We trusted the salesman, who did not push, and we both loved the bed. I know it was said in previous posts that the non-handmade Shifman’s potentially have questionable material, but the bed just felt excellent, and because of the fact that there is no pillowtop, the stuffing is cotton, and the padding is minimal, I was not worried. If the padding ends up wearing there is a warranty, and it was perfect for our price range. It is on the very firm side, however we are going to use a topper or a mattress pad if it ends up feeling too firm. But it did not in the store. I wanted to stay away from a pillow top because of previous bad experiences. Originally, I wanted to buy the Vi Spring from a local retailer. However the $6000 price tag did not fit in our budget, even though I really really really wanted it to. We are in our late 20s. So maybe the next time around.
But I digress. We want to purchase a king mattress frame. Currently our box springs sit on the ground. We want to fancy it up a bit. We do not like head or foot boards. I found these two at Macy’s or bloomingdales (posted below this paragraph) and I wanted to get your feedback. My primary concern is stability, durability and lack of noise. My secondary concern is aesthetics, storage ability and price. But price is almost a primary concern, however, for a true high quality frame, I am willing to splurge if it offers significant added value. Please provide feedback on the 2 frames and how they address my concerns. And if you have any alternative recommendations, I would appreciate it, especially if you can recommend something with storage underneath. I saw that it is easy to make a bed frame out of cinder blocks. Can you comment on that? Do you know how that would affect a mattress warranty?
Both of the frames you linked would certainly be strong and stable enough to support both your foundation, mattress, and you so from this perspective they would both make suitable choices. Noise that comes from a bedframe is usually a matter of making sure that all the bolts or fasteners are tight (no metal on metal rubbing), that the bedframe fits the box spring snugly (so it doesn’t move, twist, or slide around) and is well centered. If anything the embrace would probably have less potential for metal to metal noises or squeaking.
Neither of these would have much storage underneath them if that is a concern and some platform beds may also be worth considering if storage is an issue.
While bedframes are not my area of expertise … there are a few links and options linked in post #10 here but almost any good quality and supportive bedframe with a center beam and good support to the floor would probably serve you well. I would make sure that the center beam has at least one middle leg with support to the floor.
I don’t have any experience with using cinder blocks although they would certainly be strong enough IMO as long as your box spring was supported along both edges and in the middle. they don’t have a lip though so depending on how you used them (on edge or flat) I would think they could also have some risk of tipping over and could also have some risk of the box spring sliding or shifting with more vigorous activity on the mattress.
If storage is a concern then a platform bed or one of the wire grid frames in the foundation thread here may be worth considering but this would depend on whether you have a box spring or a foundation under your mattress. If you have a foundation (with no flex) then you could put your mattress directly on the platform bed so the sleeping surface wasn’t too high but if you have a box spring which flexes and is part of the sleeping system then using a non flexing base under your mattress will change the feel and performance of your mattress and they should be used together.