Beware of buying second hand.

With budgets tightening making an expensive but necessary purchase like a new bed is not an easy decision. When budgeting for a bed, you will see a range of options, from cheap and nasty to high-end and everything in between. It is tempting to settle for a cheaper choice because you may not easily see the difference between different priced beds. Look a little closer and ask questions, & the differences will become clearer. There are bargains available; you may find a mattress which looks good and gives sufficient support to meet your required needs made by a lesser-known brand, or you may find a discontinued model from a higher-end company. However, this is rarely the case.

Manufacturers of cheap mattresses usually use lower quality materials which may break down and lead to the bed losing its shape faster. These mattresses will sag, leading to misalignment of your body during sleep, resulting in pain and aching. Proper spring construction is a key factor in the quality of a mattress. The used fabrics often an attractive home for micro-organisms and Black mold, an occurrence in beds that contain second hand components or have been used well past the expiration date and sold as “new”.

It is a widespread practice with budget mattresses made by illegitimate manufacturers to refurbish used beds and sell them. They may look new, but under that new synthetic cover lies the mattress equivalent of second-hand underwear. The thought of sleeping on someone else’s used mattress should be unsettling, because there is no way to thoroughly clean and sanitize every part to get it back to factory-freshness. These unhygienic, refurbished mattresses are more likely to attract black mold and mildew, as well as bed bugs and dust mites. These can result in skin irritation & allergic reaction as well as other more serious health complications.

Another cost-cutting trick that budget bed makers use is to buy reject parts (often rusted and defective) from inferior sources. While these components are cheaper, they will not be as durable, and can be dangerous. Imagine a rusty spring breaking and poking you … In a cheaply made mattress the parts may even be held together by cello tape. You won’t be able to see this, of course, until things start to fall apart.