Mattress Comparisons - Inner Spring, Air Beds, Water Beds, Latex and, Memory Foam

Mattress options have changed dramatically in the last 15-20 years. Memory Foam and Latex mattresses have become common and quite inexpensive. Inner-spring mattresses have changed as well, as major mattress manufacturer's incorporate latex, memory foam, and other types of polyurethane foam into their mattresses. It just goes to show that innovation is paving the way for sleeping surfaces for all of us. Below you can find the positive qualities and the negative qualities of each type of mattress, so you can choose what is best for you.

Inner Spring Mattress:

Inner Spring Mattresses are the tired and true mattress that most people have come to expect as they are the most common. We all grew up with a mattress that ended up poking at us with broken springs when we were children. These mattresses have begun to change to try to attract the customer that would want to purchase foam mattresses. By incorporating different types of foam, these mattresses are attempting to pave the way for a new kind of innerspring mattress. Most sets consist of a mattress and foundation. The inner springs consist of hundreds of coils of wire of different gauges. These are normally covered with some type of quilting or pillow top to give a softer feel. These mattress sets should last between 5 and 10 years. Most find innerspring mattresses uncomfortable when they are compared to foam mattresses or water beds. Innerspring mattresses will hammock and cave in the middle when using a standard innerspring design.

Water beds:

Water beds reduce the pressures on the body that a traditional mattress cause. Sleeping on water gives the proper support and spinal alignment one needs to wake up more rested and in less pain. Water bed mattresses are the original conforming type of mattress. The water can also be heated to provide therapeutic effects of heat for one that sleeps on it. The problem with a water bed is the water. A simple puncture can equal a huge mess. If you share a water bed with a partner, every time they move there will be a wave that runs the risk of waking you up.

Air Mattress:

Air mattresses offer multiple firmness settings based on your choice. Each side of the bed adjusts to the individual level of comfort you select. Air beds provide a level of conforming that is similar to a Water bed. The Sleep Number® bed is the first of this kind and like TempurPedic®, they charge a premium for it. There are plenty of other options for air mattresses if that is what you like. Most Air mattresses offer memory foam or latex add-ons. Air mattresses have many interior parts that can and often do break. Most companies that offer this type of mattress include inferior warranties and a lot of fine print. Air beds can easily hammock like innerspring mattresses which can lead to an uncomfortable sleeping surface.

Memory Foam Mattress:

The overall body support offered by a quality memory foam mattress is the best of any mattress (in our educated opinion). Memory foam was initially designed to offer pressure relief. It provides that better than any other surface available today. Memory Foam feels more solid than latex foam. Latex has a very bouncy feel. Memory Foam can vary greatly between manufacturers. TempurPedic was the first company to offer Memory Foam, as they designed memory foam mattresses for medical purposes. They were also the first company to offer this type of bedding to the general public. They advertise heavily and it shows in their pricing, they charge a premium for their product while other options offer an equal quality for much less. Memory Foam is a Polyurethane foam and is not a natural product. Memory Foam can have a funky odor to start with and some people find it extremely offensive.

Latex Mattresses:

Latex mattresses offer a conforming comparable to memory foam, while offering a natural sleep surface. Most companies offer organic cotton covers for their mattresses as well. Most natural latex mattresses do not have much resilience and normally will only last a few years. Talalay or Dunlop are the most common forms of a latex mattress. Talalay is the more involved process and provides the best resilience. It is also washed to remove any impurities. Latex gives you a bouncy feel, after all it is rubber. All latex is not alike and quality levels vary greatly between the different latex options. Be careful and ensure that you purchase the best possible quality latex available.