apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Sleeping bags?

Exactly what I was thinking or maybe on top of a feather bed or memory foam topper - both will roll up for easy storage.

You'd have to sleep separately, but how about 2 old army cots? It will keep you off the floor and they could fold up for storage. This guy seems to think it is a good idea...

http://dhttp://dannyseo.typepad.com/my_weblog/2006/11/spare_bedreadin.html

I remember my dad's old boyscout cot had a feather down mattress that we use with it. I am sure an army supply store might have something similar or I know IKEA has the foam mattress which are slightly better than the PVC.

yoga mats? but then again i like hard mattresses

My guests sleep in hotels. Or I don't have them.

But I live in a 380 sq foot studio & suffer from guest-related claustrophobia.

An aerobed made of nasty PVC, unfortunately. When that thing dies, I'll get a couple of half-a-bed-sized chunks of the least-offensive foam substance I can find, zip them into fabric covers, and store them stacked under my bed. I'd rather make the mattress pieces out of wool, but it's doubtful I'll be able to afford that.

Have you considered getting something like a foam/wool mattress pad from Ikea? I have one on my bed - it makes the floor comfortable for guests, and then when I don't need it for that, I just store it back right on top of my BED. How efficient is that??

Ikea has a full size mattress that rolls up. I think it's $200.

Is there any way to rent or borrow something? Even if it's environmentally incorrect, if you don't need to buy another one, that will reduce your environmental impact....Like people who use those shared cars in cities for occasional use.

Try http://neighborrow.com if you decide to go the very sensible borrowing route.

I think it's great that everyone is becoming so acutely aware of "green" products and trying their best to use them. I wish the same intensity would be placed on non-animal products. I hear all the time about how hard it is to use a substitute for animal products but it's easier than trying to find 'green' products.

Take a look at LLBEAN...they had some camp cots (some in a clasic style and some with a foam mattress which may not meet your green needs) and a polyester inflatable mattress.

this is more of a space suggestion than a green one.

i have a full-size it bed. takes up very little room when not being used, standing on end in a corner.

http://www.it-happens.ch/eng/bett_1.html

i put some folding cushions from dwr on top -- similar to this, but not exactly this: http://www.dwr.com/productdetail.cfm?id=6372
maybe some kind of inflatable camping mattress would work on it.

my guests sleep well. it's even strong enough to support the chunkier ones.

My second bedroom needs to work as an office AND a guest bedroom but its very very small. I can probably fit (squeeze in) a daybed AND my desk, but i have to move the chair out when the guests are in. Daybeds are the same size as a twin bed. You can put a trundle underneath, if you want to accommodate two guests. You can put a twin size cotton futons instead of mattresses. The whole kit is expensive if you purchase new, however, I have seen some great deals on craigslist - but none in the style I want. Good luck!!

I agree with the borrowing thing - while pvc is not good, you are not purchasing it, but simply using one a friend already has, therefore making its purchase at least that much more justifiable.

if you can't find one, or you want a long term solution, i have a foam mattress that i fold in half and it fits under my full bed (also keeps half the underbed space occupied so i won't use it...). This has also forced me to keep the underbed space cleaner and dustfree for guests...

There is one air mattress available that is not PVC. It is made by Sevylor and it is made from rubberized cotton. A google search will bring up several. However, the "double inflatable air bed" is PVC. I hunted extensively for this item because I slept full time on an air mattress and was looking for an alternative to a futon. This is it.

I have two silk "featherbed" mattress toppers, one of which I use on my bed. When guests visit, I take one out of the blanket chest and one off my bed and *voila* instant comfy mattress. It's very portable, storable, and hypoallergenic... which is why I use silk instead of down/feather.

I've found that one person can pretty comfortably sleep on one of the floor cushions from Urban Outfitters, two would do, they roll up for storage but aren't exactly tiny.

http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp;jsessionid=59CBE2B2A8DE015A1181F41627F87F2A.app11-node2?itemdescription=true&itemCount=8&id=9687039&parentid=A_FURN_PILLOWS_FLOOR&sortProperties= product.marketingPriority,-product.startDate&navCount=1&navAction=poppush&color=61

It might mean a bit more work to set up and it might not be for everyone, but how about a hammock?

Here is a beautiful camp cot that folds into a narrow rosewood box that looks like a credenza when not in use.

http://www.ashblue.com/product_info.php?products_id=118

and the folks at hable construction make cots every year with printed canvas... http://www.hableconstruction.com/shop/cart.php?target=product&product_id=16476&category_id=305

Having and air mattress can save the situation, I need one of these two and I am not quite aware of my options, I never had an air mattress before, I prefer conventional ones for my own use but I also have to admit that each mattress type has it's own advantages..

Aerobed makes a non-PVC inflatable as part of their outdoor line called the PerformaLite. Bonus is that is is much lighter and smaller than their PVC models. We have one that we use for guests and it works great.

We have something like this we keep tucked away:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/66075680

Multiple blankets.

Floor cushions. I keep seeing them promoted in AT anyway.

I have a large fabric stash, and when I first moved to my current apartment, I unpacked it into a mattress-shape mound and slept on it. It worked pretty well for a while.

Or camping mattresses, yours or borrowed from friends.

When my husband and I visit my parents, we sleep on the floor. They stack up old quilts about 6" deep, then top 'em with sleeping bags, and we sleep just fine.

~Q

I've slept on couch cushions arranged on a hardwood floor. Also a cotton meditation mat or bedroll. Even sleeping bag on an area rug isn't too bad if it's for a night or two.

It'd be nice to see some actual consumer safety data behind that anti-PVC link. As is, it consists of hyperbole without a single citation or piece of data.

I am going out on limb here but really a air mattress used occasionaly won't harm anybody. Get it put outside to air out. I try to be as green as possible by not buying bottled water, taking my own bag grochry shopping, using biodegradable poo bags for my dog and trying to stick with a vegetarian diet.

I have an air mattress that I use for camping and if your guest have to sleep on the floor you want them to be comfortable then I think the PVC thing will not matter. It has a purpose, it is functional and comfortable and you will have it for a long time.

As I type my keyboard is PVC, my tooth brush is PVC and the list goes on, I just think application and how it is used is important.

I had a cotton futon that I would roll up and stored in my closet that developed mold, yuck I think that was worst than PVC.

Don't know anyone you could borrow one from? I wouldn't hesitate to lend/borrow one because they don't harbor bed bugs. I have the aerobed double height mattress and my inlaws have happily slept on it for many years.

After reading the comment from "djphome", I searched the Aerobed site and indeed found the PVC-free airbed: http://www.thinkaero.com/group/20/store_ProductDetail.html. For those of you who absolutely will NOT tolerate PVC, I guess this is it. I personally don't mind sleeping on it a few nights since there will be toppers and bedding on top....

My sofa cushions pop right off the frame, toss on a double fitted sheet and a quilt on top, add guest and cover with afghan and 2nd quilt, et voila: guest sleeping nook accomplished with very easy clean-up...

The IT bed is COOL! (see Damova's post).

thermarest.

About foam pads/cushions/beds.......aren't they made of petroleum, also?

IKEA mattress on the floor. I think they fold or roll for easy storage. I might do that myself, although I also already own an air mattress.