When you’re just starting your journey with recliners, you probably want to know all of your options, as well as their characteristics. There’s nothing worse than getting a product that you investigated a lot about, only to find out you missed something that you now think you could’ve liked more.
We’re going to go over the types and then give you the best tips we have for entering the buying process yourself. Keep in mind that it’s important to know what you’re going to use a recliner chair for in order to get the best buy.
Recliner chairs, as many know, are just fancy sofas that have extra features helpful for many activities, but also ones that boost your health. Their main features are feet holders and the way that they can be tilted – it’s ergonomic and especially useful.
The Classic Recliners
When you say that a chair is a classic recliner, you instantly need to think of a chair with a lever. These have been around for a long, long time and that’s why they are so popular. They aren’t as expensive as ones with motors and button functions, yet they still do a very good job.
Most of them work only in 2 positions, but there are a few that lock in certain positions if you want them to. Keep in mind how much you’re going to recline when you’re calculating how much space you may need.
The Rocker Recliners (vs. Glider Recliners)
Rocker recliners can be reclined at different angles, which ends up letting you have a much better amount of personalization. They are more appropriate for small spaces because you can recline them, but not do it fully, so you’re not obligated to always move it around. You can recline it to the point where it fits your environment. These are affordable, but don’t let that be your only factor.
Two-Position Recliner
This type of recliners are not that personalized and you can literally use them, as the name says, in two positions. Those are usually the fully vertical position and the fully reclined one. You can’t go anywhere in between and they take up too much space, but some people enjoy the limited functionality, especially elders who don’t want to have too much mechanical work to do. These types of recliners are usually the cheapest ones out there, due to the limited function.
Wall Hugging Recliners
Although the title is pretty self-explanatory, we want to be a bit more specific when explaining this to you. The wall-hugging recliners are made for smaller spaces and they literally sit close to the wall. You can still sink into the comfortable chair, but you’ll also find it much easier to get out of these, even if you have knee problems!
The Push-Back Recliner
The push-back models differ from the rest when it comes to a very important part of the chair – the footrest. Here you don’t have one, because the only way to recline is to push yourself down from the floor. People usually see that as a positive thing, since you’re saving space, but make sure to buy an ottoman if you really miss the feature of a footrest.
The Massage Chairs or Recliners
Massage chairs have been getting more and more popular lately as people started to experience many health issues. These are perfect for those who work manual labor, those who have limited movement and those who suffer from chronic diseases. These chairs are motorized ad they have a lot of functions, including the massaging one. Keep in mind the functions that you want when you’re buying these, because you’ll easily find yourself overwhelmed with extra features like – cold vibrations, vibrating patterns, warm stone massage simulation…
Lift Chairs or Riser Recliners
These chairs are motorized and therefore they are the best choice for those who are sick, those who have limited mobility, those who just want ultimate comfort. You can lift and recline the chair with a button or a remote, which makes it easy to get up as well. The motor that powers the unit needs to have a transformer because that makes these chairs safe for use.
Keep in mind that you may want to move these away from the wall a bit since you never know how low you’re going to recline it. You’ll probably need a bit more space than anticipated, but this comes with great qualities.
Tips For Choosing The Right Type of Recliners?
If you’re buying a recliner, you might have noticed that there can be a lot of things you need to think about and there is this problem where you can easily miss out on something. We’re going to present you with the two most common issues people overlook and you need to pay more attention to.
Longevity
Whenever we give a significant amount of cash for something, we obviously want that thing to work as long as possible, without any issues. While with recliner chairs it’s important that you take good care of them, there are usually some factors that can reduce the lifetime of your chair.
When buying a recliner, you’re looking at a minimal 10 years of good use. When you’re buying one, make sure to try it out. Many say that they have never sat in their recliner before buying it, and we say that recliners can sometimes be like clothes – you just have to try them to see whether they are comfortable and whether they seem sturdy or not.
The material can be a big factor here, as well. Leatherworks for the longest out of all materials, so go for top-grain leather if possible. Synthetic materials don’t last as long, but they’re mostly cheaper to replace after some time, so it tends to balance out.
The frame should be made of hardwood, not plywood, if possible. Plywood breaks much more easily and won’t be a good choice for heavier people.
Size
This is very individual, so we suggest you get an idea of where you would want to have that recliner. Do you want to have it in your living room, your bedroom or somewhere else? Find the corner and take measurements. You need to know what you’re working with if you want to find a good piece of furniture.
People sometimes „eye these things out“ and they end up having too little space for the chair which limits the function of a recliner, and this is something you definitely don’t want to encounter because you’re losing the quality of the product you bought.
Summary
There are many types of recliners out there, but don’t let that scare you. First, make a list of all the types that you think would be suitable for you, prioritize them according to the ones you like the most and start searching for the number 1 on the list. If you find nothing you like, search for type number 2.
Although it can be overwhelming, make sure to take enough time to see whether the recliner you’re planning on buying is exactly the product that you’re interested in.
