6 Top Features for Evaluating Mattress
The construction of a mattress determines the way it feels. Most stores have a cutaway or cross-section display of at least some mattresses. Despite the claims, there is no best bed for everyone. Spend time finding the mattress that's most comfortable for you and supports you best. Here are the mattress features to consider. Did you know The Different Types of Mattress for Better Sleep.
1. Ticking
The outer layer of a mattress consists of ticking, which is usually a polyester or cotton-polyester blend in a good quality mattress. Fancier mattresses may have damask, jersey knit, microsuede, wool, cashmere, or silk. The mattress quilting attaches the ticking to the top layers of padding. More than the material, ticking is an important contributor to sleeping comfort. It is a good idea to examine the quality of stitching on the mattress quilting, looking for consistent, unbroken stitches. What really counts is the stitching that binds the ticking to the top padding, which affects how the mattress feels. A large quilt pattern provides a deep, cushioned sensation. A smaller pattern tends to feel firmer.
2. Top Padding
This is usually polyurethane foam, with or without polyester batting. Polyester batting provides a soft feel and helps to dissipate perspiration. "Egg crate" foam feels softer than a solid slab.
a) Mattress Padding for Comfort
Mattress padding is usually made of materials such as polyurethane foam, puffed-up polyester or cotton batting. In addition to the spring coils in a mattress, the padding on top of the mattress can indicate quality.Extensive mattress padding is often more expensive, but many people find it more comfortable and worth the extra cost.
b) Middle Padding in a Mattress
When looking at a cross-section of the mattress, softer foams feel almost moist to the touch while firmer foams won’t spring back as quickly. This type of mattress padding is just below the quilted top layer and is usually made with foam. The next layer of mattress padding is made of cotton batting that may vary in thickness across different mattresses and even within one mattress. Causing the mattress to feel firmer in some areas rather than others, such as increased firmness in the middle of the mattress.
c) Insulation Mattress Padding
This padding lies on top of the coil springs so that they cannot be felt from the top of the mattress, and it also protects the coils from damaging the top layers of the mattress (2).
3. Coils
Heavier-gauge coils provide a stiffer suspension, and lighter-gauge coils feel springier. They provide the main support in a conventional innerspring mattress. All types of coils--hourglass, continuous wire, or individually pocketed--are up to the task. A higher concentration of steel coils may indicate a higher quality mattress, but this does not mean that the highest number is best: patients should use their own judgment regarding which mattress is best suited to provide support and help alleviate their low back pain. Stiffer edges keep you from feeling as though you'll roll off, and they provide a solid place to sit and tie your shoelaces. Some manufacturers beef up the edges of the mattress with more closely spaced coils, slabs of stiff foam, or thicker wire.
4. Box Spring
It may sell for as much as the mattress, though it's generally just a wood frame enclosing stiff wire usually consist of a wooden or metal frame with springs. If you buy an extra-thick mattress, consider pairing it with a low-profile box spring to reduce height. The wire in the coils comes in different thicknesses, where a lower gauge number denotes thicker, stiffer wire and a firmer mattress. A wood mattress foundation should only be purchased if the wood has no cracks and is straight. They just support the mattress and for a foam mattress, the box spring is just a box, more properly called a "foundation."
5. Topper
You won't need a topper if you pick the right mattress. Foam- and feather-filled toppers are sold separately and are designed to go on top of the mattress. Even the higher-priced, feather-filled ones might shift overnight and become lumpy. A topper may soften a bed that's too hard, but price is no guarantee of a good night's sleep.
6. Foam Mattresses
Some types of mattresses are constructed entirely or mostly from memory foam or latex foam. Some foam mattresses are made of multiple layers of foam adhered together while others have a foam core in the center. Choosing between a foam mattress and a traditional mattress is based on personal preference. They can be purchased in different densities. Foam mattresses come in various degrees of firmness to give patients greater selection for back support and comfort.
Conclusion
By following the above guidelines for selecting a new mattress, you will be well equipped to find the best mattress for sleep comfort, back support and reducing low back pain.
Tell us in the comments which type of Mattress do you own or which kind you are planning to buy?
The construction of a mattress determines the way it feels. Most stores have a cutaway or cross-section display of at least some mattresses. Despite the claims, there is no best bed for everyone. Spend time finding the mattress that's most comfortable for you and supports you best. Here are the mattress features to consider. Did you know The Different Types of Mattress for Better Sleep.
1. Ticking
The outer layer of a mattress consists of ticking, which is usually a polyester or cotton-polyester blend in a good quality mattress. Fancier mattresses may have damask, jersey knit, microsuede, wool, cashmere, or silk. The mattress quilting attaches the ticking to the top layers of padding. More than the material, ticking is an important contributor to sleeping comfort. It is a good idea to examine the quality of stitching on the mattress quilting, looking for consistent, unbroken stitches. What really counts is the stitching that binds the ticking to the top padding, which affects how the mattress feels. A large quilt pattern provides a deep, cushioned sensation. A smaller pattern tends to feel firmer.
2. Top Padding
This is usually polyurethane foam, with or without polyester batting. Polyester batting provides a soft feel and helps to dissipate perspiration. "Egg crate" foam feels softer than a solid slab.
a) Mattress Padding for Comfort
Mattress padding is usually made of materials such as polyurethane foam, puffed-up polyester or cotton batting. In addition to the spring coils in a mattress, the padding on top of the mattress can indicate quality.Extensive mattress padding is often more expensive, but many people find it more comfortable and worth the extra cost.
b) Middle Padding in a Mattress
When looking at a cross-section of the mattress, softer foams feel almost moist to the touch while firmer foams won’t spring back as quickly. This type of mattress padding is just below the quilted top layer and is usually made with foam. The next layer of mattress padding is made of cotton batting that may vary in thickness across different mattresses and even within one mattress. Causing the mattress to feel firmer in some areas rather than others, such as increased firmness in the middle of the mattress.
c) Insulation Mattress Padding
This padding lies on top of the coil springs so that they cannot be felt from the top of the mattress, and it also protects the coils from damaging the top layers of the mattress (2).
3. Coils
Heavier-gauge coils provide a stiffer suspension, and lighter-gauge coils feel springier. They provide the main support in a conventional innerspring mattress. All types of coils--hourglass, continuous wire, or individually pocketed--are up to the task. A higher concentration of steel coils may indicate a higher quality mattress, but this does not mean that the highest number is best: patients should use their own judgment regarding which mattress is best suited to provide support and help alleviate their low back pain. Stiffer edges keep you from feeling as though you'll roll off, and they provide a solid place to sit and tie your shoelaces. Some manufacturers beef up the edges of the mattress with more closely spaced coils, slabs of stiff foam, or thicker wire.
4. Box Spring
It may sell for as much as the mattress, though it's generally just a wood frame enclosing stiff wire usually consist of a wooden or metal frame with springs. If you buy an extra-thick mattress, consider pairing it with a low-profile box spring to reduce height. The wire in the coils comes in different thicknesses, where a lower gauge number denotes thicker, stiffer wire and a firmer mattress. A wood mattress foundation should only be purchased if the wood has no cracks and is straight. They just support the mattress and for a foam mattress, the box spring is just a box, more properly called a "foundation."
5. Topper
You won't need a topper if you pick the right mattress. Foam- and feather-filled toppers are sold separately and are designed to go on top of the mattress. Even the higher-priced, feather-filled ones might shift overnight and become lumpy. A topper may soften a bed that's too hard, but price is no guarantee of a good night's sleep.
6. Foam Mattresses
Some types of mattresses are constructed entirely or mostly from memory foam or latex foam. Some foam mattresses are made of multiple layers of foam adhered together while others have a foam core in the center. Choosing between a foam mattress and a traditional mattress is based on personal preference. They can be purchased in different densities. Foam mattresses come in various degrees of firmness to give patients greater selection for back support and comfort.
Conclusion
By following the above guidelines for selecting a new mattress, you will be well equipped to find the best mattress for sleep comfort, back support and reducing low back pain.
Tell us in the comments which type of Mattress do you own or which kind you are planning to buy?