Steaming out dents in a foam chair  

...that is to say, *any*...
...that is to say, *any* pointers would be greatly appreciated.

I reckon unless you replace...
I reckon unless you replace the foam it will just keep happening, if you don't sit on it for a few weeks you might get some resilience but what would be the point of that?

I dunno...the upholstery...
I dunno...the upholstery shop suggested a steam treatment would bring it back up. I thought it was a cop out, too. As for leaving it be in hopes of a resurrection -- I am often away for weeks at a time, and the chair still looks the same, so...no dice.
I was just wondering if anyone else had messed with this before, as said upholstery shop suggested that I ship them my rather heavy chair there and back, out of my own pocket, so that they could steam out the dents. They have insisted that the distinctly thigh-shaped dents in the seat are from me storing something in the chair other than my behind, and refused to make good on their work.
Not too cool. And these guys were supposed to be the best.

I
can't see how steam would repair foam..
Surely it only works on a fibrous product ..'fluffing' the compressed fibres ?

This does sound a bit queer, ...
This does sound a bit queer, foam is just a sponge so what is the steam supposed to do, fill your upholstery up with moisture, I can smell it from here. And what might this do to leather? How are you supposed to do this?
Good foam just doesn't do this, not even after 20 years it shouldn't.

"We feel that these marks...
"We feel that these marks could be steamed out. We would be happy to repair this chair if you would incur the costs to ship it to and from us. We would not recommend that you try to steam the chair without calling us to walk you through it. If the steaming is not done properly the leather could delaminate from the foam or the foam could delaminate from the shell or both. "

When I first removed the...
When I first removed the chair from the shipping container, my thumb left an impression that you can still see to this day, a year later. I foolishly reasoned at the time that it would settle out. When the impressions started to show up, I thought, also, that they would settle out over time. I was also in denial because I hate becoming engaged in a battle with the merchant, which I am presently. She had the nerve to state that, 'we don't believe' that the chair could have gotten dents from normal seating, and decided instead that I had been storing something atop my freshly upholstered seat that was merely shaped like an ass and two legs -- thereby, nullifying any warranty through conjecture.
By the way, for all those who poo poo new editions -- I actually bought this chair for its bones and had it redone out of a similar recycling bent, but I'm finding that there's always something wonky about re-upholstery, no matter how reputed the shop is. This is only one instance.

They glued the leather down?...
They glued the leather down? What sort of chair is this?

Sorry -- Swan chair.
Sorry -- Swan chair.

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okay so I suppose it had to be glued, but how are you supposed to steam it through the leather? You can't come up from the underneath.
Depressions might not look so bad on a different chair but it must stick out like dogs goolies on this one. I'd say it was an accident that cheap foam was put on and they really are trying to avoid re-doing it becuase of the fiddliness and cost of hand stitching, again.
I'd be very firm that it must be redone, its just not up to standard and I bet you paid a lot for it. Even if this steaming does work I think it would be a short term solution.

I agree. I'm not looking for...
I agree. I'm not looking for an amen corner on this, but I'm glad that I am not the only one who's incredulous. The reply e-mail from the upholstery shop secretary was in its usual terse style, stating that they did not believe that these marks were caused by a person but by something else sitting in the chair. Wha? Talk about insult to injury. Warranty void upon self-serving conjecture!
Anyway, if they were going to do this steam-thing, I thought maybe it was something I could do myself. You're right, I suspect that they are dodging any accountability and that this is maybe only a token consolation. You're also right that I paid a healthy lot for work to be done.
Mighty pissed.

.
I'd be angry too. Maybe next time, whatever the job, only deal with the tradesman himself.
Is there anything like a 'trade practices act' you can refer to?

steaming won't work.
They used poor quality foam and steaming will not do a damn thing to fix it, even if they could get steam to the foam without damaging the leather or chair shell or whatever.
Is there an upholsterer nearby who can look at the chair and write a letter for you stating that the foam has lost its resiliency from just normal use? I doubt the firm that did the job will give you a break based on another upholsterer's opinion, but getting the second opinion would be the first step in preparing a case against the other upholsterer if you want to go that route.
I think the only way to fix the chair will be to have it redone with the right type of foam (probably latex). The firm that screwed it up should give you a partial refund at the very minimum.

I'm pissed just reading this.
Unacceptable that you are being treated this way.
Such a beautiful chair. Perfect upholstery is so important
to its architecture.
I'm not sure i would want them to touch it again. And to have to pay
shipping?
I agree with all above about the steaming. Does not make sense at all.
They may have received a bad batch of foam from a shady supplier.
But they should admit something went wrong.
I have sample squares of foam i was testing for a kayak seat. They were
smashed under scrap wood and steel for months and most of it bounced
back.
Pretty hard to make crap foam these days.