Don't sit in the middle of a pool lounger

A standard inflatable pool lounger will hold 200–250 pounds if you’re lying down, but the middle folds much earlier if you sit on it.

That’s because the rating assumes your weight is spread across the whole length of the mattress. Lying down, your butt and shoulders press different cells, and the air can shift around. Sit in the middle and you’re putting all that force on one narrow spot, which is like poking a balloon with a finger — it’s going to fold and dunk you.

Five pounds of pressure per square inch sounds like a lot until you realize your butt makes that concentrated. Most blow-up loungers are just a thin PVC shell held together by air seams. The second