How to look after a natural mattress to increase its life cycle

Natural mattresses can sometimes be a little more expensive, but they are well worth the extra investment. Not only are they made with materials that are less toxic than synthetic mattresses, but they’re usually hardier, and therefore last longer. Of course, this all depends on how well you take care of them. Like anything you buy, if you mistreat it, it won’t see out its full life cycle.

If you’ve invested a fair sum into a natural mattress, you might be worried. Perhaps you’re concerned it won’t last much longer than a regular, cheaper mattress, and therefore was a waste of money. To help you, we’ve pulled together some tips and advice for keeping your natural mattress in fine condition, thus increasing its lifecycle.

Rotate and flip your mattress every six months

Mattresses are made from soft materials and most of us sleep in the same position every night, which means we leave indentations in our mattresses that don’t have time to recover in the sixteen hours or so we aren’t in the bed. Your mattress material needs a much longer time period to readjust to its previous state, so you need to send it on a little vacation.

There aren’t many of us who have the storage space or the capital to rotate two completely separate mattresses, but luckily there is another solution. You can rotate and flip your mattress every six months or so.

Be careful when you do this, you might need two of you. Lift your mattress very carefully from the bottom, employing lifting techniques that protect your back and legs, slide the bottom of your mattress towards you, then place down on its other side. When you turn it back over in six months, make sure you rotate it, so that your head rests at the spot where your feet used to be.

This is essentially like having two mattresses, and doing this consistently can significantly increase the lifecycle of your mattress.

Buy a mattress protector

Mattress protectors are nifty little products, and they are a hell of a lot cheaper to accidentally ruin and replace than a mattress. You can buy them in most home stores, or online.

Not all mattress protectors were created equal, though. Cheap plastic ones might be noisy or uncomfortable, so it’s worth investing in one that costs a little more. Look for a low thread count, which will increase breathability and allow air flow around your mattress.

Ely Mattresses sell luxury mattress toppers on our website.

Ensure your bed slats are not too far apart

If you have a bed base with wooden slats, you might not realise how their spacing can impact your mattress. Slats that are too far apart will allow material to be forced through them when pressure is applied, which can put your mattress out of shape. When you flip it, you’ll find an uncomfortable bump somewhere on your mattress.

There’s precision to it. Your slats should be no further than five to eight centimetres (or two to three inches) apart.

If your slats are too close together, your mattress might feel too firm, so this is a delicate game of balance.

Clean up spills

Natural mattresses are usually made from material that wicks away moisture naturally, so you might not have as big an issue here as you would if you had a conventional mattress, but it’s still important you clean up any spills as soon as they occur.

Lingering dampness can stain your mattress in a best case scenario and cause mould in the worst, so make sure you mop up anything you spill.

Don’t use harsh chemicals, though. That kind of defeats the point of having a mattress that’s natural and toxin free. Depending on what you have spilt, we recommend natural solutions, like baking soda.

No jumping

As fun as it is, jumping on your bed is not very good for it. You might be an adult now, and that might mean nobody can tell you not to do it, but we’re going to implore you to refrain from letting your kids (or your partner) monkey around on your bed.

Carry it carefully

Handles are not for carrying your mattress, they’re for positioning it. If you need to move your mattress to another room, make sure you have two people, and try to make sure the mattress is well supported, so that it doesn’t bend.

We know it isn’t cool to ask your friends to come over and help you flip your mattress, but if you live alone, it’s actually vitally important for its life cycle that you do.

Ely Mattresses are made from natural materials, which means they’re naturally fire retardant, hypoallergenic and high quality, as well as fully recyclable. If you choose to buy an Ely Mattress, we can guarantee a life cycle of at least a decade, which is why we offer a ten year warranty. For more information, please browse our mattresses.