Today we worked on the couch. I'm sharing this for those of you who might be interested in doing something similar. Simply folding the bed in half wasn't as comfortable as we had hoped. I'm only 5' 2" and Paul is only 5" taller so long legged couches aren't very comfortable for us.
So we decided to make a backboard and upholster it. The backboard is 18" tall and 76" wide (we used 3/4" plywood and 4" foam). The bed is 76.5". We went with .5" shorter for easier removable. It will be put under the bed at night.
The arm rests are made with .25" ply and 4" foam.
We're going to cover the entire mattress with the same material but I had to go to the store and purchase more of it. In the pic you see the white of the mattress behind the back. In the future it will have the same fabric as the backboard.
It's a simple solution and the new back and armrests make it very comfortable. We're also making a center island for the couch that has two cup holders on one side and foam on the other. But I jammed the air gun so we weren't able to finish it today. If anyone knows how to unjam an air gun let me know.
Paul also painted the cabinet doors that will be going under the couch today.
Lynn