Upgrading to a King mattress - advice needed

[dreaming4disney]

We have a king size sleep number mattress and I hate it. I like a soft mattress and DH likes firm, and when we get out of bed in the AM in looks like there's a huge dent in my side of the bed (and I'm not a huge person). You can't sleep in the middle of the bed at all, so DH and I can't really cuddle very well. And my side has a leak, and when we tried to invoke the warranty they said it didn't. We've had it for 10 years and I've never been happy with it!

Before the Sleep Number we had a Latex (not memory foam) mattress and I LOVED it. But latex mattresses are expensive and we couldn't afford a king at the time. I wish we'd just saved up and bought one!

This is what we are looking at getting…we have a sleep number queen and want a split king. We haven't had any problems with ours but have only had it for 5 or so years.

 

[bettymae1121]

Don't forget to budget for new bedding! We upgraded to a king last month and I spent $300 just on new sheets, a mattress pad, and a comforter (and I did NOT go top of the line!).

I did manage to "salvage" our heated matress pad from our old king bed. It was a fitted pad but I cut the elastic off and just laid it flat on our new king. The heating elements don't go all the way to the edge, but it's close enough and still keeps us toasty warm (in this super cold winter no less). I saved at least $100 on a new one.

Anyway, king bedding is $$$$ so keep that in mind!

 

[MillauFr]

Agreed. The cost of the sheets and comforter can add up too. I found a great deal on a goose down comforter at Costco.com for $125. Great price as many other places sell them for $300+.

 

[auralia]

If you want memory foam the best and most comparable to temperpedic is www.bedinabox.com we have the most basic one. I was going to order a more expensive one but we drove 3 hours to try one out and I was surprised to find the cheapest one to be the most comfortable. We got the gel foam upgrade and it doesn't get too hot either. Really love it! Also it's made in the USA!

 

[blanq]

We have a King sleep number that we bought 10 years ago and love it. I like my side soft and my wife likes her firm. It's the best bed we've ever had.

Same story here.

 

[North of Mouse]

DH and I have had a Queen size bed for about 7 years (before that it was a Full size), but nearly every time we vacation we get a King size. We've finally decided it's time for a King at home!

Any recommendations for a good mattress? I'm curious about the Sleep Number Bed (I need a very firm mattress) but it's so expensive. If you love your mattress, please share the brand and style, and why you love it. TIA!

To me, mattresses are the hardest personal items to buy. They are all so different as are the people sleeping on them!

DH & I finally decided on a Temperpedic and we are both very happy with our decision (12 years old now). My brother and wife (also their two dd's and families) have the Sleep Number beds and they all just love them (also bought at the time of ours - 12 yrs).

So, it's really a very personal - and expensive decision! But, you need a very good (usually translates expensive) mattress because we all spend a great part of our lives on them!! We did try another set (well trusted brand) with a great pillow top, but after a week it was a no-go. The company took it back with no questions thankfully (was promised at purchase).

You will have all kinds of suggestions/reason to buy/not to buy but it's all in what feels the best to you. Good luck!

 

[JandJ]

I know it's going to be hard to find something we like just from laying on it in a store. Some stores have return policies, but what a pain in the bottom to haul a king mattress and box spring in and out of our house!

Our queen is a Stearns and Foster, so it's high quality, but it was a wedding gift from DH's parents. I don't know if we can afford a king in that brand.

As for bedding, that's actually why we've put off getting a king for so long! I'm very picky about sheets. I finally found a brand I love in queen and I have to make sure I can get them in king. In queen they're $50 so I can only imagine in king! I have bought and returned more sets of sheets than I care to count. I love pretty duvets, but DH won't have anything he can't actually use so we have to find a pretty, yet durable, and warm comforter, but not too warm because we're in Florida and in the summer he gets too hot. Ugh.

And don't get me started on the bed frame. We can get our current sleigh bed in a king for $400 but I don't know if I want a sleigh bed again. It's a hassle when making the bed. But it is beautiful and of course it will match the rest of our bedroom furniture.

We found out the best time of year to buy a mattress (when they have the most sales) is in May so I have a couple of months to figure it all out.

Thanks for all of the replies

 

[DawnM]

We got a knock off Tempurpedic split King bed that raises and lowers, etc....

We LOVE it......it is basically 2 XL twins so we do buy sheets in XL twin for it, but my husband is a fidgeter, even in his sleep, and I don't even feel him now, even thought the beds are together.

Costco makes one too.

 

[bdcp]

We have a sleep number (so do my parents and my sister and BIL) and we all love them. DH has a higher number than I do. DH's is about 60 and mine is closer to 45. We've been married 33 years and started with a queen and moved to a king (regular mattresses) about 15 years ago. Our sleep number is a king and is a top of the line set so it wasn't cheap. We got one year same as cash and paid it off in about 10 months. We've had it about 5 years and got it after my sister and parents got theirs. My parents just bought a second one for their guest room as my dad sometimes sleeps there if he's sick or something. We had ours delivered and set up (additional cost) My parents ordered theirs online and had it delivered, but they set both up themselves and they said it was easy to do, which saved them some money.

 

[ColoradoMom!!]

We finallly went matress shopping/trying.

Fell in love with a Beautyrest Recharge World Class Pillowtop. Just liked it better than memory foam.

THANK GOD we didn't buy it on the spot. We came home and looked up reviews, and they were HORRIBLE! This is a $1400 or so set. Everyone said it was great for about 3 months, and then sagging. We went to a few different stores, and kept liking the same one (diffferent name, but same Simmons BeautyRest Recharge World Class pillowtop).

That great website called Sleep like the Dead says that memory foam as the highest rate of overall customer satisfaction. Guess we just need to like it - need to find the softest one I think.

We currently have the Costco Novafoam topper on a 25 year old mattress, and it isn't so bad, but a bit hot.

Good luck everyone, and please keep posting reviews and name of brands!!

 

[ColoradoMom!!]

Our next choice is the Serta I Series Applause Plush.

Anyone with any thoughts on this one? Mostly decent reviews.

 

[auralia]

Bedinabox.com

Just as good as temperpedic, half the price, and made in the USA.

 

[MrsPete]

We bought a new mattress 1 1/2 years ago, and what a difference it's made in the quality of our sleep. Well worth the high price. Several thoughts on making the choice:

- If my husband weren't dead-set on a king, I'd downsize to a queen. A king takes up so much more room, and it's so much more expensive -- not just to buy the mattress, but the sheets and blankets cost a premium price as well. And I think the king looks a bit unwieldy in the room, and standard sized pillows don't fit nicely. But my husband is dead-set on the king.

- I regret buying the pillow top. Oh, the pillow top feels good, but it became "worn" within maybe six months, and we can feel the "indentations". This was a $1000+ mattress, so I'm disappointed in that. The warranty says that if it wears down more than 1" visibly in 8 years, they'll replace it -- but it isn't worn that much. Next mattress, I'll skip the pillow top and add a separate foam mattress topper that can be replaced easily.

- The guys who delivered our mattress told us to put our receipt and warranty into a ziplock bag and put it between the box springs and the mattress. I thought that was good advice.

- Buy a new mattress cover right away. If your mattress becomes stained, your warranty is voided. Yeah, I know. Stupid. But you have to play the game.

- Absolutely choose a model that has "handles" on the sides. So much easier when it's time to rotate.

- The salesmen at two separate mattress stores told us that mattresses are no longer "flipped over"; rather, they're just rotated. If it's a lie, I don't know for sure.

- They make designer mattresses now. Really, who is impressed by a Paula Deen or Vera Wang mattress?

- If you're trying to save pennies, ask about mattresses that've been returned. They're mattresses that were used for less than 30 days and then returned . . . and they're about half price. No warranty. Non-returnable. In retrospect, we should've gone this direction.

 

[JandJ]

OP here - thanks for all the great replies!

I started asking friends what they have and my best friend was raving about her mattress. It's a King size Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe and she said it's $$$ but worth it. They've had it about 3 years and she said it hasn't sagged and it's not warm to sleep on. I think my biggest concern is the "sinking" feeling I've gotten whenever I test a Tempurpedic. Maybe if I can get past the feeling that I'm being "enveloped" by my mattress I'll love it, but I don't know.

Thanks to the PP who mentioned "sleep like the dead" it's a very informative site!

 

[MillauFr]

Yes thanks Colorado Mom for the sleep like the dead website info. I learned quite a bit from reading though the info there.