Buying Guide

What the Experts Say

Everything You Need to Know about Buying a Mattress

If you've been rotating your mattress regularly and taking good care of it over the years, you may be wondering whether you need a new mattress. Take a closer look at your current mattress. It's time to buy a new mattress if there are lumps, bumps, dips, or sagging, the cover is stained or torn, or you wake up more tired than when you went to bed.

Even if the exterior of your mattress seems to be in good shape, experts recommend that the average mattress should be replaced about every eight years. Some experts even recommend that you buy a new mattress every seven years for hygiene sake, which isn't a bad idea when you consider that the average sleeper secretes half a liter of perspiration a night, and up to double that when ill.

Here's what the experts have to say about purchasing a new sleep set:

• For innerspring mattresses, construction quality and materials are more important than brand name or model number.
• The mattress should support your body at every point. If you prefer, you can buy a mattress with extra support at the head, center or ends, or with zoned support, which offers different support levels for different parts of the body.
• The gauge number, or thickness, of the springs determines the mattress' suspension. If you prefer firm suspension, look for a lower gauge number (which means thicker spring wire); if you like soft suspension, go for a higher gauge number (thinner spring wire).
• Besides wire gauge, the number of coils also determines a mattress' support. Manufacturers tout different configurations and number of coils as providing the best support, but most experts say that beyond a certain number of coils, it really doesn't make a big difference. A good-quality, full-sized mattress should have at least 300 coils (although many premium models have close to 400); a queen-size mattress should have a minimum of 375; and a king-size mattress should have no fewer than 450.
• A firm mattress has fewer layers and stiffer materials, while a softer mattress has extra layers or pillow top cushioning. Less expensive mattresses may have vinyl ticking (the outermost layer of the mattress) instead of polyester or a cotton-polyester blend, but all should hold up over time. As for top padding, soft foam is preferable to polyester batting, which tends to lose loft. Convoluted foam in the middle padding (which looks like an egg carton) should feel softer and more comfortable than straight foam.
• Some higher-end mattresses have fancy designs sewn into the fabric rather than printed on. Stitch designs, however, should be uniform and unbroken to prevent the fabric from loosening.
• You should buy a new mattress and box spring as a set, as the two parts are engineered to work together. Using an old box spring will reduce the comfort and longevity of your mattress. Box springs that have coils in addition to wood or steel bars are better. Also, you should always use a bed frame, and make sure there's center support for larger-sized mattress sets.
• If you have allergies, look for non-allergenic or anti-microbial materials in the padding.
• The warranty should cover at least ten years.
• New mattresses are thicker now, so your old sheets may no longer fit. Widths have gone from about seven inches to more than nine inches, so you may need sheets with a deep-pocket corner.
• Look for a fire-resistant mattress.
• Never pass on used mattresses to children since their bodies are still developing and need a good-quality, firm mattress.