What do you sleep on.... (at home) (default)

ibdave · Post by **ibdave** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 8:32 am

So here's the deal.

My wife and I need a new Mattress at home.

Just got the Sleep Number bed and it's not going to cut it. Gave it 45 days to work it out.(we have a 100 day return on it)

So for 2 middle age with bad backs, what works for you??

littleflower · Post by **littleflower** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 8:42 am

yoga .... and extra pillows ....

ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 9:12 am

sheep

LeChatNoir · Post by **LeChatNoir** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 9:21 am

Some years back, I finally broke down and spent about $600+ on a good pillowtop mattress. My back hasn't felt better. No kidding.

At one time I had a mattress I called the Seal-y. Not because that was the manufacturer, but because it was so broken down in the middle that, if I woke up on my stomach, my back would be so awkwardly curved that I felt the need to balance a ball on my nose and eat raw fish.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 10:23 am

Yeah, what LeChat said about the pillow top.

Get a double sided one of you can flip the bill.

lonestoner916 · Post by **lonestoner916** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 10:56 am

Go with the pillow top and get a memory foam mattress cover. Never slept better! Unless your bedroom has orange shag carpet, then you MUST get a waterbed!

geospyder · Post by **geospyder** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 11:07 am

Pillow top softside waterbed simular to the one pictured

Risky · Post by **Risky** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 11:08 am

When I was much younger, one of my boyfriends had a round waterbed.
Right in the middle of the bedroom.
Ever try to find a nightstand for a round waterbed?

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 11:14 am

No, I cave up with fitted sheets.

Just as a side-note here, the memory foam "works" by absorbing heat from the body, so when you first lie down you'll be coooooobrrrrrroooooooold. It got so bad for me that I got an electric matress topper. But, on nights when my phantom legs are particularly active, the electric field just makes them go wild, which makes it difficult to sleep.

Which is to say, there is probably the answer that will work for 80% of the people, but boy is there some weird territory covered by the other 20%.

Simon of the Playa · Post by **Simon of the Playa** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 2:42 pm

who cares about the goddamn mattress, it's all about Leather Sheets. Really. not kidding. but that's just me. I must be part of that sleepless minority fishy was alluding politely to.

littleflower · Post by **littleflower** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 5:18 pm

leather sheets?

do you ever wash them?

ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 5:43 pm

just scrape 'em.............

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 6:08 pm

Hmmm.... I keep changing position and stuffing pillows under me in futile attempts to dodge the pains. But I hadn't given much thought to my mattress.

So... Pillow top mattress with memory foam cover.... Maybe I should buy myself a Christmas present.

I used waterbeds for many years when I was younger. Quite comfy in its way, and the soft-sided one was a vast improvement over the original plank-sided ones. But no matter how much chemicals I added, they always developed air bubbles and gurgled, so I gave up on them.

A new pillow top with memory foam, eh....

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 6:47 pm

My sleep tonight?

The old futon rolled up in the first floor closet rolled out in front of the fireplace.

Just far enough away.

1/4 cord of dry almond logs (split and dried) and a fireplace to get things going.

Hell, even the cat - Mr. Heatsink - won't come near.

We're expecting a GIG storm just around 4am to hit so the rain on the roof should roust me me up - just as the embers are dying - to go to my room and sleep on through the rest of the night.

Well, until the roosters start.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 8:09 pm

Dang. I was hoping that Mr. Heatsink would take out the roosters.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 8:54 pm

Fishy, these people make dc versions.
It may be possible to convert an ac version as well.
And if you are using a cheap import, they may have insulation issues as well.

None have a rheostat, which I think is a good idea for moderate temps.

Infrared lamps, especially quartz, have given me great results.
I find infrared, similar to a fire, makes me sleep very well.

I found a german brand of underpad heater also.

http://www.electrowarmth.com/

Tiahaar · Post by **Tiahaar** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 9:32 pm

Simon of the Playa wrote:who cares about the goddamn mattress, it's all about Leather Sheets. Really. not kidding. but that's just me. I must be part of that sleepless minority fishy was alluding politely to.

Holy Cowhide! I did think you were teasing Simon (never heard of leather sheets myself) but amazingly a search confirmed such things exist in the stratosphere of bedding, like for $1000 a set, damn. Now I want to try it.

http://www.betweenthesheets.co.uk/leath ... sheets.htm

oh and I sleep on a second-hand single Posturepedic with heating pad and quilted topper...on a bunk bed built out of gorilla rack shelving ends and a church organ underneath. really. its a small studio afterall.

Fire_Moose · Post by **Fire_Moose** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 6:38 am

i sleep on a circa 4 year old futon mattress on top of a box spring that may be broken. The futon mattress is pretty much a canoe at this point and it really sucks.

misfit · Post by **misfit** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 8:00 am

tempurpedic,,, best sleep ever...........

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 8:36 am

Keep'em coming! With my sleep issues, I do believe I'm going mattress-shopping.
Weird -- I was hospitalized for three days for sleep disorder, but they did not ask what sort of mattress I use. Of course, I didn't think of it either! It was all about "repairing my Circadian clock".

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 8:46 am

Seriously, consider trying infrared.
There is some research on health benefits, but I'm not aware of any conclusions yet.

Post by **AntiM** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 9:12 am

I dropped $1800+ on a Serta double-sided European pillowtop mattress and boxspring. The memory foam does not work well with it for me, so that's now used for Burning Man. This has made a huge difference in reducing my back and hip pain. Fortunately, I got it one year same as cash, so while I had payments, I could spread it all out with no interest.

Yes, I am a firm believer in good boxsprings under mattresses.

I also have gone to flatter pillows, I'd been propping up my head for sinuses. When I quit consuming sodium benzoate, they cleared up and now I can rest with my neck far more level, my shoulder feels much better. Probably has no bearing on your situation.

The biggest drawback to the new mattress is it is very tall, requiring deep pocket sheets. Few of my old sheets would fit it, I had to give them away and acquire new sets. The advantage to a tall mattress set is you can have standing sex more easily and comfortably.

Ugly Dougly · Post by **Ugly Dougly** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 9:19 am

gyre wrote:Seriously, consider trying infrared.
There is some research on health benefits, but I'm not aware of any conclusions yet.

Infrared what?

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 9:57 am

Quartz lamps or tubes for heating.
It's like having the sun on your face.
There is always some light even if you use red filtered.

ibdave · Post by **ibdave** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 10:00 am

So it's out with the air bed and in with the Sealy pillow top with latex and aloe infused bamboo fabric...
It should show up here in an hour or so..

And ditto on what AnitM said about the taller bed and sex....

Thanks for your input.... Now need to find some leather sheets...

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 10:06 am

Different people need different types and firmnesses of mattresses.

Do they still make springs for all mattresses?
I have a king size bed with solid "springs" which is all I see around.

I also have an electric vibrating bed made by Gyre Manufacturing.
Seriously.
And I had no idea who made it, when I got it.
They were in colorado and seem to be long gone.

For travel, I have some trucker type foam mattresses made of fire resistant, very high quality foam.
I sleep great on those.
All foam is not equal.
They make full size mattresses too.

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 10:53 am

Springs? No, looks like the above mentioned Tempur-Pedic is all foam. But expensive just the same. Of course, my health is even more costly!

Many years ago, I bought a very cheap spring mattress to use as a guest bed. It was so bad, I wound up swapping it with my own mattress when house guests were coming. I just could not be that horrible a host!

Is Sleep Train an OK store, or are there better places for a low-end Tempur-Pedic or other good-but-not-terribly-expensive mattress in the Sacramento area? I'm in the Bay Area occationally also, if there is some bargain outlet for good product.

ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 11:01 am

Sam's club has a large mattress selection.

Elorrum · Post by **Elorrum** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 11:23 am

mattresses are getting more expensive, and the least expensive, much cheaper quality. I have a loft bed, with just a platform, and the last innerspring mattress I bought only has one side... I can rotate it, but not flip it over. As long as it is uniform, level, and on the firm side, I don't have any problems. Old canoe beds suck, and so do sofa beds. I made the mistake of thinking a sofabed would be a good choice for a studio apt. (didn't Mary Tyler Moore have a sofa bed?) wrong. that bar in the middle of the back is a killer. Now I have a loft up above my desk. Climbing up there is like having a bedroom upstairs.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 11:23 am

I've bought cut foam directly from foam companies.

The small mattress I have is made by Comfortex.
I actually have the medical tunable version.
Very high quality.
They used to sell one for the home, but recently new testing required by the federal government, due to california regulations different from the entire known world, made them decide to stop.
All their foam is fire retardant. but they decided the cost of testing was too much.
You might find an older one out there, or they may sell you raw foam.
You may find a medical version that's suitable.
They sleep just fine.
The only difference in the california versions and the real world was a minor difference in the casing.

http://www.comfortexinc.com/
http://www.rest-stop.com/