Do you know how much of your life is spent sleeping? The average human sleeps for about 26 years in a lifetime – which is pretty much a third of the average lifespan!
With all that time sleeping, it makes sense to look for maximum comfort when you’re in bed. And we all know that good quality sleep leads to an ultimately better quality of life.
Good quality beds usually come with an item called a mattress topper – which kind of looks like a mattress, but is just something you place on top of it. Mattress toppers are usually made of memory foam material that boosts the comfort and support of your mattress for the best quality sleep.
And if for some reason you find yourself only with a mattress topper to sleep on, you don’t have to worry. You can use a mattress topper as a mattress – but with some extra considerations!
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Can Mattress Topper Be Used As A Mattress?
While you can use a mattress topper as a mattress, you have to consider several factors. Are you using a bed or sleeping on the floor? What is your floor material? Which kind of mattress topper do you have?
Mattress toppers come in various thicknesses and in other kinds of materials (not just memory foam). If you get the most expensive mattress topper to sleep on, it will definitely contour to your body and hug you gently while you lie down on it, but if you’re spending all that money on a high quality mattress topper, surely you can get an affordable mattress to go along with it as well?
Sleeping on the bed and sleeping on the floor are two very different experiences, and with just a mattress topper between you and your sleeping surface, you have to consider the wear and tear of your mattress topper. Also, you have to think about any dirt, dust, or mite issues if you choose to sleep on the floor, which will reduce your sleep quality.
Pros And Cons Of Using Mattress Topper As A Mattress
If you’re still considering using just a mattress topper to sleep on, Here are the pros and cons of using a mattress topper as a mattress.
Pros:
- Mattress toppers are relatively affordable. This means that it costs significantly less than getting an entirely new bed or a high-quality mattress.
- You can move your sleeping position around easily with just a mattress topper. Moving around a mattress topper to the perfect sleeping area of your home is a lot easier than trying to lift an entire bed and moving it around.
- Old mattresses clog up landfills – so if you’re sleeping on just a mattress topper, you’re keeping one less mattress away from landfills.
Cons:
- Mattress toppers can be uncomfortable after a while. Yes, they may be made of super comfortable memory foam, but if you don’t have one that’s thick enough (anything less than 5cm), chances are you will feel the surface you’re sleeping on, whether it is a cold hard floor, a carpet, or a bed base.
- Once your mattress topper gets dirty, it can be hard to clean them. This is especially a problem if you’re sleeping on the floor – remember that mattress toppers aren’t intended to be the only thing between you and your bed surface, and were originally designed to be put on top of a mattress.
- Dust mites may enter the foam in your mattress topper, and once they get in, it is notoriously hard to get rid of them.
The Benefits of Proper Mattresses
As comfortable as some of the best mattress toppers available on the market are today, they are ultimately designed to be used together with a layer of the mattress underneath. Mattresses are made to support the full body weight of a human, and are designed to have a long usable life.
Mattresses come in thicknesses of about 8 to 14 inches for high-quality ones, and 2 to 8 inches for thinner, often more affordable ones. Mattress toppers on the other hand, rarely go over 5 inches in thickness, and are usually made in the range of 2 to 4 inches. This means that even if they are made out of high-quality memory foam material, mattress toppers are not very thick, and may become uncomfortable after a while.
Durability of Mattress Toppers
For the most part, mattresses will normally outlast mattress toppers with daily use. This is because mattresses are heavy-duty items that are designed to last 10 years and longer, while mattress toppers are just an extra layer placed on the mattress used to adjust the comfort and firmness of your sleeping surface.
This is why they usually last no longer than 5 years. If you plan on using just a mattress topper as a mattress for the long term, consider that you might be spending a lot more on replacements in the long run.
Conclusion
Buying a mattress, or an entire bed for that matter, is generally considered a big investment. And for some of us, using a mattress topper as a mattress may be the only option we have due to personal or financial reasons.
Mattress toppers are definitely a good short-term option to sleep on, as compared to buying a completely new mattress. Most mattress toppers available today come in varying degrees of firmness and a variety of materials that suit every budget and need.
If you want to keep your mattress topper in good shape for longer, one good idea is to invest in a good mattress topper that is made out of high-quality materials, and then layer it on top of a secondhand, older, and much cheaper mattress – look for hand me downs or garage sales and you can find some pretty cheap yet still usable mattresses for sale.
You’ll be getting a great sleeping experience by using the mattress topper as it was designed for, while keeping it in great shape so that you can keep using it in the future when you upgrade to a full sized bed for your home!
