ORTHOPAEDIC MATTRESS

Orthopaedic mattresses with springs and coils

Mattresses with springs and coils remain the most popular mattress types in the high street and, up to about 25 years ago, were the only orthopaedic mattresses available.

These old style orthopaedic mattresses were very firm and had a minimum spring gauge which ensured that they offered high flexing resistance. Even today their modern counterparts are still popular and work well when a firm bed is required or preferred.

The most popular of the spring style mattresses is the pocket spring mattress. This kind of spring unit works in such a way that it rarely feels overly firm when a body is at rest. Pocket sprung units remain the most purchased new and replacement beds and mattresses.

The coil and inner spring mattress

The pocket spring (coil) mattress is composed of individual spring coils rather than a mesh of springs. There is no direct interconnected between the coils. This means that each coil works independently even though it is part of a larger network.

The inner spring mattresses works in a completely different way where the tops and bottoms of all the coils are woven together like a web or mesh. This allows each coil to support its neighbouring coils, thereby providing additional strength. This system results in the coils working together rather than independently.

Coil mattresses in general

A cheap and basic pocket sprung mattress will be made up from coils surrounded by layers of upholstery-filling and a surface cover. The quality of most mattresses can be approximated by their coil count. The higher the coil count, the smaller the diameter of the springs and consequently the greater the number of the springs.

A high coil count mattress will generally feel firmer than a low coil count mattress and it will also prove more durable and have a longer life.

The gauge (thickness) of the coils is the second factor that affects a mattresses performance and firmness. The heavier the gauge, the firmer the mattress. The lighter the gauge, the softer the mattress. Since some people like a firm mattress and others a prefer a soft mattress, gauge is very much a matter of individual choice.

Coil mattress example

A typical double bed mattress will have about 300 coils of 13 gauge-2 and will have characteristics that are springy.

The better the coil mattress, the more springs it will have. Orthopaedic coil mattresses have a higher spring count than regular (and much cheaper) mattresses and, as a result, are better at supporting the profile of the body, head and limbs.

Coil mattresses of this kind combine firmness with compression and offer a flexibility that allows the mattress to respond to any shape or weight of human body. This means that orthopedic coil mattresses provide a firm support to the back and, if they are supplemented with layers of memory foam, can offer the highest levels of comfort available.

More on coils

Modern spring mattress cores are often called innersprings and they are comprised of steel springs generally referred to as coils. As previously discussed, the most important feature of an innerspring mattress is its coil count. The higher this number, the better the build quality of the mattress.

In most mattresses a high coil count produces a firmer mattress because there are more coils and they are closer together. Coil distribution is also important and the steel wire that is woven throughout the tops and the bottoms of the coils strengthens the mattress by eliminating problematic lateral movement.

Some of the more expensive and higher quality innerspring mattresses utilize memory foam on their top surface for extra profiling, body contouring and padding.

problems with coils

The problems with coil mattresses generally relate to cheap and over worn mattresses and normally those made of innersprings or coils. As these mattresses become older they can cause painful pressure points in the areas where the mattress core starts to fail. For this reason it is important to consider the number and type of coils in a mattress before you make the decision to buy.

It is also important to inspect your mattress on a regular basis to make sure that it is not showing signs of coil failure.

Should you buy a spring or coil based mattress

Coil and spring mattresses remain the best sellers although memory foam is catching up rapidly. Spring based mattresses can also be very cheap at the bottom end of the range, although these cheap mattresses have few orthopaedic qualities and short life spans.

Modern thinking suggests that, whilst spring based mattresses continue to play a role in orthopaedic bedding, additional top layers of memory foam or latex foam will significantly add to these mattresses contouring characteristics.