Buying a new mattress
 

I need a new good quality mattress quite urgently. I always get the impression that Dreams etc are quite expensive, are they? If so where would be better value?

I've never bought one from a pure on line dealer. In the past I found this difficult to do because I'd like to test it out in a store but major stores seem to relabel their mattresses so it's difficult to compare.

Thanks

Have you tired a Tempur mattress? meant to be good...


the other option is a water / mud bed

they often do a trial of mattress's / beds


mart

i have a vi-spring mattress and although expensive its amazing to sleep on.got good deal from mate that works there.the memory foam mattresses were tested by vi-spring and found to wear out after 4-5 years so get a decent,pocketed sprung mattress and remember to turn every 6 months.

My memory foam mattress is the best thing I`ve ever bought. It wasn`t expensive like the branded ones but it`s awesome. Great for sh@gging on too, less mattress movement :D

Ding, stores sell mattresses for higher price, but at least you get to see/test them. I won't buy one on line unless its from a reputable firm like Silent Night or Dreams etc. At least it will match the specifications, and you won't get lumbered with something substandard. You are not trapped for cash or something, so I wouldn't compromise on something like sleeping mattress, if I were you. Seeing is believing with something like mattresses IMO. I'd rather pay over the odds (Well, a bit. Not much, like!) and acquire the satisfaction promised for my money. You will sleep much better on your mattress, then. :thumb: :D

+1 :thumb:


We've got a Vi-Spring bed, and my brother's just bought one. We all love our vi-Spring beds! :D

And so you should at that price ;)

:D :lol1:

Tampers really run out after 6yrs??? We have had ours 6months and I guess it's knackered after all the banging that takes place...

Thanks. I've tried latex/memory foam etc and don't like them. I prefer a traditional firm well made mattress.

The one I liked the most was at Dreams and made by Sleepeezee and cost £1200. When I try and see whether I can but it cheaper online it's impossible as Dreams have it exclusively made for them.

Dreams have had 3000 pocket springs put into it but I wonder if that is just marketing nonsense and a.way to.differentiate it from other Sleepeezee mattresses on the market.

I'm happy to pay for good quality but I don't just want to pay over the odds if an equivalent is available for less.

that sort of money will get you a vi-spring mattress.

HMMM might have a look into buying one of those,can i come round and give your vi-spring bed a testing ;)

I have a memory mattress bloody great i agree,just make sure you have a strong bed frame though. :norty:

Dreams use their volume selling to get manufacturers to re-brand commonly available products and then sell at vastly inflated prices. The mattress we liked in their showroom was a Sleepeezee Cairo that wasn't on sale anywhere else, but happened to have exactly the same spec as the Sleepeezee Backcare Ultimate 2000. A guy in a small independent retail shop near me confirmed that it was indeed the exact same item by calling the local Sleepeezee rep before offering me a much better price. In Dreams the Cairo was RRP £1150, £950 in their 'sale', and the sales bod offered it to us for £850 if we bought there and then, plus £40 for a 5yr g/tee, and £35 delivery. I ended up getting the Backcare Ultimate delivered with a 5yr g/tee for £385 (allowing for some Quidco cashback). The 'Cairo' had disappeared along with a whole range of 'Egypt' themed Sleepeezee mattresses the following year, and identical spec items were on sale with presidential names, ours now being called the 'Kennedy'. They are rip-off merchants, with the only good thing about them is the opportunity to try out in their stores before buying elsewhere. We bought from bedworld.net

I must admit Dreams has to be *the* most over expensive shop I've ever seen.

We bought our young daughter a mid sleeper cabin bed thingy - best part of £1000 in Dreams, we eventually found one *identical* for just over a £150:eek: I kid you not!

They are seriously robbing bartstewards, of the first order.

Dingdongler, i bought a new double mattress recently. Like you i wanted to try it out first. I ended up buying one made by a company called Healthbeds. They are an independant company, been going for over 100 years. I bought it from a local independant bed company. I wouldn't go to a place like "Dreams".
Healthbeds is also the mattress that the shop owner had at home.

Best bet is go to a local independant bed company, and try them out. Not everything is better online, mattresses are one of them.

Yes I can also confirm the very high margins Dreams work to along with lots of other national companies

I used to work on 56 %Gp years ago and now it could be well over 64% Gp to allow for the cost of running a national business

RRP is a made up figure and normally sales staff have 10% back pocket deals and they also have 20% off days too when business is tight but make it up on pillows ,mattress protectors at £25 which cost £3.50 and of course delivery charges and magic guarantees which are good for lighting the fire with :D

Pocket springs with a good topper is best all round and aim to spend £600-£900'forna good quality mattress that will take a lot of S######G

Sleeping :D

Memory foam FTW

Having owned a memory foam mattress I would not advocate going down that route. They're incredibly comfortable, but not supportive enough. They're also uncomfortable when it's hot and don't wear especially well. Much better to get one with a foundation of pocket springs with a memory foam top: best of both worlds. To be honest though, a really good quality pocket spring mattress is probably the ideal way to go.

Thanks to all. (My personal preference in terms of design is pocket springs and nice topper as Lord Harding says)

What's the deal with Vi springs? I had never heard of them before, why are they meant to be so good?

Hi CB

The one I liked at Dreams was indeed a Sleepeezee one called Jefferson.(approx £1150) I tried to find the equivalent one on Sleepeezee's website but can't. The closest one is the same one you bought ie the backcare ultimate 2000 (approx £450). The difference being the ultimate 2000 has 2000 springs but the Jefferson 3000. Sleepeezee don't actually make firm mattress for themselves that has 3000 springs.

I wonder whether Dreams have just specced 3000 springs to differentiate themselves from the ultimate 2000 and use that as a marketing gimmick to charge double the price

Vi spring are based here in Plymouth and been going long time.they are all hand made and up until a few years ago were exclusive to Harrods and john Lewis.very high quality and only a small factory of about 140 people.after coming out of the forces first time round did 2 years there as a tape edger before better job came up.they were bought from the original owner by a spanish family that also own most of the main bed makers in the world and wanted vi spring as the top one.best bet is go to a house of fraser or john lewis if near you and try them out.the sales reps there have to go on courses at vi spring so they know everything about the beds.

Sleepeezee do an Emperor 3000 spring, and a Grande Luxe 2500. I think they used to do the Backcare in 3000, but maybe not. When we tried them in Dreams we couldn't tell enough difference between the 2000 and 3000 to warrant the extra cash TBH. When our Backcare 2000 was delivered I've never had to move such a heavy mattress, it weighs a bloody ton and is extremely rigid, so much so that I struggled both getting it upstairs and around the bend into our bedroom, where every other mattress I've ever handled was both fairly light and easily bent double. We also have an MF topper to make the initial feel soft, but then the orthopaedic support kicks in giving that lovely firm feel. Had to source new fitted sheets though as it ended up over a foot deep.

We tried the ViSpring and although very sumptuous and obviously well made, even their firmest model in our local store was like a fluffy marshmallow. At £6k we decided against it :lol1:

Have a look here for some advice on the types of mattresses. Loads of other info there too on which brands..
http://www.factory-beds-direct.co.uk...ing-a-mattress

+1 :thumb:

John Lewis. They know what they're talking about.

And don't fall for the 'orthopaedic' idea. You need a mattress that supports you, not one that's like a board.

We've had (good quality) memory foam matresses for years and I used to have back problems which I don't have now, so I will happily replace our existing MF matress with another. There is a massive range of quality out there, so look around.

We found a manufacturer who produces as good if not better quality than Tempur for less money but I can't recall the name, sorry.

MF is obviously not for everyone however, in which case Vi Spring is also one to look at.

It's a very persnal choice at the end of the day so you need to get your arse out and try some.

Shopping online can save you a fortune, if you want to see how much look at the mattress I bought

Sleepeze backcare ultimate 2000

Debenhams £1180.00

Matressman £399.00

Edit to add, you can also get 6% cash back from Matressman through Quidco

Essential!

I've slept on wood before and never had a problem. Some peeps here are soft as ****e. Lol.

Don't know if that's a good idea at your local Dreams branch.