Does anyone have advice on buying a mattress?

[japple]

I bought a new mattress and box springs about 7 years ago. I wish I had invested a bit more and gotten a better set. When I sit on the edge of the bed, the whole edge compresses and it's obvious that there is no support around the perimeter. I had to buy a foam topper for it 3 years ago and I think that is beginning to reach the end of it's life span. Now, I am going to spend the money to buy a mattress and box springs that last for the rest of my life. I will turn 65 yrs. very soon and I don't want to have to deal with this again. My late husband's father was a furniture salesman and he always said that a good mattress should last a lifetime. He sold Stearns & Foster which I gather was very good product. I wish I had known to be more selective on the mattress/box springs I bought in 2007.

Does anyone have good advice for me?

[GeorgeGist]

1. I absolutely love my Tempur-pedic and I have severe back issues.

Their patent has expired so cost is way down and competitors now also sell the same style at reasonable prices.

[mimi85]

10. My husband loved the Tempurpedic but

I hated it. Hot in the summer, freezing in the winter. I FINALLY got him to buy a decent mattress - whew!

[LiberalEsto]

2. Go to your public library reference desk and ask to see Consumer Reports

There should be articles about mattresses.

We've generally stuck to Sealy and Serta brands over the years and had no problems.
I've had friends who tell me they've had a lot of problems with mattress "discount" stores.
We usually look for sales at department stores like Sears or Macys.

[Renew Deal]

3. Maybe it is still under warranty?

[japple]

5. Yes. There was a 25 year warranty on this mattress, but the company has folded.

Gone out of business.

[Paper Roses]

4. I have a Lady Englander mattress that is now about 15 years old.

Since I have had bad back problems for years, my late husband and I bought a memory foam topper by Carpenter company to help with my problems. We could not decide at that time what was best for us so this was an experiment. We bought the topper for me, not because there was a problem with the mattress.
We both loved the topper. Since the mattress cost mega money, we thought to try the topper(for my back problems) before spending a ton of money on another new mattress that may or not have helped me with back pain.

Box springs are nothing but a frame for the mattress. I would never invest money on one, although we did so when we bought the mattress.
Are you sure you need a new mattress? Sometimes I think the promotion of mattresses is a load of hype. Consider a new topper.
The Lady Englander was wonderful for us and now that I am alone, I still feel the mattress is great. I do turn it over, side to side and end to end periodically. I also rotate the topper.
Rather do this than give the mattress companies more money.

I think the whole mattress promotion you see and read about is worrisome. How the heck are you supposed to choose a mattress by flopping on it for a minute in the showroom?
7 Years is too short a lifetime for a mattress. Do you have a guarantee? Most are longer than 7 years. If you really feel you need to replace it, check a site like consumer Reports.

Also, since I don't know where you live, Is there a Bob's Discount Furniture near you?. Great reviews on their mattresses.
http://www.mybobs.com/mattresses-etc/mattresses

[japple]

6. I have another bed that is being used by another family member. It is

a Serta Perfect Sleeper and if you sit on the edge, it doesn't completely collapse like this POS I am currently sleeping on. I did buy a memory foam mattress topper 3 years ago. It has about seen it's useful life, too. My niece also bought a mattress at this same company and she recently replaced hers because her (large) husband's side kept sagging. ETA: I am not a large person. I weight roughly 130 lbs. and I turn the mattress whenever I change my sheets. Unfortunately it is one of those (ripoff) pillowtop mattresses that cannot be completely flipped. Whoever came up that scam probably got a bonus.

I now have a subscription to consumer reports and will check to see if there are recommendations. I now think it is time to INVEST in something more substantial. There is no Bob's Discount near me.

Thanks, guys, for your help.

[Lars39]

7. Check out the Original Mattress Factory' website.

If you're in GA there are lots of stores near you.
We just bought one from them this week and had it shipped to us in TN. Spent just less than $950 and that included shipping and a queen bed frame!
After researching (consumer Reports and Old Bed Guy), we went with an Orthopedic Luxury Firm, which is supposed to be geared for side and back sleepers.
You can flip it.
The individual coils are like 12.75, if I remember right, which means great support, while the extra padding(next step up from Extra firm) gives just enough comfort, without being pillowtoppy.

Now, granted we've only had it for a few days, but my back doesn't hurt anymore when I wake up.

Iirc, Serta and Sealy and Tempur-pedic are owned by same company now. A lot of their mattresses are continuous coil and if they aren't, the coil gauge is like a 15 or more, and neither of those features really make for a good mattress.

[japple]

8. Thanks, Lars. I am in Georgia and will check out this dealer. As

a side and back sleeper, it sounds like the one you got would work well for me, too.

[Lars39]

9. Three nights on and my back is still happy.

This mattress feels like the way mattresses used to be. Hope you find your happy place, too.

[DawgHouse]

12. One of their factories is around the corner from me.

I bought a bed for the guest room from there and I love it! It's so comfortable!

In our master bedroom we have a very expensive Tempurpedic, or as I call it "Medieval Torture Device".

[Lars39]

13. Six months on and we're still really happy with it!

Hands down best mattress decision made.

[CountAllVotes]

11. Recently I bought two new beds

I bought them online from overstock.com. I had a 15% off coupon and they delivered and set-up the new beds and they also took away and disposed of the old ones at no charge.

They are both Serta Euro-top mattresses. One is a full size bed and the other is a queen sized bed. The cost for both of them after all was said and done was about $1100.00 which is not a bad deal for two new beds. I've had them for about 6 mos. now and they seem like a vast improvement over what I had.

I too suffer from a very bad spine/back due to having MS. I suffer greatly with pain and a good bed is critical when you have a bad spinal/back problem as I do.

Would highly recommend overstock.com for a bed but don't be too cheap. Buy something decent is my advice. I got a 10 year warranty on one of them and a 20 year warranty on the other one.

Best of luck!