Hints and Tips: Choosing the right bed or mattress

Beds and mattresses should last between 5 and 10 years before they need replacing. Mattresses get a lot of use, with up to a third of your life spent lying on one. Choosing the right bed and mattress combination is important, and we have compiled this information in order to help you make an informed choice about which is the right bed or mattress for you.

Bed Types There are many different types of bed available

• The Traditional Divan Bed. This comes with either a sprung edge base for extra comfort or a solid base. These beds usually come with either none, two or four drawers underneath but other combinations are available. Side or end drawers are available on most divan bases. An ideal place to store bed linen, pillows, sheets etc. You need to consider your room layout with respect to the location of drawers.
• Bedsteads. Either metal or wooden there are a huge variety of styles available. Most come with a sprung slatted base.
• 4 Poster beds. If your room is big enough these will add a lot of style to your bedroom
• Bunk Beds. Normally 3ft wide with one bed above another, although combinations can include cupboards, wardrobes, futons and desk areas.
• Sofa Beds and Futons. These are small settee's or chairs that convert into a bed for occasional use
• Guest Beds. Normally a 2ft6 or 3ft bed which has an extra pullout bed underneath which is then lifted on legs to the same height as the bed to give you a 5ft or 6ft bed.
• contract beds. Beds for care homes and hotels that meet strict safety standards.

Bed and mattress sizes
Whilst many measurement are now in metric, it is still common practise to quote bed and mattress widths in feet and inches instead of centimeters. There are also standard names for certain bed sizes.
The table below shows some common sizes and their names. Note that it is also possible to have mattresses made to a specific size.

Common Name	UK SizeMetric
2ft6	2ft6	75cm
Single	3ft	90cm
Small Double	4ft	120cm
Double	4ft6	135cm
King size	5ft	150cm
Super King size (or queen)	6ft	180cm

Mattresses

• Pocket Sprung. These superior mattresses contain individually pocketed springs that work independently of each other and are designed to conform to the shape of your body – thus giving a continuous support with no air gaps for the perfect night’s restful sleep.
  An additional benefit of the individual pocketed sprung unit is a lack of roll together, meaning you stay on your own side of the bed even when your partner may be heavier.
  NB: For use on a slatted or wooden bed frame we would recommend the Highgate Pine Deluxe mattress incorporating their encapsulated pocketed sprung unit to prevent sag.
• Open Sprung. Still the most commonly used springing system in the world. The springs can either run across the bed or lengthwise as in the patented Silentnight Miracoil system. These mattresses typically have the edges strenthened by the use of border rods or wires. This also helps the mattress retain its shape.
• Foam and Memory foam. Memory foam is the latest hi-tech mattress. The pressure and heat from your body allow it to contour and mould to your shape therefore placing less stress on the areas of your body that press harder against the bed.
  - Suitable to go on any base and still give maximum comfort and support.
• Orthopaedic mattress. A standard open sprung or pocket sprung mattress that is made firm.

Memory foam or spring unit mattress?
While a spring mattress was the standard for many decades, new innovations in space-age foam technology (stemming from research by NASA into relieving G force pressure on astronauts during lift off) and the advent of more affordable brands mean that foam mattresses are becoming more and more popular - their unsurpassed comfort and overall body support is superior to the standard sprung mattress and whilst spring mattresses can feel nice to sit or lay on, they don’t offer anywhere close to the body contouring and therefore spinal support that memory or latex foam can offer. We all know that an old spring mattress can become "bumpy and lumpy" after many years, and can sag in the middle of the mattress, causing roll together and the so called “trampoline effect”, which takes away from the overall support of your back and neck. This can both cause and exacerbate other types of painful spinal disorders. Foam mattresses keep their shape over time and will likely feel better and offer better support than an old spring mattress.

Is Memory Foam Really the Best Support for Achy Joints?
If you are a side sleeper, you place a large amount of pressure on your shoulders and hips, on your neck if you are a stomach sleeper or lower back if you are a back sleeper. Research has shown that “visco-elastic pressure sensitive foam” will offer you the best chance for reducing the overall pressure placed on your joints by contouring them without pushing back against them. Adding Latex to a memory foam mattress means it can offer more spring against the small of your back or sides, while not losing the ability to contour and spread pressure points.

Firmness
Mattresses come in a variety of firmnesses, from soft to hard. It is possible nowadays to get mattresses with a different firmness on the left and right (his and hers). Mattresses also come with/without foam mattress toppers.

We hope this information will help you make an informed choice when buying your next bed. If in doubt please telephone or email us and we will help.