Waterbed Mattresses Guide – How To Choose A Waterbed Mattress

Waterbed mattresses gained a lot of popularity in the seventies when they first made their appearance. Suddenly, every Hollywood movie that shows a bedroom needed to have a waterbed. And the homes wanted one too. Waterbeds became famous… and how!

So have you got your waterbed already? Or are contemplating on getting one? Well, if you are, you must know that waterbeds are not like water balloons that have to simply filled with water from a faucet. There's a lot of hydraulics involved, and you need to know that if you want to get a waterbed you want. Here are some buying tips, and do not place your orders before you read them:-

Waterbed Buying Tip # 1 – Select the Right Kind

Contrary to popular notion, all the waterbeds out there are not the same. There are three main types of waterbed mattresses that you should know about. The following are these three types:-

• Free-flow Waterbed Mattresses – Free-flow waterbed mattresses are those that have only one water compartment within themselves. Due to this reason, they have more water flow.
• Fiber-Fill Mattresses – The fiber-fill mattresses have a fiber batting inside them, which helps to regulate the flow of water in a uniform manner. These mattresses provide more support and firmness.
• Hydraulic Mattresses – Hydraulic mattresses, a recent invention, contain round vinyl coils inside the mattress body. These coils have their small ports where the water is filled. In these mattresses, the water is not filled in the entire bulk of the mattress, but only within these small ports.

Now selection within these three types will depend upon your preference. Do you like more wavy and rippled comfort? Then you can go for the free-flow mattresses, but you must remember that mattresses will be much softer than traditional mattresses and that could be actually inconvenient for you, especially when turning in your sleep. Also, free-flow mattresses are much bulkier than the others.

Fiber-fill mattresses are good choices too. The fiber batting inside them gives them a degree of firmness and makes them much more convenient to sleep. Some of these will also come with extra fiber batting around the lower back area, which could spell more comfort while sleeping.

Hydraulic mattresses are much more expensive than the other two types. Also, they are inconvenient to drain because the small ports will retain water. But, to their advantage, these mattresses do not misdirect the water present inside when one person sleeps. Normally, in free-flow mattresses, when one person lies down, the water passes to the other side of the bed, which becomes inconvenient to the other partner. But, in the hydraulic mattresses, since the coils are kept separate, there is no such problem.

Waterbed Buying Tip # 2 – Select the Right Surface

Waterbeds are generally made of vinyl, and this is definitely the best material. Vinyl is rigid and so it can prevent leaks. At the same time, vinyl is pliable, so it will adapt to your body shape quite easily. Also, vinyl can be easily cleaned, and even washed with water. That means, the bed can be totally free from dust mites and other parasites that exist on traditional beds. However, for matters of strength and durability, try to avoid beds that contain surfaces of recycled vinyl. These will not last long.

Waterbed Buying Tip # 3 – Buying the Bed Sheets

If you are buying a hard sided waterbed, then you might find it difficult to get bed sheets of the same size later on. So, it is a good idea to stock up on some bed sheets while you are shopping for the waterbed. However, this problem is being removed by introducing beds of standard sizes. The recent soft sided beds all have same sizes, so buying bed sheets for them is not much of a problem.

Also remember that when you are shopping for your bed sheets, you must specify the kind of waterbed you have. If you have a free-flow waterbed, you will need to get specially designed bed sheets, because these beds tend to be higher in the middle area than at the sides.