Nothing can compare to bean bags when it comes to adding comfort and style to your home. Bean bags come in all shapes and sizes, so there’s always something for everyone. But before indulging in the comfort of your lounger, you must know how to fill a bean bag. By following these tips, you can choose the perfect filling and easily fill your bean bag to ensure maximum comfort.
Types of Bean Bag Fillings
Choosing the right bean bag filling is important to ensure your bean bag provides optimal comfort and support. The filling material you choose will determine your bean bag's overall feel, durability, and maintenance requirements. There are various options available in the market, each with advantages and considerations. Here are some popular eco-friendly bean bag filling options.
- Polystyrene Beads: These are also known as EPS (expand Polystyrene) beads and are the most common fillings. These small, lightweight beads provide excellent comfort that conforms to your body shape, offering a cosy and supportive seating experience. Polystyrene beads are resistant to moisture and mould, making them suitable for indoor and outdoor use. However, they can compress over time, requiring periodic refilling to maintain their original shape and volume.
- Memory foam: These fillings provide a luxurious and plush seating experience. Memory foam not only conforms to your body but retains its shape and bounces back after use, ensuring long-lasting durability. On the other hand, memory foam with polystyrene beads retains heat, making it better suited for cooler environments.
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Shredded foam: This foam is composed of small, cushiony pieces. It offers a combination of softness and resilience, ensuring an indulgent seating experience. It provides more firmness than other fillings, giving you the right support.
However, please note that shredded foam takes up more space, making the foam pieces will shift over time. To keep your bean bag looking fluffy, remember to give it a good fluff.
- Microfiber or polyester fibre fill: These fillings are soft and lightweight, providing a plush and cosy seating surface. It offers good support, comfort and retains its shape well. These fillings are generally more affordable than other fillings. However, they may compress and flatten over time, requiring occasional fluffing or refilling to restore its loft.
- Natural fillings: Natural latex bean bag fillings offer a unique, eco-friendly seating experience. Made from the sap of rubber trees, these fillings provide a soft and supportive feel. They conform to your body, giving you a comfortable and personalised seating surface. What’s great about natural latex is that it is naturally hypoallergenic and resistant to dust mites and mould, making it a healthier choice.
How to Fill a Bean Bag
To know how to fill a bean bag properly, first, open the bean bag and carefully pour the beans. It is crucial to take your time and pour them gradually to ensure even distribution. Rushing through this process will result in uncomfortable lumps or an uneven weight distribution when seated on the bean bag. Therefore, by adding the fillings slowly, you can achieve your desired level of fullness while preventing any risk of over-filling.
Furthermore, avoid using too much pressure when filling bean bags, as this can cause the fillings to compress and become dense. To ensure optimal comfort, regularly check that all sides of the bean bag are filled evenly. Once the desired level of fullness has been reached, give the entire bean bag a firm shake so that all the fillings settle into place.
Tools To Easily Fill Your Bean Bag
Filling up a bean bag can be a challenging and messy task. However, with the right tools, you can make the process much easier and more efficient. If you’re wondering how to fill a bean bag, here are some tools to make the process easier.
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Funnel: A funnel is a simple but effective tool for pouring bags of beans into your bean bag. The funnel helps direct the filling flow and prevents spillage.
- Scoop or ladle: A scoop can be handy when working with loose-filling materials like polystyrene beads or shredded foam. It allows you to scoop a large amount of filling into the bean bag without creating a mess.
- A friend’s assistance: filling a bean bag can be a two-person job, especially if you’re working with larger bean bags or heavy filling materials. Having a friend assist you can make the process smoother. Therefore, while one person holds the bean bag and ensures it stays open, the other can pour or transfer the filling material.
Test Out Your Bean Bag
Before using your new bean bag, test it to ensure you are satisfied with the comfort level. This can be done by testing different seating positions to know whether you need more filling. Hence, testing your bean bag ensures satisfaction with its comfort and equips you with the knowledge of how to fill a bean bag perfectly.
When testing the comfort level of your bean bag, pay attention to how much support you feel when sitting on it and adjust accordingly until you are satisfied. Try not to move around too much at first, as this could cause the fillings to shift and result in an uneven feeling later on. Additionally, ensure that each side of the bean bag is filled evenly to provide maximum support.