Job Discussion Forums

fox1 · Joined: 22 Feb 2005 Posts: 268

hi there,

well... I love my new futon, and it JUST fits into my tiny room!

Is it OK to leave it as it is, or are you meant to put a wooden mat underneath?

Also, the lovely saleswoman (who wrapped up my futon so well, and sent me on my way on my bike last night!) was talking about some kind of "sweat sheet" that you sleep on or something? Something you can wash, anyhow. I didn't get it, but should I get this sweat sheet or whatever to put in the futon as well?

thanks!

fluffyhamster · Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 8:47 am Post subject:

Yeah, I'd get some kind of protective mat or spacer if I were you, especially if you're putting the futon straight onto tatami with summer coming (and perhaps little time in the mornings to hang stuff out to air, clean the floor etc). It can soon get pretty mouldy underneath without such precautions, and it's nice to have some air be able to circulate under you to help keep you cool.

As for the sweat sheet, maybe she meant a grassy/reedy-looking thing, like a very thin and softer tatami surface? You'll need something like that too, unless you have an aircon and don't mind running it 24-7.

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Our set-up is: thin mattress for use with futons (about 1.5 inches/ 3cm thick), bottom futon (shiki-buton), futon protector (slightly quilted thing with elastic at corners to go around futon), then sheets etc.

I can't sleep well with the futon straight on the floor and no mattress, we have a wooden floor in the bedroom so it's a bit hard for me. If you have nothing under the futon/ mattress then you have to be a bit diligent about airing the bottom of it every week at least, especially in summer. We were a bit slack about this at first and ended up with mold growing all over the underneath of the mattress. Luckily it was cheap.

sethness · Joined: 28 Feb 2005 Posts: 209 Location: Hiroshima, Japan

Flip the futon every few days in summer. Otherwise, as others have said, its underside will "sweat" and get moldy. (Most Japanese folks simply roll up their futon in the daytime. This policy has the advantage of creating more lving space in a tiny room.)

Do put something...if only a bedsheet or large towels... under the futon if it will be on straw mats (tatami), since the continuous abrasion of the futon scraping the tatami can quickly make a wreck of the straw.

Do use as much bedsheet between you and your futon as you can find. In Summer, and especially during the upcoming "Tsuyu" (muggy hot rainy season during June/July), you will sweat, and you don't want that sweat trickling down and staying in a futon that you can't throw in the washing machine / dryer.

Consider airing/drying/freshening the futon out on your porch in sunny weather.

If you have Japanese friends, they may be extremely sensitive to any odors that you have grown used to-- and politeness might forbid them from actually telling you that your bedroom smells like skunkbutt-in-a-hot-frypan. So do everything you can to avoid the social embarrassment of a stinky mattress.

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Only Japanese people are sensitive enough to notice a smelly futon? Shocked

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

Quibby84 · Joined: 10 Aug 2006 Posts: 643 Location: Japan

Futons will mold on wooden floors to! You HAVE to let them air out at least once a week, we skipped one week and BAM...mold... We have two twin futons with sheets on them on the bottom (they get gross and even bleach wont make them normal), then two twin size comforters, then our full size futon... But we have to hang them out once a week, they get really gross from being on the floor...

fluffyhamster · Posted: Mon May 14, 2007 7:51 am Post subject:

Oh, one thing you definitely shouldn't put under your futon is your huge swaying piles of yen banknotes (actually, that's probably only likely if you have just arrived and converted a suitcaseful of Canadian dollars).

J. · Joined: 03 May 2003 Posts: 327

As far as I know the "sweat sheet" is something like a big towel, but not too thick. You use it under you between you and the sheet. I guess it soaks up the sweat in the summer months. It's washable.

If you don't want to put away your futon every day you can just stand it on its side sometimes so it can air out, and the tatami dry out underneath. Then put it outside about once a week to air out. I don't use the ones filled with cotton, but foam tri-fold ones, which are easier to stand up and dry out and are more comfortable. I think. They are encased in a matress-like cover that you can vacuum and spot clean if necessary. You can also buy zip covers for them that are washable. Whatever you use, you need at least two layers to be comfortable, and preferably three. Smile

As everyone here for awhile knows, there are special adjustable metal racks for drying futon, that they can be draped over.

J. · Joined: 03 May 2003 Posts: 327

About the only thing that will kill mold and mildew is white vinegar. It works better if the moldy thing is washable. Just add 1 or 2 cups of distilled white vinegar (available from Flying Pig in large jugs) in the washing machine and wash with detergent as normal. I suppose if it is on your futon you could try sponging with vinegar and then rinse a bit and dry outdoors. It would help anyway.

This is also the cure for moldy or mildewed clothes or anything washable, including a moldy washing machine. Clean any dark spots around the top with vinegar on a sponge and run the machine through a wash with the vinegar to get the moldy smell out.

This works on stuff that has been stored for a long time and is musty too, even furniture can be sponged down and rinsed and it will get out the smell.

It also eliminates the odor from smelly socks and clothes. Magic!

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Hmm. Will try that on the lint catching bag thingy in our washing machine, which has got very mouldy. Thanks! Very Happy

Andru · Joined: 23 Apr 2006 Posts: 22

J. · Joined: 03 May 2003 Posts: 327

Not sure why I'm bothering to answer this, but the smell of the vinegar comes out with the rinse. Do you have anything HELPFUL to add?

Sage · Joined: 09 Apr 2003 Posts: 144 Location: Iwate no inaka!

Owning a washing machine large enough to handle a shikibuton FTW!

TokyoLiz · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1548 Location: Tokyo, Japan

My apartment has a loft, so every morning I sling the futon and covers over the rail to air out.

Summer isn't the only time to worry about mouldy futons. Be careful in the winter, too, as condensation collects under futons. Bleh.

Once a week, I hang my futon over the railing outside and my boyfriend smacks the crap out of it with a bokken. It gets the dust out and frightens the neighbourhood children.