Generally, the weight limit is between 200 to 400 pounds for a standard sex swing. Each swing is different and has different manufacturer recommendations, Some manufactures make unreasonable or dangerous claims of how much weight a sex swing can hold in an attempt to sell products. In this post, we will cover in-depth the weight limitations of a sex swing and what you can do to use them safely. Start by buying a safe sex swing.
A manufacturer will recommend a weight that will be shown in the listing and prints on the box to help sell the sex swing. Weight limits of sex swings is a pretty complicated question and one that many manufacturers do not address in-depth. The reason is, that every person, house and sex swing is different. It is up to every sex swing user to look at their individual situation and to be sure the swing itself and the installation are safe.
First and foremost, manufacturers can look at all the weight limits of individual parts that make up a sex swing. When they do this they find the weakest piece and set that as the weight limit according to this. For example a D-ring may be listed for a weight limit of 400 pounds. The problem with this is that a sex swing does not function only on one part. It has many parts and weight distribution. However assessing weight limits based on the “weakest link” is how weight limits are set for sex swings. We at SexSwing.com look at it differently. We know all sex swings are required to be mounted/hung in order to be used. Our testing has shown us that the mounting point/installation is far more important in determining the weight limit than the actual sex swing itself. If you are using an eye-hook ceiling mount, this will be the weakest point of your sex swing. It is not the swing, but where and how you install it.
Lets collectively understand that it would be impossible for a manufacturer to speculate on what the weight limit of your ceiling installation could hold. But lets move forward in helping you make sure that your installation is properly installed so you have ultimate safety using your sex swing. Relax and enjoy!
Our biggest concern is that manufactures don’t understand or care to understand and educate users on how to safely mount a sex swings. We are specifically concerned about the manufactures of sex swings claiming 600 to 800 pound rated sex swings. That is just unreasonable for the installation abilities of most people. We find this dishonest and do not sell these type of sex swings. To find our trusted, safe and approved sex swings please check here.
Ceiling Hooks for Swings
When considering how much a sex swing can hold, you must look at everything starting with where you are going to install it.
The most common method of installation is a ceiling eye hook. With this method, the questions you need to ask yourself are “what is the weight limit of the eye hook?” and “can the structure I am screwing into support this?”
The unknown is a challenge. Even in researching this piece for hard numbers and images, I see many big stores such as Home Depot or E-rigging often will not give a weight rating. They do this because eye lag hooks are designed to screw into wood. All wood is different. What kinds of wood? Is the wood rotted or split? What kind of distance is it spanning? What size wood?
There are so many factors in play that it is safer not to recommend a weight the hook can support.
For this post we will only be discussing the screw itself — the actual metal piece and
Eye bolts come in two types. Bent wire or cast/welded. A bent wire eye bolt is formed by taking a steel bar, bending the end in a circle and threading the other end. The weakness here is that the circle on the end can be bent straight. Depending on the material and size of the bolt, this could have a working load limit of something like 300 pounds. This type of bolt is what ships with many swings. Think about that. Some of these same swings claim to support 600+ pounds. Yes, the swing itself may hold it, maybe. But the eye bolt or the wood structure? Probably not a good idea.
The cast or welded eye takes it an extra step. In these cases, the circle at the end is attached to itself. Being attached means it can not just bend straight. It would have to break metal. A comparable size of this bolt could have a working load of 2,500 pounds. Of course, that still does not solve our wood problem, and I have never seen a swing ship with this type of bolt. Plus, they are harder to find at places like Home Depot. You can, however, pick them up online such as Amazon.
Weight Limited By Springs
Most swings ship with some style spring. The spring typically has a weight rating of 200 pounds, and so they recommend something like between 200 to 400 pound.
Removing the spring is a BAD IDEA. Look around your house and anything that might move. Check out your washing machine tub, the motor on your refrigerator, your car. All of these things have some type of spring or rubber system with them to provide damping and reduce fatigue on the parts. Even something small like a little push cart or push scooter, they use rubber wheels because the rubber has
So using the spring will save wear on the mounting point, but it will also save load and fatigue on the hardware of your swing. The spring means it will be stronger and last longer.
Somewhere along the journey from the first sex swings until today, the marketers lost the importance of the spring and the design made by engineers. The spring went from being a safety feature to an optional marketing feature.
For us here, we always use the spring on all swings and slings. Since most springs have a weight limit of 200 pound, you can upgrade them to a heavy-duty drawbar safety spring which has a weight rating of 300 pounds.
Comfort Limits of a Sex Swing
Once we have talked about the weight limits of the parts of a swing and the installation points, we next need to consider comfort. The comfort of a sex swing is all about weight displacement or pounds per square inch. Weight displacement is not a matter of physical strength of the swing, but who is physically strong enough to endure the pain of sitting in some swings.
Ironically, the swings that claim to have a very high weight rating such as 800 pound are produced using a 1 1/2 inch webbing. Now let’s say that this swing could support 800 pounds The person sitting on the swing is maybe 30 inches wide. The webbing is only 1 1/2 inches with a very weak foam padding. That means 800 pounds on 45 in² (30x1.5) of strap. Or 17.77 lb/in². That is about the pressure of setting a men’s bowling ball on your finger.
Compare that with another swing that has a 180 lbs person on a swing rated only for 300 pound but built with 4-inch webbing. This person is smaller, so they only sit on 20 inches inches of the swing. But at 4 inches wide that is 80 in² (20x4) of weight dispersion. So this person has a pressure of only 2.25 lb/in². This pressure would be more like the bowling ball being held in with all your palm and fingers.
So who is more comfortable? This post is not meant to discourage anyone from buying or using a swing. It is just math. Yes, some swings claim to have a high weight rating, but even if you believe everything they say, you will not have anything remotely close to a comfortable experience in these swings.
Options and Solutions
Ok, well let me start by saying, we do not sell any of the swings that report a very high weight limit. We have bought, tested and used them. Even if we were to believe the claims of the weight ratings, we the overall quality of those swings did not meet our standards. They were poorly designed, constructed and assembled. So we do not sell them. You can find and purchase them at other outlets online if you so desire.
For those with more realistic expectations, there are a few things to consider.
- Weight limits are the weight of the person on the swing. Many people try to add the weight of both people. While there are some positions such as a man lying in a swing and the woman squatting over him, these positions are very few and not that practical for many people. So while they are great for photos, the average person reading this will not usually use those positions. So only worry about the weight of the heaviest individual and avoid the positions supporting two people.
- A dual hook swing will be more comfortable, but with two mounting points, it will also cut the weight on the eyebolts, springs, and wood by half. This is a lot less load to worry about. Use your spring and consider upgrading if needed. Also, consider upgrading your eyebolt to a welded or cast eyebolt if you want that extra level of safety.
- If you are using an eyebolt in your ceiling, do not remove it. Doing so will weaken the wood for future uses.
There are most safety tips in this quick video.
So while every swing has its manufacturers weight rating, it is ultimately up to you to look at all parts of the swing and installation system. Inspect your swing before each use for signs of wear or damage. And hire a professional if you are unsure about installation.