Tips, Advice, and Things to Consider When Choosing a Mattress
Jan 21 '07 (Updated Jan 27 '07)
The Bottom Line Be Wise: Spend some time shopping around and considering your options. You will spend one third of your day using this purchase.
We spend a large portion of our lives sleeping, one should consider "buying a mattress" a task of paramount importance. Most of us sleep about 8 hours a day; well much less if you have children or a job, but the rule of thumb would be one-third of our day is spent in bed. (More if you’re newly weds) I find it hard to consider a trial run of laying on a store mattress the overall deciding factor to considering such a paramount decision.
I. Budget
II. Size
III. Composition of Materials
IV. Thickness
V. Foundation
VI. Level of Firmness
VII. Brands
Budget
People often over extend themselves with purchases that they may not be able to afford, especially with siren calls from luring credit card offers. Expensive price with a bed set does not guarantee the absolute best set, however do not go cheap either, but set a budget and uphold it as best you can.
Size
I know what you’re thinking, King Size, well your room might be too small for a bed that large. Although my personal experience with sleeping surface area, is “Bigger is Better,” as I am a bed, blanket, sheet, and pillow hog. Again the size of your mattress will be somewhat limited to the actual size of the room it is going in. Also consider if you’re sleeping with a partner, or sharing the bed, in that case a Queen Size or King Size might be a better option. In addition you might even get an extra long bed for all you tall people.
Composition of Materials
Different mattresses provide combinations of material that give the desired firmness level in which you experience. Some give the sensation of firmness, or stiff hard support, while others feel like a marshmallow and let you sink directly into them. Typical construction of a mattress is a box spring foundation with an innerspring mattress on top. Currently they have more popular models of Memory foam mattresses, individual air mattresses, and even futon type bed tops. To test out these different types of materials, visit store locations, spend the night at a fancy hotel, and ask your friends about what they own or recommend sampling.
Thickness
Thickness is also known as the “depth” of a mattress, because manufactures add even more foam to increase the comfort and softness of the mattress. Theses new surfaces are called a pillow-top, which can be stuffed with foam or even feathers to give an additional layer of soft material right on top of the mattress. This is important as the dimensions for your sheets might be effected because of the extra inches added to the mattresses overall length. In other words a deeper bed will may require a larger spread than the claimed size, so make sure you measure the mattress from top to bottom and get the correct thickness.
Foundation
You cannot build a solid house without a good foundation, and the same applies to a mattress. Your bed frame should provide a firm strong support for the mattress and counterparts, a solid steel frame is usually recommended, that has support on the four major corners and middle frame support so it does not sag. Some frames are specifically built to fit a size of box spring; others are adjustable and fit different sizes of bed from Twin to Queen.
Level of Firmness
Mattress Firmness is personal preference, so some people like the hard support of sleeping on the floor, while others may find comfort in a soft pillow surrounding. Any type is alright as long as it supports your back and body evenly while you rest. They currently have adjustable beds which allow you to inflate the air coils to a certain level of firmness depending on how your sleep, also you could purchase two smaller mattresses and place them side by side, one being firm and the other being soft. Again it is all up to the person using and sleeping on the mattresses.
Brands
I find it difficult to select a brand, so I spoke to some trusted family furniture sales people, each one recommended Sealy as well as Simmons. The exact quote was “Neck and Neck” for comfort, style, and technological advancements. When I tested each one against other brands the results were in favor of this newly acquired knowledge. I use to sleep on a futon, which was extremely hard and uncomfortable. Then we purchased a Natures Bed with pillow top, unfortunately it is becoming uncomfortable and sagging after 4 years. Keeping in mind that I weigh 150lbs wet, I doubt that my size has anything to do with the defective material used in this particular mattresses composition. So we are going to take a look and research some newer models with the higher end technology, and budget for something both of us can enjoy.
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