Bean Bags: Safety, Fillings and Care

HOME · GLOBAL

Bean Bags: Safety, Fillings and Care

The suffocation risk, fillings compared, covers and topping up

Bean bags are comfortable and inexpensive and carry one serious safety issue that is not obvious from looking at one.

The beads are a suffocation risk

Polystyrene beads are small, light and easily inhaled. Children have died after opening bean bags, breathing in beads or climbing inside covers, and recalls have followed products with inadequate closures.

Any bean bag should have a child-resistant closure — usually a zip that needs a tool or a pin to open — and a double cover with a sealed inner. Check this before buying and check it periodically.

Never let a child play with loose beads, never let a baby sleep on a bean bag, and vacuum up any spill immediately.

Fillings

Expanded polystyrene beads are the standard — light, cheap and they compress over time so the bag needs topping up. Shredded memory foam is heavier, does not compress in the same way and costs considerably more.

Check the volume in litres rather than the bag size, since an underfilled bag collapses.

Covers

A removable washable outer cover is what makes a bean bag last, particularly with children or pets. Check the inner is a separate sealed liner rather than the beads sitting loose in one layer.

Outdoor bean bags need a water-resistant fabric and should still be brought in or covered, since they hold water once it gets past the outer.

Topping up

Do this outdoors or in an empty bath, since beads are static and go everywhere. Use the funnel supplied and keep children out of the room.

Comfort and posture

Fine for occasional lounging and poor support for long periods. Anyone with back problems should not use one as a daily chair.

Buying

Check the closure type explicitly, ask whether there is a sealed inner liner, and check the filling volume in litres. Those three answers tell you whether a bean bag is safe and whether it will hold its shape.

Keep the safety information, since these are covered by toy and furniture safety rules.

Alternatives for children

Foam-filled floor cushions and shredded foam bags avoid the loose bead risk entirely, weigh more and cost more. For a child's room they are the straightforward answer.

Whatever you buy, check it carries the relevant safety marking and keep the label.

Shapes and use

Lounger shapes support the back and suit reading and television. Cube and pouffe shapes work as footstools and occasional seating. Gaming chairs have a high back and are the most supportive for long sitting.

Check the dimensions when filled rather than the cover size, since a bean bag takes up more floor space than people expect.

Outdoor use

Bring them in or cover them, since water that gets past the outer fabric sits in the beads and takes weeks to dry.

Disposal

Polystyrene beads are rarely kerbside recyclable. Ask the supplier whether they take them back.

WHERE TO BUY

Ready to shop GreatBeanBags? Use the link below to visit the official store.

→ Shop GreatBeanBags — official site

Visit this site