Health & Fitness
How to Pick Best Mattresses
How do you select from among mattresses available in today's market?
When shopping in today's market to purchase a new bed mattress, it can be a little overwhelming with all the options. From water beds, coil spring beds, memory foam beds, latex beds, and Air Beds, how do you figure out which will be best for you?
General considerations include whether the mattress will be shared, and how much room will be needed; the level of comfort and support desired, and warranty details.
The first thing to know about the actual bed setup is that each one has two key parts: the support mechanism and comfort layers. Let's start by describing the support section. In the past, we had coil spring mattresses that gave the support, and then above them came many layers of stuff. We never could see it, but were led to believe it was foam.
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As technology changed, water beds became more popular, and as a support mechanism, it works very well; only to change the pressure, you have to add more water or take some out, as well as contend with leaks. Many people still sleep on these today.
The more popular Air Beds, also known as Sleep Number Beds, provide the support mechanism for the bed through an air chamber. By simply adjusting the dial on a remote, you can have a different setting. By now, most people have heard of the Sleep Number Beds in the malls, and may have even gone to try them out. This style of bed is nice because it allows for you to be supported to your desired comfort level and pick the amount of pillow top you like.
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There are several types of comfort layers on the market. The leader of the pack by far is All Natural Latex. It has the best durability and resilience as well as being resistant to dust mites, mold and mildew. It does offer a little firmer of a feel than memory foam because it is latex rubber, but will outlast every other foam on the market. Memory foam does have its place; as a pressure point reducer, it does a great job. It is best when used in small amounts in conjunction with other foams.
What questions do you have about beds and mattresses?
Editor's Note: Brandon Fry, along with Gary Oleksiw, started AirBed Pros in 2008 as an in-home air bed repair service company to serve the St. Louis market. They offer parts and service from the Wildwood and Eureka area for Air Beds, AirPro Number Beds and Sleep Number Beds.