Mattress for Ducal Samantha King Size Bed

skywatcher2010

Hi everyone,

First time poster on this site so please forgive me if I have gone about this the wrong way and posted in wrong place etc..... ;-)

I have a Ducal Samantha King Size Bed (now about 12 years old) which is slatted ( the slats are 2.5 inches wide and are 2 inches apart). Can anyone please advise firstly what sort of mattress would be appropriate for this type of bed i.e in terms of springs, foam etc. It currently has a "Rest Master Beds Firm Choice" Mattress on it which must be 12 years old and clearly needs replaced. I can find no details of this company or mattress on line.

My wife and I looked at Sealy mattresses and seemed to find that there was one which is "Exclusive" to Bensons for Beds called the Madrid (Part of the International Collection)but seemd very overpriced (£1600 down to £800) and perhaps a similar version may be available under another name and considerably cheaper. Salesman claimed it was a very firm mattress but rang Bensons (who rang Sealy) and advised medium to gentle firmness. Still felt firmer than that though? Seemed to be a 660 spring with Innergetic quilted top if that means anything.

Anyway I am not sure if this type of mattress is suitable or whether I need a particular construction of mattress etc. If I can first establish what is a suitable construction of mattress for this bed frame then I can work from there and seek further advice as appropriate.

I will gladly take on board all advice (including whether I have posted correctly!) and appreciate your taking the time to read and help as appropriate.

Thank you

Tim_Deegan

The types of mattress that would be suitable for your slatted base would be open coil sprung, or two sided pocket sprung with memory foam/latex foam (the foam on the bottom spreads the weight out over the slats). Pocket sprung only mattresses aren't suitable (despite what you may be told in shops), because the springs will try to push down between the gaps, and damage the springs. You can however lay a sheet of pegboard or hardboard over the slats to spread the weight out.

As for Sealy, they are part of the Silentnight group :eek:. You shoud do a search on the MSE forum for them before you even consider them.

skywatcher2010

Thanks Tim for the very quick response and helpful advice. After even a quick search I can clearly see that you are the expert in this field and your knowledge and reputation are testament to that. Clearly you are not an advocate of Big Brand names and expensive overhead shops. I was hoping to try out a mattress in local stores and then purchase online from an e-tailer at a greatly reduced cost. I am in no doubt now that it is what is on the inside (construction) rather than the outside (label/brand) that is important, it is just that I always thought it "safe" to stay with major names - more fool me! I will start searching for mattresses based on your construction advice and if you can offer any further advice perhaps on lesser known brands if that is not unethical then I would greatly appreciate it. Many thanks indeed for taking the time in your original reply it will clearly save me money which is the whole point of using this site!:beer:

Tim_Deegan

skywatcher2010 wrote: »

Thanks Tim for the very quick response and helpful advice. After even a quick search I can clearly see that you are the expert in this field and your knowledge and reputation are testament to that. Clearly you are not an advocate of Big Brand names and expensive overhead shops. I was hoping to try out a mattress in local stores and then purchase online from an e-tailer at a greatly reduced cost. I am in no doubt now that it is what is on the inside (construction) rather than the outside (label/brand) that is important, it is just that I always thought it "safe" to stay with major names - more fool me! I will start searching for mattresses based on your construction advice and if you can offer any further advice perhaps on lesser known brands if that is not unethical then I would greatly appreciate it. Many thanks indeed for taking the time in your original reply it will clearly save me money which is the whole point of using this site!:beer:

If you can't find what you are looking for in shops, then phone the on line retailers to ask them advice. If you use a retailer that gives a proper satisfaction guarantee that allows you to unpack and sleep on the mattress, then it is in their interest to make sure that you make the right choice the first time. Otherwise it will cost them money to exchange it.

TRying a mattress out in a shop for 10 mins, fully clothed, and usually not laying in your sleeping position, can only give you a very rough idea.