The Best Foundations or Base for a Latex or All Foam Mattress

[phoenix]

Hi Crackers,

Here’s the problem and we here we need your help please. We have a 3 yr old bed that we are happy with, that of course nothing about slats or foundations was on our radar when we bought it. It’s a queen, and has 15 slightly bowed 2" wood slats spaced 3" apart, with a mid support beam and two middle legs. But at the top and bottom there is a 4.5-5" gap between the last slat and the metal frame. So here’s our dilemma.

1)We are trying the mattress at northshore linens on a firm no flexible ikea slat foundation, and ours has some definite flex (I can push down to even or past even very easily). We can’t try the mattress at home, and you have mentioned in other posts that it will change the feel of a mattress, should we be concerned?

While the only way to know for certain how it will affect the feel and performance of your mattress will be based on your own personal experience … I would also have some concern with this type of support system particularly if the slats bend past the point of being flat. The slats will also flex more in the middle of each side than they will at their attachment points in the center and each side of the slat system and in some cases you may also be able to feel the rigid center support in the middle of the bedframe. You can also see some similar comments and concerns from one of the more knowledgeable members here in post #4 here.

An all latex mattress will generally do best with a firm, flat, and evenly supportive support surface underneath it that has minimal to no flex under the mattress and for larger sizes with at least one center support beam that has good support to the floor to prevent any sagging in the middle of the mattress. The components need to be strong and durable enough to support the weight of the mattress and the people sleeping on it without some of the parts bending, sagging, or breaking over time. The support surface under the mattress should have enough surface area to prevent the mattress from sagging through any gaps or spaces in the support surface over time but still allow some airflow under the mattress. I would suggest that in a slatted support system that any gaps between the slats are no more than 3" (with 1 x 3 slats) although less than that would be better yet.

2. the spacing at the top and bottom is too wide. We were thinking of cutting a straight piece of slat from a lumbar yard, but it will be different from the existing slats, would this work, or what would you suggest?

I would have more concerned with the issues I mentioned previously and the suitability of the slat system itself than I would with the larger gaps as the head and foot of the mattress where there is less weight to support although this isn’t ideal either. Adding some slats will provide better support at the head and foot but it wouldn’t solve the other issues with the slat system.

3. would you suggest either a mattress rug or a bunkie board over our slats? I prefer a mattress rug as the bed is only 4" deep. The only 2" shallow bunkie board I can find at a reasonable price to order locally would be Crate and Barrel and I see in previous posts you don’t seem thrilled with this one. Some of the others you recommend are out of our budge at this time and the slat conversions are too high for our bed frame and seem redundant.

I don’t think that the bed rug would solve the issues I mentioned since they will still follow the flex in the slats. I would also question whether the flexible slat system would provide a stable, flat, and rigid support system underneath the bunkie board and it may also damage the attachment points for the slats (particularly if they are plastic) which aren’t designed to support a hard surface.

If your actual experience indicates that it’s necessary or would be beneficial … and assuming that it’s possible … I would tend to replace the flexible slat support system completely and replace it with a suitable non flexing slat system (that you can also purchase from a lumber yard) with good center support to the floor.

Phoenix