Boy, that sounds like a tough one! College budgets are not fun. I just graduated.

I want a greener mattress, but cant afford it. The matress I have was one year old when it was given to me by my aunt and uncle. It is a sealy postropedic (however that is spelled) and I love it... But it's not green. Everytime I go to bed my body is comfy, but my mind isnt. I know I am laying on something that feels good but isnt natural. It ruins it!

I even thought about making my own green mattress. I havent thought too much about it, but I know I could use unbleached cotton cavas. But what would I put in it?
I'm surely not going with straw... I wonder how much a BIG load of plain cotton would cost? But I'd want it to be organic....

So, I went to google and searched "affordable green mattresses" and found this:

........................
"A Natural Home's "Simply Affordable" furniture line includes twin- and full-sized organic cotton and organic wool mattresses ($450 and $500, respectively). Savvy Rest has two styles of natural latex mattresses (with organic wool quilting and organic cotton casing) that, starting at $1,049, cost less than most made with these materials."
that quote is found here:
http://www.thegreenguide.com/doc/118/ecobedroom

and the direct link to the page to buy the 450-500 dollar ones is here:
http://www.anaturalhome.com/product/D000ORGCOTMAT/

Hope this helps!
sammie

I have read posts elsewhere saying that you can simply go to a local mattress store and ask for a natural latex mattress and it is cheaper than ordering online. What I saw said they would customize it to your order (size, thickness, casing). We are not planning to switch mattresses until later this summer, so I haven't tried this yet. If you do, I'd like to hear if you had any success.

Catherine

I still think of a water bed as eco-friendly . We bought ours in 1978 and STILL use it every night ! I have not purchased a new bed in 30 years . Mine has soft sides so I can use fitted sheets . We have moved 26 times in 30 years and had no problem moving our waterbed with us each time .
I'll bet you can find one on freecycle.org or craigslist.com for free .
Re-use and recycle and it fits your budget .

Thank you for this interesting topic of going green with mattresses.
I never thought about it until now!

I'm new to this forum, and really delighted to have found your
green community.

Been living green for years before it was the right thing to do.
I've been line drying year 'round clothes and bedding outside and inside since '77, after moving out of an apt. into a home with a rear yard and clothes line.

My Mother and G. Grandmother always line dry family clothes and bedding.
I used to line dry towels, until a family member said they were too scratchy.
Gave in to drying them in the Dryer.

The benefits of line drying are that clothes last significantly longer.
Has anyone noticed how much thinner cotton underwear has been in
recent years? People who dry them in the dryer must go thru them
like "Kleenex."

You'd have to be pretty ecofanatical, but a green alternative to a mattress is a futon. Not the 'futons' one sees here in stores, but a real Japanese futon. They are comfortable, actually, and with the internet, available. They are padded cushions. Most use about a four inch batt of cotton, with a durable cotton cover. One can cover that again with what looks like a duvet cover. They are not used with frames, but lain directly on the floor. Aren't cheap either. Anywhere from about $350 to $600. But great for small mulitfunctional rooms where you just fold them up and closet them for the day.

I am moving to New Orleans and would like to by a king size mattress, we don't want the memory foam, I think something with more stability, we currently have a mattress that isn't green and a little soft. The new one we would like to be green and a little harder. Is there any places were I can try lying down before I purchase? I need this asap.

Thanks

Here's another question: I'm allergic to latex, not severely but it irritates my skin. Do you think a latex mattress would bother me?

Thanks for the replies--great info, so now I'll be ready when we need a new bed!

I think the only "green" mattress I have seen listed on this thread so far is the poster's 30 year old water bed. That's what makes it green. It has been durable. Most people go through mattresses in what? Five to seven year cycles?

I'm sleeping in the "greenest" bed I've ever owned and I bought it 25 to 30 years ago. In my case it's an air bed that was made by Select Comfort. It's probably one of their earliest efforts. It has been a Godsend to me having broken my back twice in my days. I can make it very firm which is important for my problems. The other side can be as soft or firm as my sweetheart prefers.

I had been through a good many beds trying to find something to help me with my back problems so that I could go to work and make my way in this world rather then take the disability route that so many losers that I know have done.

Finding a great bed that will last a very long time is the "greenest" approach you can take. Don't get lost in this recent liberal trend of "Green for Profit" that is infesting the country and picking the pockets of ignorant people who don't realize they are being manipulated. Find what works and then you won't have to add it to the waste stream.

I learned a lot when searching for my organic mattress. The biggest thing I've learned is that MOST "green" mattresses are simply "green-washing". This means they are using terms and sales pitches to seem greener than they are.

To be considered a true organic mattress it should posses the following criteria:
1. It should use 100% CERTIFIED organic materials from the cover to the core. No synthetic materials at all.
2. It should be manufactured in a facility that only manufactures organic products and is third party CERTIFIED to be an organic manufacturing facility. This means they are free from chemicals and anything else that could cause cross contamination and compromise your organic mattress.
3. It should utilize the smallest carbon footprint possible when it comes to transportation.

If you live in California and you're looking for a truly organic mattress you can visit Urban Sleep Store. They are located in the San Francisco Bay Area PLUS the manufacturer of this mattress is also located in California. This keeps the transportation footprint to a minimum.

Those living outside of California would obviously use more resources when it comes to transportation but even still, you wont find a higher quality or purer organic mattress anywhere in the U.S. because these are the only CERTIFIED organic mattress manufacturers in America. Trust me I've spent a lot of time researching this before I ended up purchasing my organic mattress from Urban Sleep Store.

Here is a link that might be useful: Organic Mattresses in San Francisco

Until recently, I worked at a furniture store that sold bedding. Compared to other areas of consumer goods, the bedding industry has been much slower to bring organic selections to market. The first products I started to see were pillows and bed-top items. Then organic mattress covers and foam started showing up. Bamboo and flax were the most common raw materials being discussed in the trade magazines as of a couple years ago. As with all innovations, they are expensive initially, until the costs of creating the products are absorbed and the raw materials are produced in larger amounts.

Manufacturers attempt to make products that people want to buy. So, the more the mattress makers hear from people who want organic bedding, the more prevalent (and affordable) the choices will be.

Many stores that sell mattresses don't have the space to display every mattress from every manufacturer they represent. If you don't see what you want to buy where you want to buy it, tell somebody. They're desperate to know what people want to see and buy in their stores.

i went to my local mattress store here lately, and they had several knew eco-friendly mattresses surprisingly, but not for a college budget :/

I am interested in buying an all natural latex mattress....not one with synthetic latex. Does anyone know of any stores in Florida that sell them? Or any particular manufacturer that you might find in a store? So far what I've found have been a blend or have been on-line. Would like to check it out in person at a store before buying.

I just ordered a Savvy Rest organic latex mattress today. I have been searching online for months and finally made the decision to go with this company. I bought mine from Natural Bed Company in Akron Oh. You can buy it from anyone online who sells it, because it comes directly from the Savvy Rest factory, not the store. It actually ended up being a good thing because I didn't have to pay any sales tax due to being from a different state. The scary thing is, we didn't get to lay on the bed first, so we are taking a chance, but I had to have a bed that didn't have chemicals in it. I will post when we get it to let you know how we like it.

There is nothing green about any of the ideas floated above which one will find out quickly when actually looking into the energy and raw materials used necessary to create so called green items (the battery powered cars is the most asinine. It seems no one ever checks to see what goes into making those batteries) BUT check into old school, I think the Amish still make or use them Feather Bed mattresses.
My aunt used to have one and my sister who had allergies inhereted it, loved it.
It obviously has feathers for filling and I have no idea what they cost nowadays.

Just thought I would share my latex experience.

I had an "S" brand innerspring mattress that caused me zero back pain but, because of its age, it was beginning to sag in the middle and I found myself sleeping in a valley, so I needed a new mattress. I wanted to go chemical free, if possible, so I looked at latex. Spent SIX MONTHS researching and testing mattresses. Finally decided on a Savvy Rest DIY, and that thing is MISERABLE. I have had it five months now and wake up every morning in excruiciating pain--pain in both legs and my lower back. I have no health issues, and am physically fit. After trying many toppers to try to relieve the pain/pressure, I finally get some (but not much) relief from a feather topper. Plus, the feather topper is a pain because you have to fluff it every day, otherwise it loses its softness.

I did some forum searches on other sites to see if anyone else had that issue and, guess what..yep..they did and do! Apparently the issue with latex is that it "pushes back" against you. Now, the theory is that such push-back is supposed to provide a supportive, yet comfortable sleeping surface. HOWEVER, that push-back is what causes the pain and stiffness in some people. From what I've read on the forums, if you like a soft mattress or if you are light weight, you won't like a latex mattress. I don't know if that's true or not, but all I know is that I HATE going to bed now. I dread it. I know the pain is caused from my mattress because a couple of hours after I get out of bed, I feel fine and have no back or leg pain.

Given that I spent a half a fortune on that mattress, I decided to "make do" and just get a topper. But even with that I have pain. I am dumping that (prohibitively expensive) latex thing, and going with something else. (At this point, I am not sure what. But I am thinking of going back to an innerspring with a CertiPur certification. That's not the best chemical-free option by any means, but I figure the pain my latex mattress is causing me will result in more ill health effects than some slight off-gassing. I can't sleep more than five hours on my current latex mattress. The pain wakes me up.)

Sheesh. Buying a mattress shouldn't be this difficult.