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Chemical-free seating (sofas, futon, or ???)  

post #1 of 10
4/29/08 at 9:25am
Thread Starter 
Our sofa is sagging terribly and I'm really not sure what to do next. Sadly, it's only 5 years old and I expected it to last much longer. I am trying to find a (relatively) inexpensive, safe, comfortable option.

Here are the choices I thought about:

Are there any chemical-free, solid wood, naturally-finished sofas that are reasonably priced?

-or-

Should I get a futon? Are they comfortable as a sofa? There are many good/safe options here.

-or-

Should I try to get my current sofa cushions re-stuffed (for lack of a better word)? I'm concerned about the materials that would be used (off-gassing).

Thanks for any insight or experiences!
post #2 of 10
4/29/08 at 3:12pm
Thread Starter 
:
post #3 of 10
4/29/08 at 3:36pm
I don't know what reasonably priced is to you for a sofa ... You could look at the Lockport from Crate & Barrel, or the Mota by Viesso Furniture. They're like 1200-1700 depending on size. It too much for me but "real" sofas are expensive no matter what they're made from so maybe it works for you...

Futons can be very comfortable. Depends on the quality and thickness of the cushion. I don't like that they don't have padded arms but a few extra pillows can solve that

I have heard that there are upholsterers in NYC area & barcelona (maybe that doesn't help ) that do eco-re-upholstery. I'm going to guess there are more in the rest of the country. It could be worth looking into if you like your current sofa.
post #4 of 10
4/29/08 at 4:26pm
Reupholstering furniture is almost more expensive - and sometimes more - than buying it new. It is extremely expensive. Nevertheless, it is the most green thing to do, especially if you do green upholstery. Barring that, I would look into a futon with an organic futon mattress.
post #5 of 10
4/29/08 at 4:56pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by xekomaya View Post
You could look at the Lockport from Crate & Barrel, or the Mota by Viesso Furniture.
I haven't seen these yet -- I'll have to check them out. I wonder if they are free of flame retardants. My guess is no

I think my only flame-retardant free choice is a futon. From what I've read, I'll just need a doctor's note.

I'll be back later with some findings, in case anyone else is interested
post #6 of 10
4/30/08 at 2:19am
I was just reading something about this... I believe it was the owner of Organic Grace who went looking for the same thing, flame-retardant and petroleum-free couch. I'd suggest reading the story, I found it very informative.
post #7 of 10
4/30/08 at 9:53am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Periwinkle View Post
Reupholstering furniture is almost more expensive - and sometimes more - than buying it new. It is extremely expensive. Nevertheless, it is the most green thing to do, especially if you do green upholstery. Barring that, I would look into a futon with an organic futon mattress.
I looked into this option myself, and to get latex cushions and organic, non-synthetic fabric and slipcovers made was going to be about $3000 for labor and materials, on top of the price we paid for a used couch & chair on Craigslist. That wasn't too far off from the cost of a new organic sofa & chair, so we went that route.

If it's not important to you to have organic fabric, it would probably be cheaper though. Just be sure you're getting upholstery fabric that hasn't been treated with any stain-resistant chemicals or flame retardants.
post #8 of 10
4/30/08 at 12:26pm
What about buying rush or cane-bottom seating? I'm thinking about those old plantation-style settees and chairs that they used to use b/c air could circulate under them and they wouldn't rot in the high humidity, kwim? I actually find cane seating to be really comfortable. I know it's not a cozy sofa though, but I couldn't tell from your post what you were using it for.
post #9 of 10
4/30/08 at 12:43pm
If your cushions unzip you could always just order latex pieces cut to size and just replace the cusions. I know that doesn't make it as green as possible, but it would increase the life of the sofa at least. I used fomorder.com recently for mattresses, they were very helpful. Good luck.
post #10 of 10
5/1/08 at 5:13pm
Thread Starter 
Sofa usage (to answer a pp): We have a playroom/home office with no real seating and a family room with one big sofa. The family room is off the kitchen and is where guests hang out and where we sit together as a family. We don't have a TV, but we do lounge here to read. So, we're looking for comfy.

The foamorder site has a neat page where they will quote you for all different shapes and sizes! Thanks for posting that page!! It looks like it will cost me about $500 to replace my seat cushions with latex.

DH does not like the futon idea and we do not plan on spending lots of money on a sofa anytime soon. (DD1 threw up on ours this morning, which just strengthens our position on not spending a lot!!)

The fabric of our current sofa (even after the puke ) is in great shape, so I think ordering latex refills makes sense.

I wish new (safe) sofas were less expensive
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