Nobody knows what will make you feel good. Everybody is different.
Many times customers have asked me “What mattress do you recommend ?” My answer is always “Whatever mattress makes you feel good.” Nobody knows what will make you feel good. Everybody is different. One customer will say a certain mattress is perfect; someone else will say it is too soft; someone else will say the same mattress is too hard. There is not one mattress that will make everybody feel good. It depends on whether you sleep on your side, back or stomach. Also, how much a customer weighs will be a deciding factor.
Consumer Reports magazine (March, 1997) said “A good mattress will gently support your body at all points. Although we could find no published scientific data on what type of mattress is best, orthopedic experts generally recommend the firmest mattress that you find comfortable.” I always start with “comfortable.” If you are not comfortable, you wasted your money.
Very Important : Lay on the mattress at least about 10 or 15 minutes before you buy it. A mattress can feel good at first, and later you might start feeling pain or pressure points.
Mattress Warranties
You can use most mattress warranties for toilet paper. Almost everything that will go wrong with your mattress is not covered by the warranty. Most mattress warranties actually protect the manufacturer more than they protect you. The warranties do not cover dips, body impressions and sags; They say that the mattress is conforming to your body. That protects the manufacturer, but the customer is not happy, and your money is gone. Also there are so many “ifs”, “buts” and exclusions that make the warranty almost useless. Make sure you buy from someone that will take care of you.
What you need to know about foam.
The #1 thing you need to know about mattresses is that foam wears out. Foam can be “low-density” or “high density”. Low density foam is like whipped cream or angel food cake: You can take a small amount of materials and whip it up in to a thick soft-feeling foam, but the low-density foam breaks down quickly, and you are soon sleeping in dips and body impressions, and the nice feeling you had when you bought the mattress is gone. Naturally, because the low-density foam uses less materials, it is cheaper to make. Low-density foam is 1.5 lbs./cubic foot or less. The lower the density, the cheaper it is, and the sooner it will break down. High-density foam is like pound cake: It is heavier, because it uses more materials, but it lasts longer, and it is not cheap. High density foam starts at about 1.8 lb./cubic foot and can go as high as 4 or 5lbs./cubic foot. Good foam is not cheap, and cheap foam is not good. PROBLEM: Many salespeople, even factory salespeople, do not know the foam density in the mattresses. And the factories are not eager to tell you about the foam density, because many of them are using 1.5 density foam, even in their very expensive mattresses. Some manufacturers are saying that 1.5 lb. foam is “high-density”. Most mattress warranties do not cover dips, body impressions and sags; They say that the mattress is conforming to your body. That protects the manufacturer, but the customer is not happy, and your money is gone. A further word of caution: I have read that some foam (NOT from USA) was “weighted”: meaning that something was added to the foam to make it heavier – to give the impression that it was high-density foam. (I think this would be a rare situation, because most importers are trying to protect their reputation.)
We do not sell mattresses with “egg-crate” foam. Egg-crate foam gives a nice wonderful, soft feel, but it wears out fast, and the nice, soft feel is gone. Naturally the customer is at a disadvantage, because the customer cannot see inside the mattress.
My mattress is sagging. Is it my mattress or my “boxsprings”? Sometimes your mattress may be OK, but the boxpring is bad. How do you know? Take the mattress off the bed and lay it flat on the floor. If it looks like you just got a new mattress, then your “boxsprings” is bad and needs repaired or replaced. If your mattress is still bad, then it needs replaced.
Why is my mattress sagging? The springs of most mattresses hold up OK. It’s almost always the foam or padding on the top which is worn out, and there is nothing you can do about it (which is why I do not like to sell mattresses with thick layers of foam on top.) There are rare occasions where springs are broken, and there’s nothing you can do about that either. Generally the springs do not break unless someone has been jumping on the bed, or sometimes they break if someone is heavy.
NOTE: If you have a habit of sitting on the edge of the bed, there is a strong possibility that the edge of the mattress where you sit will sag and possibly break down. The mattress is made to lay on – not to sit on. It’s best to get a chair to sit on to put your shoes on or play video games, watch TV or whatever.
Do I need a new “boxsprings”? Lift your “boxprings” up and set it on its side, OR turn it over. There is usually a black dust cover stapled on the bottom. Peel that back a little so you can look inside the “boxprings”. If you have coils or wires that are bent or broken, it will probably need replaced. (Or maybe you can put a piece of plywood on top of it.) If there are wood boards that are broken, you might be able to repair or replace them, or you might just want to get a new “boxsprings” . If the underneath of the “boxsprings” looks good, staple the black dust cover on, and you’re good to go.
“Boxsprings” and Foundations
These days, most of what are called “boxsprings” do not actually have springs in them. Most of them are properly called a “FOUNDATION”. Some are made of wood , and covered with a fabric; some are just a wood base with steel wires going up and down, covered with a nice material to make them look nice. Basically, their purpose is just to make the mattress higher and give the mattress something flat to sit on.
