Sleepover slumberbags (Worlds Apart Adult Single Ready Bed)

Member Name: rosebud2001

Product:	Worlds Apart Adult Single Ready Bed
Date:	03/06/09 (226 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Takes up little space when not in use, relatively inexpensive, comfortable.

Disadvantages: You have to buy a separate pump to use it

Having a daughter means you will invariably, at some point, hold a sleepover for a friend, or friends.

My daughter, being autistic, isn't the most sociable child but she has managed to form a couple of friendships, one of which has endured for several years now and seems to be a strong one.

Her friend lives a short drive away and comes over fairly regularly to stay and this, of course means we need something for her to sleep on.

Some years ago I purchased a Barbie ready bed for my daughter and when her friend first came over this worked fine, but time passes and children grow, leaving the ready bed too small for the purpose.

I wanted to still be able to accommodate my daughter's friend so I decided I would have to buy something else and considered a chair bed but eventually decided to stick with what I knew - which was a ready bed - except this time I would get an adult one.

For the uninitiated, a ready bed is basically an inflatable bed with a sleeping bag which is attached over it. However it shouldn't be confused with a li-lo as you will not be able to inflate this with lung power alone.

The adult ones are aimed at campers, and offer a relatively comfortable nights' sleep but they are also a great way to save space and have a spare bed at home.

I purchased mine from Argos last year, paying £25 at the time. Currently they are available for £21.97 there and Amazon also sell them for £29.99. However, and this is a big however - you need to purchase a pump for it too! Argos sell battery operated and manual ones for use with this and I was a cheapskate and opted for the manual one which set me back £4.99 but I note these are currently selling at half that price in Argos.

What you get is a nylon bag which holds the folded up, deflated ready bed. The sleeping bag is already attached to the PVC inflatable mattress when you buy, which saves time from the off. It can be fiddly to detach and re-attach, but it's not a particularly difficult task.

The inflatable mattress has a valve inside the hole you use to pump it up with, which is wonderful - it means if you accidentally knock the pump out, the mattress shouldn't deflate again. It also makes deflation pretty easy - you just push the valve, and the air comes out quickly.

Inflating the bed takes no more than 5 minutes using the manual pump - obviously it will be much quicker with a battery powered one. You can also use the pump to deflate the bed too. Be warned it can be quite tiring to inflate however as you pump with either your hands or your feet. I recommend using your foot as you sit in a chair!

The pump fits in a hole which is accessible via a screw cap. This cap is permanently attached to the ready bed via a small plastic "wire" so there's no danger of you losing it. There is a small cut out area on the sleeping bag which is covered by a panel attached by velcro to ensure you can inflate and deflate without removing the sleeping bag part of the bed.

Comfort wise, it's fair enough. Certainly both my daughter and her friend have never complained about it and sometimes my daughter will ask me to keep it in her room so she can sleep in it for a change from her bed. It's not the sort of thing I would recommend for repeated use but for a short camping trip or as an occasional bed, it will do the job.

The bed is shaped to include an integral pillow, but my daughter or her friend always have a conventional pillow when they use the ready bed.

The sleeping bag itself is reasonably warm - certainly it's fine indoors in spring and summer but during winter I have had to give my daughter's friend a blanket so this might be worth bearing in mind if you are going to use it for camping.

The sleeping bag is machine washable and I have found it washes very well following the care instructions given with it and as I said is relatively easy to put back over the PVC inflatable mattress. The PVC mattress can be wiped clean - do not put this part in the washing machine!

The joy of this however is once you have deflated it, you can fold it easily and roll it up to put it back into the bag. This makes it perfect for storing in your cupboard or for transporting in the car if you are going camping or going visiting.

I appreciate this is basically a slightly more comfortable version of a sleeping bag, but for the price it's a handy little standby to have and is perfect for sleepovers for adolescent girls!

Summary: The perfect spare bed for small and big homes alike, and ideal for campers