Choosing the right sofa for your living room is a real challenge for many of us. When purchasing a lounge set, we must consider several crucial aspects. One of them is the type of filling in the upholstered furniture. This determines whether the sofa is soft or firm. In this article, we'll try to advise you on how to choose a firm sofa and which filling is best. Find out!

Sofa filling - how to choose the best one?

Both Both sofa beds and sofas without a sleeping function are filled with various materials. These materials determine how firm or soft the piece of furniture will be. The type of filling also determines the quality and comfort of our rest. When deciding to buy a sofa, it's worth carefully examining the material the sofa set is made of. The most common materials used are granules, foams, springs, and ribbons. Each of these materials, of course, has its advantages and disadvantages. What are they?

 

Foam sofa filling

Foam is a type of filling widely used by upholstered furniture manufacturers. Its main advantages are its high plasticity and flexibility, allowing it to be used in almost any sofa, sectional sofa, or armchair. However, traditional upholstery foam tends to deform quickly, so furniture made with it can quickly lose its original shape. However, the situation is somewhat different with high-resilience foam, which makes a sofa comfortable and durable.

 

Springs in the sofa filling

Scandinavian-style sofas or 3-seater sofas With a sleeping function, they are often filled with special springs. These springs provide the furniture with the right firmness and prevent the seat from sagging. This type of filling is ideal when you want the sofa to replace a traditional bed. Pocket springs, sinuous springs, or Bonnell springs are most common.

Seat belts

Most sofa models also feature seat straps. These are highly flexible and stretchable, and their main function is to support all the elements that make up the filling. Thanks to them, our sofa is much more durable.

Fluff and granules

Some sofas are also filled with feathers, down, or special granules. This makes them very soft, and when you sit on them, you feel like you're sinking in. However, after getting up, you should immediately readjust and re-arrange the cushions and seat.

Wondering how to clean a sofa set? Check out our article " How to Refresh a Couch: Renovating a Sofa at Home "

Soft sofa filling - advantages and disadvantages

Now that we know a little about the fillings used in upholstered sofas, we can begin our search for the perfect lounge set. Most of us first check the softness of the sofa. It's a common belief that the softer the sofa, the better. Unfortunately, this isn't always the case. This type of upholstered furniture is certainly suitable if the sofa won't be used for everyday sleeping. A soft seat is ideal for resting after a long day or relaxing with loved ones. However, prolonged use of such a sofa can cause back pain or negatively impact our posture. It's also worth remembering that a soft sofa will be much more difficult to get up from. Therefore, if the furniture will be used by the elderly or those with mobility issues, it's unfortunately better to avoid it. When choosing this type of lounge set, it's also important to remember that it has a much greater tendency to warp and wear out more quickly than its firmer counterparts.

To sum up, a soft filling will work well if the sofa is to be used mainly as a lounge set, not as a bed, and if we do not have any problems with our spine or mobility.

Hard sofa filling - advantages and disadvantages

Many people believe that a hard sofa isn't comfortable. However, it turns out that this is a much better solution than a soft and highly flexible one. While the filling, made of springs or springs and foam, is perceived as firm by most, it has a very positive effect on our bodies. Above all, it supports the spine and helps maintain proper posture. Furthermore, you can spend many nights on such a sofa without worrying about the quality of your rest. A hard sofa set is also less susceptible to deformation, so it will look like new for a long time. Therefore, it's a great solution if you're looking for a solid and durable sofa.

Sofas with a hard filling are perfect for situations where we want a model with an everyday sleeping function and when we value high quality and resistance to damage.

How to check if a sofa has the right firmness?

Before buying a sofa, it's worth thoroughly checking whether the sofa is firm enough. When visiting a brick-and-mortar store, simply sit on it and gently "rock" from side to side. This will quickly assess whether the sofa set meets your expectations. If you're also planning to use it for everyday sleeping, it's worth unfolding the lounger, lying on one side, and placing an object on the other. As soon as you start moving and the adjacent item stays in place, you can be sure the sofa is perfect. This test is intended to illustrate how the lounger behaves when two people sleep on it – one person should move without the other feeling the movement.

When buying furniture online, simply check the information in the description and the type of filling, remembering that springs and foam are responsible for the firmness of the sofa, while down or granules are responsible for the softness. Reviews from people who own a given sofa model can also be reliable.