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[2023-12-23 Sat 13:29]
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Well, I'm moving to a new unfurnished place and the time has come for me to start thinking of purchasing furniture, which is when I realised that I do not even know the lay of the land. How does one buy a bed?
It felt embarassing to admit that I've slept for a long portion of my life, albeit in different places, but am yet to know the fundamentals behind 'bed technology'. So, this might be a good opportunity to lay down the basics.
NYTimes Wirecutter has a nice guide about the different mattresses available. Overall, they advise focussing on comfort and support, as opposed to only firmness or price. I would not probably go with the 'brand selection' and recommendation, but the general tips provided seemed to make sense. Most of the quotes below are from this article, and some others. There's also a separate article talking about mattress types which offer nice cross-section views of different mattresses, which in the end also points towards customizable foam mattresses.
When you’re shopping for a mattress, you can choose from three primary types:
foam (memory foam, polyfoam, latex foam, or a combination);
innerspring;
hybrid (a mix of foam and springs)
Note how an innerspring mattress with foam is difficult to distinguish from a hybrid mattress and some assumptions were made in the article.
The top layer of innerspring mattresses consists of fabric-encased padding that is filled with fibers, such as cotton, polyester, or wool; or foam.
The line between an innerspring mattress with foam and a hybrid mattress is fuzzy, but for the purposes of our guide, we’ve designated mattresses with quilted tops as innersprings, and those with a sock cover (a simple fabric stitched or zipped over the entire mattress) as a hybrid.
Pillow-top innersprings contain an extra layer of padding sewn on top of the mattress’s fabric cover. Euro-top mattresses have padding sewn underneath the fabric cover. Innersprings without the extra padding are known as tight tops - <https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/mattress-types/>
Apparently it takes over a month of sleeping on a mattress to understand whether it is the one you prefer. There is one school of thought where a trial is insisted on, despite sleeping with plastic covers on top - so that one can truly understand if a mattress is suitable. A number of manufacturers offer varying trial periods.
The only way to know a mattress being firm or soft enough is to sit or lie down on it.
MemoryFoam? Matresses conform to the body shape and thus relieve pressure off the joints of the body.
Foam type is more suitable if you prefer the mattress to envelope your body. The innerspring is a bit more firm in the sense of holding you up. The conventional mattress style is the innerspring. It contains metallic springs layered on top with a layered cushions made of foam.
A latex based mattress will be somewhere in between a innerspring and a foam mattress since it tends to be a little more springy. They also tend to be cooler than foam mattresses.
Foam mattresses are notorious for trapping heat as opposed to innerspring and latex foam. Therefore hot sleepers should avoid them. The foam mattresses with technology for heat dissipation tend to cost more.
Edge support is a 'thing' if one wants to sit on the edge of the bed. Innerspring mattresses will often have a stiffer coild or high density foam around the corners. However, this should not be assumed.
Foam density is an aspect that should be asked and questioned before purchased. Depending on the weight of the person a higher foam density would be preferable. This can be specifically asked, if not already availablle. The cheaper and less dense the foam, the higher chances of body depresssions.
For memory foam - atleast 3 pounds per cubic foot for 200 pounds of weight is the starting point. For non-memory foam type beds, it would be a little lower.
Considerations would be different if there are 2 folks sharing the bed - and have different preferences. For such cases, the adjustable bases from bedgear may be useful.
All-latex or innerspring mattresses are less prone to body depresssions than the foam based variants, and tend to be more expensive.
Body depressions can be avoided by rotating the mattress atleast every 6 months and also varying the positions of sleeping.
Vincent Verhaert, who has a doctorate in mechanical engineering and biomechanics and owns Belgian mattress company Equilli, recommends trying to slide your hand under your lower back. A snug fit typically means the mattress gives you decent support. A too-tight space suggests that the mattress is too soft, whereas a too-slack space indicates it’s too firm.
With respect to wood versus metal in the bedframes as well the slats - it appears that wood is generally better mainly because there would be less creaking, especially when it comes to slats. However, metal is more robust, at the cost of creaking, which may be alleviated possibly by a frequent level of lubrication.
The slats are basically the support system provided for the mattress. Too few or poorly placed slats would cause the mattress to sag. The 'modern' design tend to require only slats. However, box springs are still typically used. This is essentially a box of springs and some layers of foam that form a base on top of which a mattress is placed. The box springs tend to be one single unit and heavy to handle.