Home improvement

 by: Tim Jeffries

Here’s really simple way to buy your next hammock and make sure that you don’t get ripped off in the process. Hammocks bring back memories of lazy days spent in beach nations where time seems to stand still. This is our memory too- don’t worry- we’ve clearly been to the same destinations (and boy, we can’t wait to get back to Jamaica!). We are going to run through a three point system we use to make sure you get the best deal you can when shopping for a new hammock. Let’s start with a few places for you to check out when you are shopping that you might not think would carry an exotic item like a Hammock.

1)Check out camping stores. You might not think a place like REI would have hammocks, but they do. Nice ones. Lots of them. I do not work for REI nor am I associated with them in any way. However, I’ve shopped there a few times over the last 10 years. I’ve been overwhelmingly impressed with their selection of camping items and general supplies. They always have new stuff at decent prices. What I didn’t know is that a hammock must be a fairly popular camping item because REI (at least the one I went into) stocks them. I suppose some campers must like to use them after a hard day of mountaineering. This is great for you if you only need one for your home. Check out camping stores near you.

2)Compare prices and use Ebay. I love Ebay for more reasons than I can count. One of the best features of Ebay is the fact that I can readily compare prices of hammocks (and everything else from used fuzzy dice to camera phones) and then make my decision. If nothing else, use Ebay as the first stop in your research process to get a feel for what is selling for how much and what general range of prices you should be looking for when you finally do make a purchasing decision. Just take a look through their listings tonight, there are people from all over the world selling hammocks at good prices. If you are going to actually buy a hammock, just make sure the seller has plenty of positive feedback. It’s a great insurance policy.

3)This is the most important part of the hammock buying process. Without knowing the quality of the hammock you are investing in, there is not way of knowing whether not its going to last or whether its going to be comfortable. Not all hammocks are created equally to say the least. In fact, this is an understatement. The old adage of “you get what you pay for” is equally as valid today as it was at the turn of the (20th) century. To give you an idea, we recently went on a trip to the Caribbean. There were $20 hammocks available at very low prices everywhere we looked. However, a quick quality check of these revealed them to be of a lower quality (and therefore wouldn’t be the most comfortable of thing to use in a few years after they wore out).

Hammocks vary in quality from the superb to the dismal. Ask anyone who has ever bought substandard hammock what the difference is and you really will get an earful. You must know what to look for to get the most comfortable hammock available at the best price.