Although beds come in numerous styles and designs, they’re basically categorized into four types. They’re the innerspring, foam, air and water. The other types are just different variations of the four basic ones. These variations come in a wide range of prices: from the very cheap to the ultra expensive. An old mattress can be given a new life by employing foam or fluffy toppers. The basic information below can serve as your quick reference.
Innerspring
Almost all beds have inner spring or coil. In fact, 80% of the beds available in the market today are of this type. Different beds have also different number of spring coils. Some only have 250 while others can reach over a thousand. The number of coils is directly proportional to the bed’s degree of support. If you want a softer feel, go for the slimmer coils. The shape of the coil can have varying effects as well. Coils that are shaped like an hour glass compress with age. This results in an eventually harder mattress over time. More support is provided by coils that are wound from a single wire (continuous coils) due to their thickness. Not linked to the other springs, pocket springs are held in individual fabric compartments. Layers of cotton or cashmere cushioning held these coils. Therepedic Innergy, Simmons Beautyrest, Sealy Posturepedic and Serta Perfect Sleeper are among the most well-known brands around.
Foam
Nowadays, memory-foam beds are slowly gaining popularity. This type of bed conforms to the weight and heat of the body, creating a perfect mold for the sleeper. There’s also the viscoelastic foam conceived by NASA in the 70s. This type of foam was utilized as a seat cushion for astronauts. The only foam that has an anti-bacterial quality is Latex. According to David Perry, Furniture Today’s executive editor and mattress writer, “Latex is also one hot category”. When it comes to Latex foams, Tempur-Pedic used to lord it over the competition but in recent years, other brands such as Therapedic MemoryTouch, Coverest, Verlo, TrueForm by Sealy Posturepedic, Serta Luxury Response Alternative Sleep Collection and Pure Response Latex Collection have slowly gained popularity.
Air and Water
In air mattresses, the amount of air on either side of the bed can be controlled to your own preference. With these beds, you can dictate the level of firmness and adjust it to the level that suits you best. That’s why nowadays; air mattresses are becoming more and more popular. During pregnancy for instance, women gain and lose weight in a span of months. By using these beds, they can always adjust the bed’s air level to match their ever-changing weight. As I’ve stated earlier, the amount of air can be controlled on either side. This means that even your partner can adjust his particular side of the bed to his/her own liking. Air mattresses come in different brands but among the more popular ones are Therapedic AirTouch, AeroBed and Select Comfort’s Sleep Number Bed.
Reaching the peak of their popularity during the 60s and 70s, water beds offer a new fancy feature as well. Nowadays, these beds are not just all water due to the inclusion of washable pillow tops. Land and Sky and FloCore by FloBeds are two of the well-known brands.