Advice on buying a new bed / mattress?

PopeSock

I've decided to buy a new bed - frame and mattress - and was looking for advice.

I've found a bed frame at Argos, that's going fairly cheaply as it's clearance stock, metal - but it has rounded slats. Can a mattress sit directly on rounded slats? Does it matter whether I get flat or rounded slats?

Also, is it better to buy a bed and mattress separately or together?

Are all single mattresses roughly the same size?

Any other advice would be appreciated.

Pinkypants

Rounded slats? Or do you mean metal bars?

If metal bars steer well clear of it, horrible support for the mattress.

All Single UK mattress should be 3ft wide by 6ft3 long 90cm x 190cm. Unless you're shopping in Ikea, they do UK sizes and some other sizes too.

Buy the best you can afford, pocket sprung if the budget can stretch £180 upwards at a guess.

rustyboy21

I wouldn't buy a bed from anywhere that you couldn't at least lie on it and sort of try it out first.


I wouldn't buy online, even with the CSR's. I have bought a few beds from Land of Beds, who are online, but I live close enough to go to their store and they were great. Tried different mattresses on different bases, until I found what I liked.


You only have to look at the number of posts on this site about problems with beds bought online/Argos etc, to see it is not worth the time. Find a good independent retailer in your area and go in and see them.

cazzyann79

I also bought from Land of Beds but don't live locally. I watched their review videos and was happy to see the product I wanted to buy and was happy with that. If you are still looking to buy and need advice, they have a blog which is great and answers lots of questions or give them a call. I found their staff really knowledgeable.

kripel

You really don't want a cheap bed from argos/ikea!
Would rather buy used than from those places.

They are ok if you quickly want to furnish out to-let house on cheap but not for yourself

andrewf75

I disagree I think cheap beds from Argos/Ikea are fine as long as you don't get the mattress from there. The mattress is the important part.

SeduLOUs

andrewf75 wrote: »

I disagree I think cheap beds from Argos/Ikea are fine as long as you don't get the mattress from there. The mattress is the important part.

Same. I have a 'cheap' Malm IKEA bed frame with proper slats and bought a decent mattress elsewhere.

One set of slats is now wearing out after 5 years of use (the fabric holding them together has torn from the bottom slat), so we are going to replace them at IKEA for about £40 without needing to buy a whole new frame.

furnitexcouk

PopeSock wrote: »

Also, is it better to buy a bed and mattress separately or together?

I will buy it separately - you have then more flexibility with choosing what you really want

Gordon_Hose

Rounded slats, I assume, means sprung slats:

Pinkypants

Gordon_Hose wrote: »

Rounded slats, I assume, means sprung slats:

Yeap.




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Ectophile

My advice would be don't skimp on the mattress. A cheap and nasty one may only last 6 months before it goes lumpy. A good one will be comfortable for years. The big advantage of buying from a shop is that you can actually try laying on lots of different mattresses to find the one that suits you.

The bed, however, is just something to keep the mattress off the floor.

If you want to shop around, try looking for a local independent bed store, rather than the big chains. You may find the prices are cheaper, even when the big chains have their "sales" (which is pretty much all the time).