Sofa beds are an interesting piece of furniture that can often satisfy two needs at the same time. While providing comfortable couch seating in a living or spare room of a home, they conceal a fold out metal frame and mattress underneath the cushions that can provide instant sleeping accommodations for guests. The mattresses on what are commonly called a pull out couch, or sleeper sofa, are generally thin and only marginally comfortable. Many purchasers of sofa beds modify the comfort level by replacing the traditional thin mattress with a thicker futon mattress.
Though a pull out couch is traditionally thought of as only available in a three cushion couch, a sofa bed can range from a cot or twin sized sleeper to a large queen sleeper. If a sofa bed mattress is aged, it can be replaced with modern materials such as memory foam, urethane foam, natural latex, coil and air over coil. The most popular replacement mattress for a sleeper sofa is currently the memory foam mattress which is a vast improvement over traditional down or foam mattresses.
The advantage to purchasing a sofa bed for the home is the convenience of having a comfortable place to sit, along with a reasonably comfortable place for guests to sleep if there is no spare bedroom available. One of the major disadvantages to a pull out couch is the weight. With the extra frame that sits inside the body of the sofa, along with the mechanisms for it to fold away and unfold, can add up to an extra 100 pounds to the piece.
A good quality sofa, with a pull out bed, can be purchased for a reasonable price at most home stores, along with any online store that carries standard sofas. Just as with any other sofa, including straight and sectional sofas, sleeper sofas can be purchased in most any type of material. Some of the most comfortable sleepers are available in faux suede, or real suede, for a few hundred dollars. Generally, the price range of sleeper sofas run between $200 dollars and several hundred dollars. Pricing depends on the size of the sofa itself, the type of material used for upholstery and the material the sleeper mattress is made from.
