have 2 very basic questions
how do you know you are “really” getting a new mattress? how can you tell if they gave you a new mattress rather than a floor model etc. etc.
how can you tell if a salesperson is telling the truth about the components of a mattress? I have read many posts where folks asked someone at a shop about components? they can say it is HR polyfoam etc. without you really knowing. does everyone ask for a spec sheet? I assume this is how it should be done?
Hi domiagnew,
You can check the manufacturing date on the law tag to make sure that the mattress was manufactured recently and isn’t old enough to be a floor model but other than this would really come down to an issue of trust and the integrity and reputation of the retailer or manufacturer because unless there were signs of use you wouldn’t be able to tell. It would be illegal to sell a used mattress as new so a reputable manufacturer or retailers wouldn’t risk their business for the sake of doing this.
Once again you would be reliant on the knowledge, integrity and reputation of the retailer or manufacturer to provide you with accurate information about the materials inside their mattresses. I have seen some retailers provide inaccurate information (particularly if the quality of their materials is lower than I would be comfortable with) but if the specs come from a factory that is transparent about the materials they use then they would “usually” be accurate. Most spec sheets don’t contain foam density information … only generic descriptions of the materials … so for the most part you will only be able to get these from more knowledgeable and transparent retailers or manufacturers who understand the importance of knowing the type and quality of the materials in a mattress as an important part of making an “informed choice”. Transparency along with working knowledge about different types of materials and foam densities (so they aren’t just providing information that is meaningless to them) are one of the key things I look for when choosing which retailers or manufacturers I would prefer to do business with.
If a mattress only contains polyfoam or memory foam (or latex where you know the density) then you could also use the densities and layer thickness inormation to calculate what the weight of a mattress “should be” (within the normal range of variation for foam densities) and make sure that it’s reasonably close to the actual weight of the mattress.
Phoenix