Replacing Water-Ruined Beds

[maidu]

Premise: recent flooding in the Bangkok region has ruined a lot of furniture, much of it belonging to people who don't have extra money to replace such things.

Here's an idea for beds supported by recycled plastic bottles. URL Link

People usually insist on having their sleeping space raised above floor level (dogs don't care). How much does a bed frame and mattress cost in a country like Thailand, where everything must be bought retail? About 5 to 10 thousand baht. In contrast, the beds made from recycled bottles cost under Bt.1,000, and that includes the plywood and the foam pad. Here's a brief video of the project. (sorry for it being unfocused, am having a bit of trouble with the camera)

Incidentally, there are several design possibilities for making rafts from recycled materials.

[Forkinhades]

where can you buy the foam ?

[JurgenG]

I really like you're raft.

To clean our ponds, we have a small plastic boat that is really unstable. And we have plenty of bamboo and recycled plastic bottle ...

And I think the boat will make a wonderful bathtub for the dogs

Unless my gf steals it first for one of her floral creation

[maidu]

where can you buy the foam ?

I bought foam from a small shop which does apholstry (sp?). They do mostly seats for motorbikes. There's a choice of 1 inch or 2" thick foam - it's mostly black/gray stuff with multi-color chunks in it. It's a meter wide, and 2 to 3 hundred baht a running meter. I paid them to put a waterproof cover on it (for external use) and it wasn't cheap, but the material and handicraft is good - could last many years. Alternatively, I checked at a regular shop selling bedding (not the fancy-pants place on the hwy), and a 3/4 inch thick padding (light blue cotton pattern on it) is cheaper.

A word about mattresses: Pretty much all mattresses sold in Thailand have foam, and therefore emit formaldehyde, particularly when new. I have a ritual, that each time I buy a mattress (or furniture made of particle board), I take the cling plastic off it (why are suppliers and retailers compelled to wrap EVERYTHING multiple times in plastic?!? .....oh I know, it's because of the airborne dirt that's everywhere, particularly in cities). I then prop the mattress up somewhere outside for a few days (under a roof, if its rainy season), in order for most of the formaldehyde to waft away. Although colorless and nearly odorless, formaldehyde is a nasty chemical - definately not something you'd want your kids to inhale.