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MsSaskia -> RE: Vacbeds (2/29/2008 9:09:53 AM)
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The trouble with vac beds, or at least with the one I had, is that unless you can take them apart, they're difficult to clean and impossible to store without risking damage. I couldn't take mine apart, so I had to find a place to stand it up where it wouldn't be leaning against anything that might poke it and where it wouldn't be at risk for things falling over onto it. Getting the 7' PVC frame with a latex envelope through the door and around corners was also risky and I never managed it without scraping or bumping something. Since the latex fatigues and weakens easily, every little bump or scrape was a point where a hole could develop and widen. Yes, patching is possible, but looks shabby and the patch won't feel the same as nice, smooth, seamless latex. Being able to take the envelope off, clean and store it properly powdered and folded would've added another year or two to the life of my bed.
The one I had was constructed so that people had to lie as flat as possible and slide in sideways. The problem with that is that people are not flat, so anyone with a big belly or who was just a big person stretched the zipper to the point of tearing on entering and exiting, and sliding in sideways ver-r-r-r-y carefully when all excited and unaware of how fragile the whole thing was didn't work out very well. The zipper was the first to go, and I ended up duct taping the surrounding area over and over, which looked terrible and still didn't catch all the freakin leaks.
And leaks are definitely a problem. When you start a shop vac up and most of the air is sucked out of the frame around the person in it, a leak will produce an extremely high-pitched and LOUD squeal, which is not remotely conducive to relaxation for anyone in the room. I'd be scrambling to track down the source of the leak, roll of duct tape in hand, trying to keep an eye on how someone was responding to their first time in full-surround latex (minus the feet which were covered by socks), and it was irritating as hell.
Toenails were also a problem. Most men do not take care of their feet at all, and unless someone had trimmed their nails thoroughly within a few days of their session, the long and jagged toenails poked and scraped at the very thin latex. I ended up making people wear socks while they were in it just to save wear and tear on the latex.
Faces - specifically, noses - are a problem in a vac bed. You get the air hole over the mouth, which is fine, but then all that pressure on the nose can be very uncomfortable for some people. It wasn't necessarily the bigger noses that felt more pressure. I think if vac beds were constructed so that there was a looser area to fit over the face, that problem would be mitigated.
The person who bought the vac bed I had bartered it for sessions. I'd told him I'd trade X sessions for a bed, but didn't specify which bed. This was about 8-9 years ago. He got the cheapest one he could find and it tore the first time we used it, on the exit. Next time I get one, I'll do a lot of shopping around and research. I think one of the cubes would be better/easier to use than a flat vac bed.
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