Buying Your Dream Mattress What better way to unwind than with the soft and supportive feel of a handmade mattress. There’s no need to lose 40 winks over a mattress when you know what to look for From the moment John Harris Heal first introduced London to feather filled mattresses back in 1810, we’ve continued to produce and sell exquisitely designed pieces for the bedroom. Understanding that the quality of our sleep affects the way we feel day to day, we are on hand to help find the right mattress for you. Time For A Change With mattresses put to daily use, it can be difficult to judge when the time is right to look for a new one. On this issue, the Sleep Council recommends that your mattress should be replaced every 7-8 years, with common indicators including: Regularly awaking with back or neck pain Discomfort from springs or ridges in the top of the mattress The mattress creaks or crunches when you move around You and your partner roll towards each other while sleeping
The mattress is visibly uneven or sagging Try Before You Buy While our specialist advice can guide you in finding the right mattress, only you can be the judge when it comes to comfort. When trying out a mattress, follow these golden rules: Timeout: spend 10-15 minutes lying on the mattress you are looking to buy. Double-Up: test mattresses at the same time as your partner to ensure you are both comfortable. Rollover: try lying in different positions – you move 40-60 times a night, so you don’t want your mattress to interrupt your sleep. Laidback: check how the mattress supports the spine by lying face up and placing your hands under the small of your back. Too tight or loose a fit means the mattress is too soft of firm. Touch Base: the mattress will feel different depending on the bed base – e.g. a pocket-sprung divan base will feel softer than a slatted base on a bed frame. It may seem an obvious point to raise, but choosing the right size mattress to fit your bed frame is, nonetheless, an important consideration.
Frame Up: a mattress should neither be loose nor wedged in, but instead fit snug inside the frame of a bed. To ensure a match made in heaven, measure the internal dimensions of your bed frame and compare with those of the mattress prior to purchase. Cold Feet: allow for the mattress to be 10cm longer than the tallest person sleeping in it, and wide enough to sleep two people side by side without touching.All Heal's mattresses conform to the following standard sizes: Single 90 x 190cm (3 x 6') Double 135 x 190cm (4 x 6') King Size 150 x 200cm (5 x 6.5') Super King 182 x 200cm (6 x 6.5') Having made and sold luxury, handmade mattresses for more than 200 years, we only stock those filled with the finest natural materials. A cushioned frame houses 1000s of individual springs, each in their own calico fabric pockets Shapes to the body providing comfortable support that is tailored to each sleeper’s personal weight Reducing movement of the mattress means that there is less disturbance when sleeping.
Made from Tempur Visco-elastic, Memory Foam mattresses react to your body heat and conform to your natural shape Cushioning and supporting you in your most relaxed sleeping position, they offer a sense of weightlessness and a great night’s sleep Due to the materials enveloping quality, some can find memory foam too warm, in which case, try a wool duvet and mattress topper to regulate your heat A number of our exsclusive mattresses are available in three tensions referring to the thickness of the wire used to spring the mattress – the thicker the wire, the firmer the feel. Soft: forms around the natural shape of the body, best for those who sleep on their side. Medium: supports specific points of the body, ideal for those who change positions. Firm: extra support aimed at those who tend to sleep on their back. Every Heal's mattress is developed to provide optimum support at medium tension. However, what feels medium to one person may feel firm to someone else.
A mattress can cost up to £3,000, but you don't need to pay this much to buy the best. We explain how to find the best mattress for you. Your browser does not support the video tagWant to buy the best mattress for you? Deciding which type of mattress you want is only part of the story. If you want a mattress that you'll be happy with for years to come, you also need to make a few other good decisions.Keep reading, as we'll help you to make those key decisions to ensure you get the best mattress for a good night's sleep. From the best way to try out a mattress in a shop to make sure it's going to be right for you, to what you need to look for in a mattress guarantee to make sure you don't get caught out. We've put mattresses of all types through our tough tests - go to our mattress reviews to find the one that's best for you.Buy a mattress from a trusted brand46% of Which? members bought their mattress because it's made by a brand they trust. If you're not sure what the best mattress brands are, we can help.
Check out our guide to the best and worst mattress brands. This reveals what people think of the brand of mattress they own, including how comfortable it is, and includes major brands such as Silentnight, Sleepeezee and Sealy.How much do you need to spend on a new mattress?A new mattress can cost anywhere between a couple of hundred pounds and several thousand. Factors like brand, size and the type of materials used can all have a significant impact on cost.We've found you don't need to spend a fortune to get a mattress that supports your spine and lasts for years.But our mattress tests have found that you don’t need to spend a fortune to get a mattress that will support your spine and last for years to come. Sort our mattress reviews by price to find our cheapest Best Buys.Which type of mattress should you get?The type of mattress you choose all comes down to your personal preference and budget. members choose pocket-sprung mattresses. But unlike memory foam mattresses, they don't mould to your shape.
You'll also see continuous coil and open coil mattresses, which are usually cheaper than the other types of mattress, and latex mattresses.For more information about mattress types, see our guide to choosing the best type of mattress.Try the mattress before you buyBuying a mattress online may be cheaper and more convenient but, if you can, it’s best to try a mattress before you buy. Even if you feel awkward doing this in a shop, don't let this put you off - you're going to be sleeping on the mattress for years, so it's important you make the right choice. When we asked Which? members about their experience of buying a mattress, over a third of them told us they feel intimidated trying out a mattress in the shop. A good mattress shop - see our guide revealing the best mattress shops - shouldn't mind you doing this.When you go shopping for a new mattress, wear comfortable clothing and remove your outdoor gear. Lie on a mattress for at least 10 minutes, in positions that you normally sleep in.
Sit on the edge of the mattress – it should be firm, not saggy. Don’t shop for beds when you’re tired, as all the mattresses will feel great.If you’re buying a memory foam mattress, relax in one position, then move into another. Was it easy or did you struggle to move? If the latter, you might find the memory mattress will restrict your movement too much, especially in cold weather when the memory foam will be harder.Don't let sales assistants influence you – they can’t decide whether the mattress is comfortable. If the bed is for two, shop together.Make sure your mattress fits your bed baseManufacturers encourage you to buy a mattress and bed base together, and this is a good idea if you’ve had your old base for many years.If you buy the mattress and base separately, or are going to keep your old base, measure carefully to make sure they’re a good fit. Dimensions can vary so don’t rely on a new double mattress being exactly the same size as your old one.Is your mattress going on a slatted base?
Then make sure that the slats are no more than 6cm wide or more than 4cm apart. This ensures sufficient ventilation, whilst preventing the mattress sagging through between the slats.Check the guarantee/warranty on your mattressMake sure you know what your rights are if there's a problem with your mattress. Each of our mattress brand reviews has information on the different guarantees that come with each mattress, so you won't get caught out.Most guarantees for mattresses will not cover gradual wear and tear, which leads to loss of support. So make sure you use our mattress reviews to pick out a durable mattress that will stand the test of time.Most mattress guarantees will not cover gradual wear and tear.Before you buy your mattress, check whether there’s anything in particular, such as removing labels or using a base other than a recommended one, that would invalidate the guarantee.Don't worry if your mattress is smelly at firstIt's important that you unwrap your mattress as soon as you get it home - leaving the plastic wrappings on could lead to rot.