****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
3 years ago I bought two daybeds. I got one white AVA daybed and a black one from another company (I don't remember what the name is. I'll just call it the "junk daybed"). The AVA white one has been wonderful! Never had a problem with it. It's sturdy, we never have to tighten it, it never squeaks. You can try to shake it and it barely moves. It's solid. The junk daybed, on the other hand, was a nightmare. In less than a year it started feeling very loose and was squeaky with even the slightest movement. We often had to tighten the screws and oil them to help stop the squeak. This junk daybed would literally sway from side to side. I even resorted to duct taping wood sticks to the legs to see if that would help if from shifting (more about those legs in a minute)...it didn't help. Well, last week I finally had enough and bought a 2nd AVA daybed, this time in black. I can't believe I waited so long to replace that other piece of junk!It took my daughter and I about an hour and a half to disassemble the junk daybed and put this new AVA one together (here's a tip....do not tighten the long bars too tight to the sides, or you'll have difficulty putting the end slats in). The only difference that I can see between the black that the white AVA is that our white one has a more "pitted" finish to the paint (not sure if that's the right word. It's very nice. But this was 3 years ago, and I can't tell from the pictures on Amazon if the white one they have is like that). The black one is more of a flat matte finish. It's equal to the white one in terms of being very sturdy. I know this new AVA daybed will not give me problems like the junk daybed we had.Here's what I've discovered when shopping for a daybed, and I hope this is helpful:1. Make sure you look at the back. I'm not sure if "back" is the right word, since it's really the side when you are lying on it. But if you were sitting on it like a couch, it would be the large arched back. Make sure the back is ONE piece and not two that need to be screwed together, like our junk daybed. If you settle on a daybed with a two piece back, the odds are high that you'll end with a junk daybed too. Being that the AVA has a one piece back, the box is HUGE...and heavy. I can't believe it was only $74.99 with FREE shipping!2. Even more importantly, look at the legs. The AVA legs attach right near the bar that the mattress sits on. This is hard to explain, but the bars connect to the two ends with multiple screws, and the legs attach directly below this. This makes it a very sturdy area for the legs to attach. Our junk daybed had legs that attached halfway down the leg. There was absolutely no support. So the lower part of the leg would shift in a different direction than the upper part of the leg. This made for an extremely unsturdy and wobbly bed. Look closely at the photos Amazon has. Look at the pictures of the white daybed (it's easier to see on the white one). Go to the 4th photo of what looks like a living room. Look at the front left leg and zoom in a little. You can see a horizontal "line" on the leg, right below the bar where the mattress sits. This is where the legs attach. If you look halfway down the leg, visualize that being where our junk daybed legs attached. You can probably figure out that the AVA would be much sturdier, because there's more support closer to the top of the leg where the bar is attached.I highly recommend this bed. I finally really do have sweet dreams!!
