Measuring for a Modular Cloud Couch: Wall, Floor and Door

Start with the wall

Measure the longest stretch of wall the couch can sit against without covering a vent, a radiator or the swing of a door. Write it down in inches. Then take a hand's width off each end, because soft arms spread a little once the foam has risen and you will want to reach the light switch.

Our layouts run from a 40 inch ottoman to a 140 inch U. If your wall is under 80 inches, the loveseat or a single seat is the honest answer, however much you like the big L.

Then the depth you can spare

Depth is where modular couches surprise people. A three-seat row is about 39 inches deep, but add the ottoman in front and the L or U reaches 68.9 inches into the room. The seven-seat island comes forward 108 inches along one side.

Stand where the couch will end and look at the path to the door, the TV and the kitchen. You want roughly 30 inches of clear walkway. If that disappears, choose the layout with fewer ottomans, or plan to keep one ottoman as a movable table.

Measure the way in

Each Ohllob piece comes compressed in its own box, so the widest thing that has to pass the door is one module, not the whole couch. A corner seat measures about 40 by 39 inches once it has risen, and it travels far smaller than that.

Still, walk the route with a tape: the front door, any turn in the hall, the stair and the room door. Tight turns matter more than straight widths.

• Front door and room door, the narrowest point of each
• Hall turns: measure the diagonal of the turn
• Stairs: headroom where the stair turns
• Somewhere to keep boxes that arrive on different days

Seat height and depth

Our sectional seats sit 18.9 inches off the floor, the loveseat and single seat 18.5, and all of them are 25.6 inches deep. That is low and deep: lovely for tucking your legs up, harder work if you like to perch and stand up quickly.

If you are tall, the depth is your friend. If you are short, add a firm cushion behind your back for upright sitting and take it away for lounging.

Price per seat

A bigger layout costs more, but not always more per seat. The table below divides the lowest current price of each layout by the seats it is sold with.