Seinfeld episode “The Pen” where the bar in the back wrecks Elaine. To see the video clip click here
Thank you NBC and all those involved in producing Seinfeld, and specifically for this episode that perfectly renders the typical Sleeper Sofa experience.
To see the hilarious clip from “The Pen” click here.
Sleeper sofas are known for being uncomfortable. I know growing up and traveling a lot with my family on a budget, I was always the one who would end up on the sleeper sofa. When I was 4 and 5 years old I didn’t really notice it being that bad. As I got older and bigger, I began to hate sleeping on them. The infamous bar in the back is my most memorable experience related to sleeper sofas. I can remember waking up in the middle of the nights and having to shift the weight on the bar from my back to my side to my stomach. Most mornings I would wake up extra early just to get off the sleeper sofa. Many nights I would end up taking the sleeper sofa mattress off the frame and sleeping on the floor just so I could avoid the bar.
Sadly, this uncomfortable experience has been consistent for so long that it has come to define the sleeper sofa category. I ask people all the time what they think about sleeper sofas and I hear something about them being uncomfortable and most of the time people reference the thin mattress and the bar in the back. I ask people when they slept on one last and most people name some far off time in childhood or some actually answer “never,” yet they still know that they are uncomfortable.
The uncomfortable nature of sleepers has become common knowledge. The idea is so prevalent that many people have just given up on the sleeper sofa completely.
The fact of the matter is, the standard sleeper sofa prevalent today in the hospitality industry IS UNCOMFORTABLE.
Most sleeper sofas are only used when absolutely necessary and normally reserved for children. I can understand why, because now that I am a 6′ tall 185 pound man, there is no way I can sleep on one comfortably.
The technology used in the “standard” sleeper sofa has been around for a long time and hasn’t really changed much in the last 50 years. Thankfully a group of people came together and began asking questions about the sleeper sofa. They eventually became the makers of the revolutionary Cozy Mattress® Sleeper Sofa System powered by Z-Spring Technology®. This advancement didn’t happen over night, but it was driven by the desire to revolutionize the sleeper sofa category, creating a profit maximizing asset to the Hospitality Industry. The makers of the Cozy Mattress® Sleeper Sofa System began their journey by asking: “Why can’t a sleeper sofa system be just as comfortable as a real bed or sofa?”
This question sent the makers of the Cozy Mattress® on the path of good old fashion innovation. They started by extensively studying the standard sleeper sofa, noting its strengths and weaknesses. The major strength was the sleeper sofas ability to serve 2 roles, seating and sleeping, while only taking up the space of a regular sofa during the day. The weaknesses were many, but most prominent were:
*Seating comfort was greatly diminished compared to a regular stationary sofa
*Sleeping comfort was greatly diminished compared to a static bed
*Frames were flimsy and broke easily at the foot end.
From this examination, the goal became to create a multi-use piece of furniture that performed like a high end sofa during the day and like a high end static bed during the night. The mattress used in sleeper sofas seemed to be the greatest hindrance in accomplishing these two goals. The main barrier was the size of the box contained within the sofa that the mattress folds into. This box size could not be greatly increased because it must still form the foundation of a standard sized sofa. In turn, the size of the folded mattress could not be much larger than it already was in standard sleeper sofas because the size of the box was basically set. Another simple question was asked: “Is there a way that a quality static bed mattress could be reduced to the size of a folded up sleeper sofa mattress, and still maintain its comfort when folded out?”
A drastic innovation had to be made for a static bed mattress to be folded up and inserted into a sleeper sofa cavity. Thinking of the problem in the context that static bed quality sleeping must be achieved led to the creation of Z-Spring Technology®. Essentially, Z-Spring Technology® allowed the creation of an 8.5 inch static bed quality mattress that collapses when a certain precise sideways pressure is applied. This engineering feat has made it possible for an 8.5 inch static bed quality mattress to be present when the sleeper system is in the sleeping position. The frame was engineered in such a way that the sideways pressure needed to collapse the mattress is only applied when the sleeper system is being closed, collapsing the bottom half of the mattress and allowing the mattress to be folded into the sleeper sofa cavity box. Continuing the innovation to reach the desired seating comfort, the collapsed bottom half of the mattress was designed to form a sinuous seating deck similar to that found in high end sofas. This innovation provided a flat deck for the sofa cushions, greatly increasing the users seating comfort while decreasing wear and tare to the cushions.
I can remember the first time I sat on a Cozy Mattress® sleeper sofa and had no clue it was a sleeper. Standard sleeper sofas have thin cushions that do not properly support my weight. I can always tell when a couch is actually a sleeper sofa because of the poor seating performance. The Cozy Mattress® was completely different and I was amazed when I was told that the sofa actually contained a real bed mattress inside. I then opened the sleeper system and watched as what looked like a static bed mattress materialized before my eyes. I immediately sat on it and then laid down on it and closed my eyes. This felt better than my static bed mattress at home. I bounced up and down and never felt a bar.
The Cozy Mattress® has completely eliminated the bar in the back forever because of the thickness and support provided by the Z-Spring Technology® mattress. I invite you to request a demo and see the Cozy Mattress® for yourself. It will completely change the way you feel about sleeper sofas!