We spend a considerable proportion of our lives asleep and generally in our beds, so it’s strange that many of us don’t put more care and attention into choosing the mattresses we sleep on and keeping these products in the best condition possible.
You may not realize it, but you’re probably doing things right now that are shortening the life of your mattress and will end up affecting your sleep and general health in turn.
Letting Pets Sleep On or Near Your Mattress
If you’ve just purchased or plan to buy a quality, affordable mattress soon, don’t get off on the wrong foot by letting your pets sleep on or near it. While we all like to snuggle up with our dogs or cats when possible, and they generally like to sleep and cuddle with us, this isn’t good for our beds.
All the pet hair that comes off our cherished furry animals impacts a mattress and makes it degrade faster. The same goes for things like drool, bacteria, dirt, and any bugs our pets might bring indoors. These aren’t things we want on or close to our mattresses, especially brand new ones. Plus, if you let your pets spend time in bed with you, their sharp nails might rip through the mattress fabric.
Letting Your Kids Jump On It
It’s also wise to stop your kids, nieces and nephews, etc., from jumping on their beds or yours or doing this on guest beds if they stay with you. The more a mattress is jumped on and pounded like that, the more strain it has to bear, even if it’s just small, light bodies doing the activity. Save the bedsprings and other materials by teaching young ones to use an actual trampoline outdoors if they want to do some fun bouncing!
Not Keeping Your Mattress or Bed Linen Clean
Another thing that will shorten the life of the mattresses in your home is not keeping them clean. It’s important to let these products occasionally breathe, with no bedding or blankets or quilts and the like sitting on top of them. Allow some natural light to shine on your mattress occasionally, too. Plus, keep it clean.
Vacuum the top and sides of your bed every few months, dust in and around the seams, and vacuum under the bed if possible. (Robot cleaners can be handy for this task if you have one.) Tiny mites, dust, and other allergens can gather around seams and under a mattress, so these are good areas to pay attention to.
Also, don’t neglect washing your bedlinen regularly. Strip your bed, wash the sheets every week or so, and shake out blankets and quilts every month or two. Doing these jobs will help reduce the amount of dirt and debris that fall through to your mattress and wear it out over time.
Failing to Use a Mattress Protector
Do you have a mattress protector on your bed? If not, you may be reducing the length of time that you’ll get to utilize your current bed. A protector helps to prevent sweat, urine, and other fluids, plus dry skin, hair, bacteria, dirt, crumbs, and more, from getting through to a mattress and reducing its life span. These products provide a secure barrier to keep your mattress fresher and drier for longer and limit the buildup of dust mites, other allergens, mildew, mold, etc.
Eating in Bed
Are you or your partner someone who likes to eat in bed or on leaving the bits on barcalounger? What about your children? While it’s certainly tempting to have a snack in bed when we’re engrossed reading a book there, or we may want to eat dinner from our beds when we’re sick, try to avoid doing this when possible. You’ll keep your mattress closer to mint condition if you keep food and drinks away from it and thus limit the likelihood of spills causing any issues in that part of your bedroom.
Failing to Sit the Mattress on a Suitably Supportive Bed Frame
Lastly, don’t do your mattress a disservice by placing it on a bed frame that can’t support it properly. If you want to make your product last, it must sit on a solid, firm, straight base so it can’t sag, bend, collapse, or wear unevenly. The frame you choose also makes a difference to the longevity of a mattress because the right frame lets air flow underneath the bed, so its underside stays dry and is less likely to attract tiny bugs. 
Check your bed frame once or twice annually to ensure there aren’t any problems with the slats being weak, broken, cracked, or otherwise in disrepair because you can repair the recliner but not your bed.
When we’re all so busy, one of the last things we might consider is the health of our mattress. However, this is something we shouldn’t neglect since this product has such a significant impact on our life due to helping us to rest.
