Your Mattress Just Doesnt Look/feel Right
A lot of the time, its actually not that difficult to tell when a mattress is in need of replacement.
Sometimes you can notice it on sight.
A mattresss fibers tend to compress over time, and its springs tend to lose their springiness.
Old mattresses sag.
Their middles or sides are often slightly dented in, and parts may feel uneven.
When you lie on it, the mattress might be harder or softer than it used to be, depending on the material.
Maybe you can feel some of the springs beneath your back.
Maybe you can feel yourself sinking in.
In addition to this, a lot of lower-quality mattresses will get start to develop lumps as they age.
This is terrible for support.
Lumps mean that your weight wont be evenly distributed across your whole back, which can lead to discomfort and pain during and after sleep.
Do You Need To Replace Box Springs When Buying A New Mattress Ill Help You Figure It Out
Youve done your research, youve found your perfect new mattress to give you years of comfortable sleep. Awesome! But hang on: do you need to replace box springs when buying new mattress too??
Luckily for you, the short answer is that you dont necessarily need to replace one when you replace the other, but there are times when its a good idea. Read on and Ill tell you exactly when you need to replace your box spring. And you dont even need to replace your box spring with another box spring: a platform base or another bed type could actually be a better choice.
Read on for more info on how to best support that new mattress youre buying, including some beautiful box spring alternatives.
Mattress Myth 4 Your New Mattress Should Be A Perfect Fit From The First Time You Sleep On It
Most people need at least a month to adjust their bodies to a new sleep surface. Considering how long we spend in bed in a 24 hour period, its no wonder that our muscles and joints have a memory of how to find the most comfortable spot on the mattress. Does that mean you should only buy from a mattress retailer that offers a comfort guarantee? Not necessarily. If youve done your research, shopped around and spent time testing out a variety of mattresses, your mattress purchase should be a natural progression of those activities.
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How Often Should I Replace My Pillows And Sheets
Fortunately, the mattress lifespan has a much longer shelf life than pillows and sheets. The recommendation is to replace these every one to two years. Like mattresses, pillows can lose their plushness and at a much faster rate. They serve as a breeding ground for dust mites from dead skin cells, oils, and dirt, which can lead to allergies and problems sleeping. Wash your pillows every few months and replace them as soon as they start lacking support.
A pillow thats past its prime can cause neck pain or strains to your spine. And sheets also have a shelf life: After a few years, the fibers start to break down and become more threadbare. They wont keep you warm enough and may not feel as good against the skin. Since comfort is key when sleeping, switch to new pillows and sheets every two to three years.
You Often Wake Up Throughout The Night
Do you feel like you wake up every couple of hours, or even more frequently, throughout the night? Persistent awakenings can seriously ruin a good night’s sleep, but the remedy could be as simple as getting a new mattress.
Again, you’ll want to rule out medical conditions that cause sleeplessness before blaming your mattress. Make sure it’s not sleep apnea, anxiety, depression, insomnia, indigestion or another condition that can cause nighttime wakefulness.
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How Often You Use The Mattress
Your day to day mattress will wear out much faster as compared to a guest room mattress. The circumstances listed below could extend the life of your mattress beyond the typical 5 to 7 years:
- You work out of town for extended period of the year.
- You own two or more houses and split your time among them.
- You own multiple mattresses in your home and rotate which one you sleep on.
The Things That Bother Us: What Disturbs Your Sleep
The following mattress features may not be deal breakers for you and arent as crucial for comfort as those listed above, but tiny annoyances can keep you awake and many brands go to lengths to alleviate these concerns.
Excessive Heat or Cold
The amount of sinkage or the composition of the mattress will affect on how warm or cool it gets through the night. Youll want to look at whats in that mattress.
Ultra-dense memory foam that is more traditional often sleeps exceptionally warm, while innerspring beds allow for the most air to travel through and are typically the coolest brands. New technologies like phase-change materials and gels may revamp traditional feels.
Noise
Some bedding materials are notorious for making a lot of noise when you move around at night, which can cause disruptions to your sleeping, especially if youre exceptionally sensitive to sound. Innersprings that are not in individual pockets and are interconnected to one another can often rub together so that you hear them squeak.
Allergens
Whether the materials or themselves or the allergens and odors that they may encourage, if you suffer from allergies, you want to make sure that your bed isnt keeping you awake with sneezing and sinus pressure. Many brands offer anti-microbial features or hypo-allergenic materials to help sufferers sleep easier.
Weight or Mobility
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Tips For How Often To Buy A New Mattress
There are many factors that come into play when deciding how often to buy a new mattress. Your age, your body type, your sleep position, the needs of your sleeping partner, and how much you invested in the mattress in the first place, can all affect how long your mattress will last. So, how often should you replace a mattress? Here are some tips on how often to buy a new mattress for yourself and other members of your family.
Feeling confident about how often to buy a new mattress? Check out our guides to how to choose a mattress, finding the right mattress for your body type, or simply take our mattress quiz!
Dont Go Broke Buying One
No matter who you are, mattress buying is an investment, but theres no reason to break your finances and gouge your savings to buy a new bed. There are fantastic sleep solutions out there that should match what you need, regardless of your budget, so sit down ahead of time and decide what money you are willing to spend before you begin looking.
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How Often Should You Change Your Mattress
Knowing when to change your mattress and how often can be tough, so here are some useful pointers to help you make a decision.
3 min read
In total you spend about one third of your life on your mattress, so it plays a big part in your general health and well being, not to mention your day-to-day energy levels, alertness and mood. Thats why its important to look for signs when its time to change a mattress. Here are some of the things to keep in mind.
When To Toss Them: 1 To 2 Years
And how about where you lay your weary head? The National Sleep Foundation tells us to plan on replacing pillows every year or two. Why so often? Apparently they absorb body oil, dead skin cells, and hair, which can create the perfect environment for dust mites . They also recommend washing your pillows every six months and using a protective case between the pillow and pillowcase. How do you know when it’s time for a new pillow? Fold it in half and see if it stays that way, they say. If it does, its time for a new one. If you spring for a quality down pillow and take good care of it, lifestyle guru you can get 10 or 15 years out of them.
If you’re over 40 you can expect even less time out of a bed, since your body tolerates less pressure as it ages.
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Can You Flip A Memory Foam Mattress
Most memory foam mattresses have a top-down build. This means the top of the mattress is the comfort layer and the bottom is the support layer. If you flip a memory foam mattress, youll sleep on the uncomfortable support layer. Using a mattress upside-down also causes the mattress to sag quicker than expected.
Avoid flipping a memory foam mattress unless the brand says its flippable or dual-sided.
Most Comfortable Memory Foam Mattress
A more obvious signal that now is the best time to buy a new mattress is back pain. If you do not wake up in the morning feeling like P. Diddy, you definitely do not have the right mattress for your body! It is true that different mattresses come with different advantages and fit different body types. The harder memory foam mattress gives support and lasts longer. But they may be more prone to causing pressure point pain and retaining too much heat. The softer memory foam mattress is stereotypically thought of as the best of the memory foam mattresses. Contrary to common belief, soft memory foam mattresses tend to cause more back pain because the mattress conforms to the body but does not deliver proper support.
That leaves medium-firm, the Beyonce of memory foam mattresses. Medium-firm memory foam mattresses are the best at conforming to your body while providing optimal support for your different pressure points. Medium-firm memory foam mattresses are also great for hot sleepers. All of this combined with Emma Mattress top cooling mattress layer creates a dream-like sleep! Please remember, give yourself some time to get used to your new mattress, typically 2 months. That is why, much like the Emma Mattress, many mattresses nowadays come with a 100 night trial.
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When To Replace Your Mattress: Here Are 9 Signs
Have you checked your mattress lately? If not, now may be a good time to do so.
Many people use the warranty of their mattress as a guide to determine when its time to replace it. However, what people should know is that the comfort ingredients, on top of your spring core, wear out much sooner than the springs and that sagging or softening of the top layers is considered normal wear by the mattress industry. It doesnt have to be that way.
Find Stores That Are Closing
Another great strategy is to look for stores which are closing. They would usually rush to sell everything they can to minimize their losses or to clear inventory to hit another location or to close for good. In both cases, final sales are an excellent source of serious discounts that you ought to account for.
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Getting The Most From Your Mattress
Even the best mattresses will need to be replaced eventually, but there are some things you can do to prolong the life of your mattress:
- Always select the proper box spring or foundation and bed frame
- Use a waterproof mattress protector to avoid spills, debris and dust
- Rotate your mattress two to three times a year so it wears evenly
- Flip your mattress twice a year if its two-sided
- Dont throw yourself onto your mattress
- Don’t jump on your bed
- Remove the sheets and cover to let your mattress air out from time to time
- Clean your mattress according to the manufacturers specifications
Match It With The Proper Base
Support your mattress by pairing it with the proper foundation, base or box spring. Do a bit of research to find out what works best with your mattress, and definitely consider the foundations made by the same brand. Sometimes these are the best possible options because they’re made to go together, even though they may cost a bit more.
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You Are Sleeping Better On A Different Mattress
If youve just come back from a business trip, vacation, or crashed at a friends house and youre feeling rested. The mattress you slept on while you were away from your bed could be a more permanent sleep solution. No, we dont mean to go and borrow your friends mattress. Its just another one of the signs you need a new mattress.
Your Mattress Just Doesnt Feel Right
A quality mattress feels comfortable and pressure relieving. Your mattress ought to cradle your sensitive hip and shoulder areas. One of the signs you need a new mattress is how it feels when you climb into bed. If you dont feel cozy, comfortable, and supported, it may be time for a mattress upgrade.
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Your Frame And Springs Might Be Faulty
Sometimes, though, its not actually time to spring for a new mattress at allinstead, theres something else wrong with your bed.
If you find yourself sinking when you lie down but your mattress seems to be in good working order, check out the spring box , along with the bed frame.
Worn out springs and frames can cause mattresses to sag towards the center, leading to many of the same problems youd experience with a bad mattress.
This is bad for your mattress and bad for your sleepso while you dont need to replace your mattress right now, you do need to get this problem fixed straight away!
It Feels Harder Or Softer Than When You Bought It
If you’ve had your mattress for several years, you may not be able to tell if you need a new mattress on feel alone — a changing mattress is one of those things that sneaks up on you over time. But you can still try to evaluate your mattress this way.
Think about how you felt getting into bed for the first year you had your mattress. Were you excited, happy, comfortable? Now think about the last few nights. Feel kind of “bleh,” not particularly excited? That’s a good sign you might benefit from a new mattress.
If your mattress is less than a couple years old and you already notice that it feels different, look into the manufacturer’s or retailer’s warranty. You might be able to get a partial refund or points toward purchasing a new mattress.
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You Fall Into The Middle Of The Mattress
Sometimes, theres visual proof that you need a new bed. If your mattress is sagging in the middle or has noticeable troughs on either side, this is a solid indicator that your bed is no longer doing its job.
Even if your mattress looks good to the naked eye, if you find yourself struggling to pull yourself out of the middle of your bed in the morning, this is a clear sign that your mattress is sagging. When this happens, its time to start shopping for a new mattress.
You Are Suffering From Bad Allergies
Signs you need a new mattress start with morning aches, pains, and allergies. If youre sneezing more when you get into bed or when you wake up, your mattress could be full of dust mites. Not using a mattress protector or lack of mattress cleaning creates a perfect environment for dust mites and bacteria.
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Damage To The Mattress
Any mattress with visible damage such as cracking or exposed foam layers should be replaced immediately. A damaged cover leaves a mattress exposed to the environment. This can cause an accumulation of dirt, moisture, and even insects like bed bugs.
If a mattress cover is ripped or broken, consult your warranty immediately. You might be covered if the damage is considered a defect in construction or materials. In either case, you should replace your mattress right away for health reasons.
When To Replace Your Mattress And Pillow
In a perfect world, your mattress and pillow would text you a heads-up when its time to put them to pasture, preferably with a 50 percent off coupon for your next ones. Sadly, thats not going to happen, so you have to keep more general guidelines in mind.
Overall, the National Sleep Foundation says that mattresses are good for about eight years. However, it might be smart to get a new one sooner than that if youre over 40 because your body may need more support as you sleep, the organization says.
As for your pillows, the National Sleep Foundation says its often best to get new ones every two years.
There is something to be said for generally sticking to these guidelines, which might mean youre buying a new mattress or pillow when the old one still feels pretty good. Doing this can help you avoid the negative health effects that can creep up when your mattress and pillow are too old. If you start to experience these health consequences, it might take time for you to realize your mattress or pillow is the cause, which could add up to unnecessary stress, sleep disturbances, and pain.
Whats even more important, though, is paying attention to physical signs that you might need a new mattress or pillow no matter where you are in that timeline.
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