Hello,
After much research on these and other forums I have decided on the Arctic Dreams 10" mattress. My only concern is that I have run out of budget and am forced to find a less expensive frame than I initially planned for. The Zinus Smart Base seem to get high reviews around but I’m wondering if the frame is enough to support the mattress (twin size). I wouldn’t want to damage my new shiny mattress with a cheap foundation!
Hi themeg.
Welcome to our Mattress Forum! 
Congratulation on your decision and for your new mattress. :cheer:
As you may be aware of Dreamfoam Bedding is one of our trusted site members which means that I think highly of them and that I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, knowledge, and transparency. All of their mattresses use high quality materials and there are no lower quality materials or weak links in any of them so they would certainly make a great quality/value choice.
While some reviews can certainly be interesting and well-meant, they can also be quite misleading if they don’t take details and specifics into account so you could end up with “muddied averages”. I would be cautious in using reviews as a baseline for choosing any product and I would confirm with dreamfoam that any support system you are planning to use under the specific mattress you purchase meets their warranty requirements and guidelines.
I would keep in mind that any foam mattress with a polyfoam support core 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 (either a bedframe and foundation or a platform bed) 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, shifting, or breaking with extended use. The support surface under the mattress (which may be a solid surface, slats or a steel or wire grid) 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. If a foundation has a slatted surface then I would suggest that the gaps between any slats are no more than about 5" (with 1 x 3 slats) although I would strongly suggest 4" or less which would be better yet.
Zinus has quite a few SmartBase foundation and frame options and I am not very sure which one you are considering but if you’ll mention the full name of the one you are thinking about I’ll do my best to comment on it.
Phoenix
Hello Phoenix, thanks for the reply.
The frame I was considering is the standard Zinus 14 Inch SmartBase Mattress Foundation Amazon.com.
I’m not exactly sure what the difference between the frames are besides the descriptions of the more expensive options being “built stronger”.
Hi themeg,
Thanks for the clarification on the specific foundation you’re considering.
Dreamfoam recommends 3’-4" between slats, so on the base you’re considering the wire grids have a spacing similar to that, but the side to side bracing is a bit wider with the gaps, so you’d want to keep an eye on the wore grids to make sure that they don’t sag too much over time. I’m also a big fan of placing an old thick blanket or some other sort of similar material on top of these wire grids to assist in minimizing the wire network “pushing up” into the polyfoam base of foam mattresses over time.
Phoenix
Thanks for the detailed information and your help regarding the specific base! I feel much safer to go forward with my purchase.
Hi themeg,
You’re welcome!
Phoenix
Hi there,
I also have a SmartBase. This 16" variant: Amazon.com
It’s been quiet so far, and seemingly sturdy, though this might be misleading. I appreciate the no-slip pad that it comes with. The wires are actually a bit less than 3" apart, which is great.
However, I just purchased a Brooklyn Bedding Aurora (Soft - Queen), to replace a much cheaper mattress. (Thanks a ton for the discount code, by the way) While I wait for it to arrive, I’m looking over the frame. When I spoke with a company representative, they suggested the wires were unacceptable, even with 3" spacing. It’s a hybrid mattress, but the bottom layer is foam.
They approved of this simple bunkie board I suggested laying on the platform ( Amazon.com ) which seemed like a good idea at the time. However, after I finished the conversation, I realized that the center support of the foundation would line up with the gap running down the middle of the SmartBase frame!
Moreover, it seems totally wasteful to use a foundation that doesn’t distribute the load down through the wires and struts of the existing frame.
I was thinking of purchasing some 1x3 or 1x4 boards to lay horizontally, but they might slide around. I could try screwing them onto some rails, but frankly, my carpentry skills are lacking.
Do you think your previous suggestion of a blanket would be adequate here? Or do you think it needs more structural support? The BB Aurora’s the most expensive mattress I’ve ever bought, so I don’t want to undermine it with a cheap frame.
The only old blanket I have for the job is a comforter with settled/lumpy/inconsistent padding, so I’d likely buy one just for this. I’m thinking something cheap but (hopefully) durable, like Amazon.com Or should I find something thicker? Or something else entirely?
Thanks,
Test
Hi Test,
Welcome to the Mattress Forum!
I see what you mean about the center support rail on the slat system. That rail is turned on its side, and relies mostly upon the strength of the rails at the head and foot of the slat system to keep it properly oriented and from dipping, as the rail itself will not tend to bow in the orientation it is secured in the slat system. As long as the metal perimeter of the slat system is in contact with the thicker perimeter railing of the platform base (being supported by the stronger frame network of the platform base versus the thinner wires), you’d be fine. But there certainly could be the potential for some sliding, which you’d probably want to address, as you mentioned.
A more dense blanket can assist with minimizing the “cheese slicer” effect of the metal grid network (I would avoid the fleece), or you can choose something like a coir bed rug.
Phoenix
[quote=“Phoenix” post=75234]Hi Test,
Welcome to the Mattress Forum! [/quote]
Thanks. I appreciate all your hard work here. : )
That’s a good point about the center rail. So that’s not a problem. However, sliding could take the slat system’s perimeter right off the edge of the platform, to lose support, maybe even slip off a corner and maybe damage something. No-slip pads aren’t large enough to reach to the edges. Worse, it’s going on an uneven floor where it’ll want to slide downhill.
I’m a little intimidated by the price of coir pads. Do you think this moving blanket would do the job? ( Amazon.com ) It’s the beefiest such item I can find. (I do apologize for taking up your time to look at blankets, of all things.)
Thanks again,
-Test
Hi Test,
Thank you.
And your moving blanket would be a much better option than a thin fleece blanket.
Phoenix