Used Mattresses- Are They Worth It?

There are some things I would never buy used...car seats and mattresses are on that list! Could you buy one this month and maybe one next month?

I second Peg's response. Also, a good piece of foam is often way more comfortable than most mattresses.

When I was young (and single and without kids) I bought a used mattress. It was sufficiently comfortable, but there is a big risk of things like ...oh semen stains, urine, blood, etc. Which is just gross. Also bed bugs are big epidemic in some places and I'd want to protect my children (even more than myself). Bed bugs DO bite!

Free bunkbed is just fine. Its plain old furniture.
For a mattress, if you are broke (and girl, mattresses new in the store cost can cost a flippin fortune), I'd call those places that sell mattresses cheap.

Where I live they post signs on the road or the paper that say "new mattress! $99!" Things like that. Truthfully these mattresses ARE new they are just sold in some dude's little tiny warehouse and they are cheaply made.

My advice to you. If you must, buy a cheaper new mattress or perhaps get a used one from a friend or relative (one you trust).

But really, in my opinion, this is NOT a place to save money. Its a bed and your kids are gonna spend like 1/3 of their life here (at least). In the long run, you are better off buying a good/decent quality mattress (again dont need a box spring) and having it last years and years. Otherwise, if you do buy a cheap one it WILL break down much quicker (I bought one of those 3 years ago and we are now needing to replace it). If you buy a used mattress you are risking infection or just grossness all over your kids. ANd, its just a matter of time before your kids rip off the sheets, and rub all over that used mattress. And lord knows whats been on it.

Sorry to blab, but I think this is a time where saving a few bucks isn't worth it.

PS If you go to a furniture store and tell them you are buying TWO mattresses, they WILL give you a discount. If they don't, go to another store, because THEY will.

Consider buying a nice slab of foam rubber. I have lived on a tiny income my whole life, and with some investigation, it's easy to seen that many of the products we have come to see as standard and necessary are creations of advertising and custom, nothing more. This is true of most cleaning products, personal toiletries, furniture, lawn products…. Cheaper alternatives can serve very well and sometimes better, at much less cost.

Google 'foam rubber' to find sources in your area. You can get a 6" deep, bed-sized piece either ready-cut or custom cut, in a range of densities from very soft to very firm – medium is comfortable. I'm not sure what current prices are, but I'll bet it will be more affordable than a new mattress. They are supportive enough to be comfortable for years.

Since you're using these for your precious children, it would be good to air them out for a few days if possible, since there are some gasses that are produced during production, and I'm sensitive enough to smell these. But they do air out well. Leaning them vertically against a wall so air can circulate will probably take care of them quickly. (BTW: commercial mattresses also contain an astounding range of chemicals that gas off for years, especially when warm bodies lie upon them.)

No. don't use another' persons mattress. Mattresses contain our own skin cells, oils and secretions from our bodies-- they may contain bedbugs or eggs. You don't want to find out. I would definitely buy a new mattress or if you have to get a used one, make sure its only from someone you know and trust. GL!

M

Realistically, every time you stay at a hotel, you are sleeping on a used mattress. So I think that if you are buying a used mattress from a reliable source and can see that it is clean and stain free then you are probably OK.

However, if I was buying a mattress for my family and knew they'd be sleeping on it for years, I'd look for something new. I like the comfort of a foam mattress but since foam often contains a high percentage of chemical fire retardant, you might want to consider something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/All-Cotton-Futon-Mattress-Size/dp/B...

Gold Bond also has an 8" thick cotton futon mattress, which is what I plan to get next time I buy.

Here is a fact for you. I've heard it several times on several different news stories, so it's got to be semi true.
10 year old mattresses are about 10 lbs heavier than the exact same new one. Why? 10lbs of human dead skin, hair, and who knows what else. So in my mind?? No used is NOT worth it.

I personally wouldn't do it BUT if your kids need a mattress and you can't afford it what you supposed to do, so I would just give it a good cleaning (bleach and all), probably search on internet and you probably can find ways.
After all, how many of us go to hotels and sleep in mattress?
However, before you decide to buy the used one I would recomended to check in a mattress store if they have any "floor" mattress, I mean the ones that they use to show at the stores, they would sell those more cheap.
If possible to wait, maybe wait for a special sale.
If not, then just give it a good cleaning and buy those covers for mattress the ones that protect the mattress from water, I will think they will help to protect the other way around, I actually think I saw some bed protector for bugs at Target, check

We bought a used mattress for my daughter a few years ago. I was really reluctant, to be honest, but my husband was insistent. When we picked it up, I was amazed. It was in perfect condition. Turns out the people had never even used it! They were moving and just wanted it gone. Of course, this was before the bedbug epidemic.
You don't need boxsprings for a bunk bed. You can get twin mattresses for fairly cheap. Look around at some stores online for the best deals.

I'm not in your area, but check out freecycle.org. I got a mattress off of the freecycle in my area and have had no problems. Everything is free on the site and since you have to go pick it up you can see for yourself what kind of environment it's coming from....There was a twin size mattress listed in CO Springs on Saturday...maybe it's still available! http://groups.freecycle.org/ColoradoSpringsFreecycle/post...

Yeah...I just wouldn't go there. If the mattress is fabric, then I wouldn't trust it. Some mattresses have plastic covers i.e. infant mattresses and those might be able to be cleaned sufficiently.

I think you should hold off on buying mattress until you have the money for them. Either that or go to one of those places like Rent-a-Center or Aarons, where you can receive the mattress and pay a certain amount monthly, until it is completely paid off.

Bed bugs or not just go buy decent new ones. No old urine on them no stains and no lumps.

No, and NO! Sorry :(

Sorry, but I cant handle used mattresses.... too much gunk from other peoples bodies gets trapped inside of them. You would notice the "aroma" of the used mattresses once they were in the room for awhile and it wouldnt be your own.... GAG.

I know people who have purchased used mattresses and all I can say is "YUCK". I have no idea about the safety of it or the basis for my feelings on it but have a few things I don't share, mattresses, toilet seats and shoes. I just got two twin mattresses for my boys brand new at Mattress King for $79 each. We are on a tight budget too so I ended up getting one on one month and one the next month.

Good luck!

Ugh!!...bedbugs, dead body cells, pee, vomit, sorry, I have germaphobia, but if you are really desperate, I guess you could spray, sanitize and then put a mattress cover over it..but personally I would rather get new ones...

In the meantime, purchase a zippered vinyl cover for each of the mattresses and then a mattress pad for each.. It will be good because if anyone wets the bed, it is protected by the zippered vinyl cover.

I wouldn't... but I could see taking the mattresses that came with the bunk bed and covering them with a vinyl cover (or better a zippered cover) and then a pad over the top of that for the time being. Replace as you can.

Walmart has bunk bed mattresses for $69. Air mattresses are another easy temporary alternative - although with little ones, I'd be worried about them poping it or even worse it getting partly deflated and trapping a little one against the wall.

you could also put both kids on the lower bunk with a new mattress for a couple months until you have money to buy a second for the top bunk. Just a thought - we had troubles getting our oldest getting brave enough to climb down their bunk bed initially so both kids slept on the lower bunk for months at 5yo/3yo, but then the lower bunk was a full size too.

best of luck!

I would never buy a used mattress. However no one has suggested air mattresses. They are definitely not long term solutions, but can buy you some time while your husband is in school. They are comfortable and cheap. I used one for about two years when I was living with a roommate after high school and couldn't afford a bed.

NO! Absolutely not!!!
Spend the money.
LBC