How to flip a mattress
Posted by Chris Inch on July 20th, 2009
Most mattress manufacturers recommend that you rotate your mattress to allow it to wear evenly and prolong its lifetime. This is especially important if you have a partner that you share your bed with. If you and your partner are different heights and weights, then you will need to rotate it to prevent it from getting too worn in some areas, but not others. The concept is not unlike rotating the tires on your car, allowing them to wear evenly as well.
So how do you flip a mattress? Do you flip it the long way, or the short way? What way did you rotate your mattress last time? This past weekend, I came up with an easy system that is pretty straight forward and will help you remember when and how to flip your mattress.
The first thing you should do is strip all the sheets off your mattress. Then, take a permanent marker and label each corner of your mattress with the numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4. It doesn't really matter what order you mark the corners. Just label them 1 to 4.
Finally, pick an inconspicuous part of your bed frame and mark it with an 'X' or a happy face or something that will let you know what corner is your "key" corner. I chose an "X" and I put it on one of the slats that hold my mattress.
Now you're all set up. Start by positioning the corner marked with a 1 in the "key" corner. Next, on the first of every month, simply flip your mattress so that the next number is positioned over the "key". From 1 to 2, 2 to 3, 3 to 4 and finally 4 back to 1. Depending on how often you wash your bed sheets, you could simply flip your mattress every time the sheets are stripped from your bed.
The numbers will help you keep track of how you last flipped your mattress and allow you to avoid simply flipping your mattress back and forth.
Lastly, you should note that not all mattresses need to be flipped this way. My mattress is a Sultan mattress from Ikea and it requires regular flipping and rotating. I think most regular mattresses are the same. Perhaps if you have an Ultramatic bed, the mattress flipping might differ a bit.
Comments
#2 roberthahn commented on July 25th, 2009 at 8:08 p.m.:
We marked our mattress with arrows centred along the bottom edge of the mattress. if the arrow points towards the head of the bed/at the foot, we flip in that direction. Once flipped, we'll see a new arrow going left/right in the same place. That'll be the direction we'll flip next. The arrows are cleverly designed to ensure that we're flipping the mattress in an even-wear pattern.
Credit to my wife for that idea. She's clever!
#3 amazon coupon commented on Feb. 15th, 2010 at 5:53 p.m.:
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#4 mbt shoes commented on May 6th, 2010 at 12:23 p.m.:
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#5 Best Registry Cleaner commented on May 6th, 2010 at 1:18 p.m.:
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#6 Zach Smith commented on June 2nd, 2010 at 9:06 p.m.:
Thanks for your tips. Unfortunately, most mattresses today are "no-flip" mattresses. These mattresses have harder base foams which makes it not ideal for flipping. The purpose for no flip beds is for sanitation. Bed bugs will have a shorter distance to travel if the mattress can be flipped on both sides. However, rotating the mattress is a good idea to even out wear. The tips you mentioned will surely come handy.
#7 bed bug bites commented on July 4th, 2010 at 6:42 a.m.:
Bed bugs are vile and it's not just the bites, they can make you feel dirty and ashamed. The only sensible option is to get professional pest control assistance, trying to do it yourself will just make the infestation last longer.
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#1 Geoff commented on July 21st, 2009 at 12:41 p.m.:
We've got a pillow top...we can only rotate it 180 degrees. Something to keep in mind if you ever opt for one...