a day in summer heavy sun. It already hits 160f / 71c routinely in summer in a closed vehicle.

Ive done that when getting old wood furniture from facebook. We bake it for a day or 2 in a closed trailer. If there was anything living on or in it, it isn't after the bake.

And the temp doesnt damage what we do that to in any way.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#573

Post by abraxas »

zac23or wrote: post #530

Everything is bad these days, not just the sofas. 1. The new switches I bought broke before the old ones, which are over 20 years old. 2. LED bulbs last less than incandescent bulbs, even with a 20-year warranty. 3. The new cell phone's screen breaks very easily, it's not like the old Nokia's. And nowadays something expensive is no longer guaranteed to last. This is why I value old things so much: I have an old chair…

On the electronics front I'd beg to differ. Apple has raised the quality bar on electronics by a mile in the last couple of decades. The gadgetry I remember from the eighties and nineties was very cheaply made with plastics that warped or cracked (or both) and cheap switches made of molded plastic and a ballpen spring. Casette player gears were mostly made of that white plastic that always wore down with not much usage. I went through many "high end" walkmans that did not last more than a couple of years each.

It's all too easy to see the past through rose tinted glasses. Also remember that the "built to last" stuff from the past is often an example of survivorship bias.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#574

Post by jonah »

analog31 wrote: post #150
andirk wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it super heavy? I've noticed weight often equals how long something will last in good condition, and old furniture is often way heavier and bulkier.

Not the OP, but my family has a bunch of Danish teak furniture, as does my mom. The sofas are not super heavy. Cushions on a frame. You can see under it. Now, there's no bed inside. My mom's was re-upholstered once. Ours isn't old enough for that yet. We've re-upholstered the dining chairs a couple of times. As for other pieces of furniture, e.g., cabinets and stuff, we bought them used from a place that combed estat…

I also have my grandparent's danish teak dressers and dining table and chairs as well as some various side tables, lamps, bed, etc. I've acquired elsewhere. The all look wonderful and I get a nice feeling of connection to my family whenever I grab some socks, or sit down to eat, etc.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#575

Post by itsoktocry »

zac23or wrote: post #530

Everything is bad these days, not just the sofas. 1. The new switches I bought broke before the old ones, which are over 20 years old. 2. LED bulbs last less than incandescent bulbs, even with a 20-year warranty. 3. The new cell phone's screen breaks very easily, it's not like the old Nokia's. And nowadays something expensive is no longer guaranteed to last. This is why I value old things so much: I have an old chair…

>Everything is bad these days, not just the sofas.

When these conversations happens, I always wonder why people want some of these items to last forever.

Are you going to stick with that 10 year old plasma TV? Great. I want new tech, and this stuff moves fast. Furniture is a bit different, but my parents had all kinds of good, long-lasting stuff that no one wants because it's out of style.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#576

Post by inferiorhuman »

lostlogin wrote: post #482
Wohlf wrote: post #343

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Particleboard is absolutely useless, MDF is mostly useless except using as a guaranteed flat surface on top of something to support it, hardboard is pretty useful in certain applications though. OSB is great and extremely affordable as sheathing, and there's a massive variety of plywood that's great for their respective purposes - from cheap rough sheathing, mid-grade for shop projects and filling large gaps in furni…

> Particleboard is absolutely useless, MDF is mostly useless except using as a guaranteed flat surface on top of something to support it Unless there is a drop of moisture, then you throw it all away. It’s so depressingly wasteful.

  Unless there is a drop of moisture, then you throw it all away.
You might not want to set foot in your kitchen or bathroom then. Generally speaking cabinets (in the US) use particleboard frames. Higher end stuff will use plywood.

I went with IKEA's Sektion cabinets to replace some forty year old particleboard cabinets that warped after years of water damage from a burst pipe. They came with a twenty-five year warranty so there's clearly some expectation of longevity.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#577

Post by bombcar »

TylerE wrote: post #369
ghaff wrote: post #258

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Leather is actually not a great material for a backpack or an outdoor (non-dressy) shoulder bag from a practical perspective in the 21st century. Nylon and related synthetics is a lot more practical. If you gave me a leather outdoor bag I'd probably thank you nicely and stick it in a closet or sell it. I do like leather wallets though I almost exclusively use small front pocket ones these days because of sciatica and…

Going from a trifold to a bifold is pretty game changing if you haven’t. Drastically reduced thickness for a very minimal change in capacity.

I moved to a bifold front-carry and will never go back, sitting on a wallet is such a recipe for disaster.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#578

Post by jorts »

_heimdall wrote: post #480
linsomniac wrote: post #325

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>or worse, soft pine or particleboard or OSB Having done a lot of DIY projects over the last decade, I've really shifted my view of OSB. Originally I would lump it in with particleboard, but I've since drastically changed my view of it. Particleboard is, truly, junk. OSB and plywood are both pretty good products, and for some uses superior to hardwoods (dimensional stability, for example). High quality plywoods are a…

The sheer amount of glue used in OSB and other manufactured sheet wood is pretty gross unfortunately. They are functionally useful for certain use cases, I just can't get myself to reach for it over real lumber and joinery.

Why does the glue concern you?

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#579

Post by TylerE »

bombcar wrote: post #577
TylerE wrote: post #369

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Going from a trifold to a bifold is pretty game changing if you haven’t. Drastically reduced thickness for a very minimal change in capacity.

I moved to a bifold front-carry and will never go back, sitting on a wallet is such a recipe for disaster.

Yeah, I've never, ever understood why anyone would want to do that.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#580

Post by inferiorhuman »

Symbiote wrote: post #415
teleforce wrote: post #354

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Avoid particleboard like a plague if you can afford it, appparently most of IKEA products now made of these since they are widely being used in dirt cheap furniture construction. They melt like ice once in contact with water. Recently, just had to chopped off all four legs of a bookshelf then replaced them with metal legs. The bookshelf legs somehow got damaged in contact with accumulated air-cond water droplets.

Ikea has two or three price points for each product. The cheapest will be made from chipboard or even cardboard. The most expensive varies, it might be pine or even something better.

IKEA's cheapened their offerings quite a bit over the years. Pre-pandemic, used to be you could buy a solid wood butcher block and solid wood cabinet doors and fronts. Now? The butcher block is particleboard with end grain themed veneer and the closest to solid wood cabinet hardware you'll get is a set of bamboo drawer fronts.
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