When Is It Time to Replace My Mattress?
Americans have a love / hate relationship with our mattresses. We spend almost ⅓ of our time with them, and if it goes well, we have no memory of the experience.
Mattresses can be expensive investments, or cheap afterthoughts.
With this much time and money invested in finding the right mattress, when it starts to go, you want to carefully evaluate your options.
Here are signs that you need to throw your mattress away.
- It sags. There’s that sweet spot where you and your loved one cuddle, or you burrow in each night. You can find it easily because you sort of “roll in.” That sag, however, indicates that your support and ability to move around at night are diminished. Toss it.
- It has lumps and bumps. Lumps and bumps and buttons are signs of broken springs or misplaced foam and support. In addition to being a sign of wear and tear, they work against your good night’s sleep. Toss it.
- It is creaky, or squeaky. First, check if the creak or squeak is coming from your mattress or your box springs. Often the springs will be the culprit, and they should be replaced. If it is the mattress making the noise, but it’s not keeping you up, you can keep it a little while longer. But soon it will be time to toss it.
- Stains with odors. Pets, children, and a wide range of non-sleeping activities can leave your mattress stained. You can change the sheets and cover that up – you’re probably not hosting dinner parties on the bed anyway … right? But odors? If a quick spray with an over-the-counter cleaner doesn’t do the trick, toss the mattress.
- Bugs, especially bed bugs. No discussion here. Toss it. But what about …? No. Toss it.
- Aches and pains from sleeping. Your mattress and a night’s sleep should leave you feeling fit and rested, not tired and tested. If your mattress is the cause of your aches and pains, there is nothing to be done. Toss it.
Often your mattress and your box springs are a matched set. They don’t have to be, but a good match is an important thing to consider.
If you’ve got two large items to throw away, maybe it is time to consider renting a dumpster and turning this into a project?