When buying a new piece of Furniture, one of the biggest questions we have is wondering whether that furniture piece will last long enough for it to be worthwhile. With 670,000 tonnes of bulky furniture waste being thrown away each year in the UK, equivalent to a weight two times as heavy as The Empire State Building, the usability of a furnitures lifespan into the future is seemingly outliving its life much faster than a piece of furniture should. From 138,515 tonnes of sofas, 104,136 tonnes of old wardrobes, 76,031 tonnes of beds amongst other, 20% of this furniture has been assessed as being re-usable with a further 25% re-usable with a slight repair.

So what is causing the number of furniture waste thrown away to be so extortionately high – and what tips can be used for buying long Lasting furniture pieces that won’t let you down? It all starts with the material the furniture is crafted with.

Buying Long Lasting Sofas

Buying the perfect sofa is quite the catch-22, with the most prestige and revolutionary-looking ones being the most likely to soon find itself covered in holes. When buying yourself the sofa of your dreams, be sure to look at the material being used to cover the sofa – explore stain resistant, fire proof materials that are shown as easy to clean to remedy any future problems you may just encounter.

Leather is the most popular material, a comfortable cleanliness cover but can be ripped or cut by metal objects easily, but normally are highly durable when care is being presented. With Cotton Fabric, you can expect the sofa to lose quality easily with dust and dirt soon becoming quite prevalent. A sofa in cotton and polyester blend is another popular pick and can hold itself through strong usage, the blend of the two materials also minimises wrinkling within the sofa.

As an individual, you should also put some thought into the anticipated usage of the sofa, whether it will be under regular use, come into contact with external forces that could damage it (cats, dogs, small children etc..) and the position it will take at your property.

Another factor to bear in mind is the structural integrity of the sofa and the frame. A long lasting furniture piece will need to be crafted by materials that can take stress and strain, such as hardwood rather than its soft wood counterpart. The likes of hard plastic, bent metal and other materials may not last.

Buying Long Lasting Wardrobes

Wardrobes are the sort of thing that are normally replaced each time you move property, with the old wardrobes being left behind or scrapped. It doesn’t have to be that way, with the potential to buy a wardrobe you’ll be able to ensure will be there for you, for many years to come.

The first aspect of a long lasting wardrobe is hinges that will be strong enough to hold itself against pressure and movement of the piece. Furniture that uses metal hinges/brackets and is securely attached to the wood cladding of the wardrobe is your best bet, over more flimsy wood or glue-only joints.

The material of the wardrobe itself is also important, as areas that support the structural integrity of the wardrobe must be utilising strong wood types or other related materials – such as hardwood or plywood with front and back end veneer covering.

Buying Long Lasting Beds

They say you should replace your mattress every 8 years, with the base of your bed being able to stick around till the end of time – but many of us can’t seem to get those 8 years out of a mattress before signs of uncomfortableness and unease occur. With prices for beds being at the upper end, it’s important you find the right bed that will last out its full duration.

There are two parts to a bed you’ll need to bear in mind when choosing the right option: the mattress and the bed base. As with most things, the more money you pay – the better quality of product you’ll receive. This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to buy the priciest mattress there is, but that you should be aware you might have to pay out a bit more than the flatline to get something that will last. With the different types of beds available, a study found that pocket spring beds are likely to last the longest, followed by foam core and continuous coil beds, with open coil beds lasting the shortest time of them all.

With the different types of beds available, it’s pocket spring beds that are likely to last the longest, followed by foam core and continuous coil beds, with open coil beds lasting the shortest period of time out of them all.

The average mattress lifespan for a latex bed also is seen to last the longest, clocking up to 12 years. This record is followed by a memory foam and hybrid beds both lasting 10 years, an innerspring bed lasting 8 years and a pillowtop bed lasting 7 years. If you’re looking for a bed to last, your best bet would be a latex bed!

When you’ve got your mattress picked and chosen, your next step will be to find a base to put the mattress upon. As with the tips we mentioned for picking other long lasting furniture pieces above, again with this you’ll need to ensure the frame used within the piece are held together with metal joints and materials that will ensure the support of the piece – otherwise, the daily usage of the bed will soon wear out the bed base. It is also important that sturdy wood or related materials are used throughout the base for extra added longevity.

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