Viewing 26 posts - 1 through 26 (of 26 total)
  • Emptying a waterbed – anyone done it?
  • rascal
    Free Member

    I need to drain one next weekend without a pump.
    The bed is best part of 200 miles away so I have no idea what connections are on it.
    I’m aware it can be done by syphoning via a hose connected to the matress.
    It has to be done then and I want it to go with no problems.

    Any pointers gratefully received!

    Squidlord
    Free Member

    200 miles away? Do you look something like this?

    piedidiformaggio
    Free Member

    or

    rascal
    Free Member

    Thanks for the helpful replies 🙄

    Three_Fish
    Free Member

    There are a couple of YouTube videos you’ll find if you search.

    twonks
    Full Member

    Can you get the owner to tell you make and model and then do some interweb digging for the connection size.

    I’d be taking long hosepipe with a drill powered pump and a selection of tap connections.

    tinribz
    Free Member

    I want it to go with no problems

    What could possibly go wrong?

    jon1973
    Free Member

    drink the water

    project
    Free Member

    From experience theryre usually in a tanked bed frame, in case of leaks, with some sort of connection to fill it up, sometimes they have a non return valve, to stop water leaking out, a hose pipe and some luck will help.

    Youll also be surprised at how heavy a bladder full of cold water is.

    JulianA
    Free Member

    jon1973 – Member
    drink the water

    Well now that would depend entirely on who’s been sleeping in it.

    Uma Therman / Fiona Bruce / Felicity Kendal (perm any one or two from three): yes.
    Ed Miliband: no.

    We need more information properly to answer this question.

    howsyourdad1
    Free Member

    Just for my benefit and knowledge gaining, why do you need to empty it? Do all water beds need to be emptied during their watery lives? What happens if you don’t?

    Oh and can the freeze if you leave the heating off over winter for like two weeks holiday?

    rascal
    Free Member

    My mum passed away 5 months ago.
    I have to sell the house and…I live 200 miles away
    The new owners don’t want it – I have to get it out of the house next weekend.

    Would very much appreciate no more funnies and only an answer that might help me please.

    jamj1974
    Full Member

    Seriously – never done it but siphoning using a hose and force of gravity should do it.

    edhornby
    Full Member

    I emptied a home birth pool (which I would expect to be a volume in a similar ballpark) and we had to use buckets because we couldn’t siphon it. 3 blokes with 6 buckets took about 45mins which wasn’t as bad as it sounds

    chrisdw
    Free Member

    My parents did it with a jet wash as a pump. Think the motor over heated a couple of times tho. But it worked. Hose pipe straight out the window.

    cbike
    Free Member

    You have very patient parents!! Siphoning with a hose pipe would have been much quicker.

    batfink
    Free Member

    Hosepipe out the window, and down a drain in the street. Might be a bit more difficult to get started if it’s downstairs/in a bungalow, but you should be able to find enough drop somehow.

    Or you could hire one of these for a day for 35 quid if you wanted to:

    Pump

    spooky_b329
    Full Member

    For easy syphoning, connect hose pipe to tap and purge air. Bring far end back to tap, turn off and thumb over both ends. Connect to airbed and then lob one end out of window. No sucking on the hose required!

    hairybiker84
    Free Member

    Done it quite a few times. Ideally get hold of a fill/drain kit before you go, the ones I have had have been American/Canadian and only fit a threaded hosepipe but http://www.thewaterbedspecialist.co.uk/index.php?mod=category&id_ctg=74 obviously fits a standard coupler. If you don’t want to get one of those you can tape a hopepipe in to the filler with duct tape but beware that some mattresses have a ‘wadding’ filling that will get drawn into the hose and stop it syphoning. If the mattress is on the first floor happy days, attach hosepipe, dangle out window, get syphon flowing and a hour or so later it will be empty. Ground floor will probably need a pump. Be aware that it’s not just water inside – it should have a ‘conditioner’ added every six months which stops the water going stagnant so try not to swallow any! Good luck 😀

    rascal
    Free Member

    Thanks people 🙂

    johndoh
    Free Member

    Youll also be surprised at how heavy a bladder full of cold water is.

    One kilo per litre.

    Bimbler
    Free Member

    Aquarium siphon?

    dknwhy
    Full Member

    Before ours finally gave up and started leaking (about 11 years old – the vinyl perishes), i’d had it moved 3 times professionally.
    I tried to do it myself once but without a decent pump and more importantly, the correct fittings for the bag, it was a nightmare.
    I think the guy charged £150-£200 which included the full move and refill with conditioner.
    We had a dual bag, dual heated, soft sided bed.
    I did empty it myself when it developed a leak – this involved a lot of trips to the bath with a washing up bowl, until I could get the bag light enough to lift and empty in the bath. I then did the same with the second bag before ditching the whole thing.
    The fortunate thing was that the soft sided bed had a catchment sheet underneath which meant nothing went through to the hard frame underneath.
    We still use the base as our bed frame (and have a mattress on top), as it is basically a really heavy duty divan base with drawers.

    rascal
    Free Member

    Thanks for the helpful replies.
    Sounds like it could be tricky and time-consuming, plus I have to dispose of the bed after so for £55 a waterbed dude with a pump will empty it and take it away (and probably sell the bed too).
    Saves me a headache though so worthwhile.

    Cheers

    sharkbait
    Free Member

    Money well spent. Having just emptied my mums house before the sale completed I hope it all goes well.

    bencooper
    Free Member

    I emptied my father-in-laws one from his 3rd floor flat. Hosepipe down the stairs into the street, just lifted the opening on the bladder a bit, cracked it open, and put the hose in.

Viewing 26 posts - 1 through 26 (of 26 total)

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