Feelin’ Frugal: Our Air Mattress Story
Our first apartment was full of craziness character. One annoying unique feature was the sharp turn in the middle of our staircase going up to our bedroom. We figured it was going to be impossible for us to get a mattress up those steps. So we got a little creative and decided to add a fancy Aerobed air mattress (very similar to this one) to our wedding registry.
We ended up using our air mattress for five years.
Our family and friends thought we were a little nuts. Everyone asked us how often we needed to add air to the mattress. Amazingly, I only added air about once a month.
The mattress was a little noisy and it didn’t cushion movement well at all. If there wasn’t enough air in the mattress I would roll “down” into Nate, but we were newlyweds so we didn’t mind sleeping close. 😉
Our air mattress wasn’t perfect, but it was so much better than you would think. Using our Aerobed was a smart choice for us because…
- It solved our logistics problem of trying to get a mattress up our steps.
- It was cheaper than buying a regular mattress and box-spring set.
- It was an item that we could easily add to our wedding registry and since it was purchased as a gift, it was free for us!
What made us decide to retire our air mattress after five years?
It was an early morning. Nate was leaving for work. Grace was still sleeping and I was trying to do the same. Nate leaned onto the bed to give me a kiss goodbye, like he did every morning, and…
*POP*
Nate’s knee broke through the mattress and I was suddenly sinking to the floor.
Amazingly, this happened just two weeks before we moved into our new house. We borrowed a full size mattress from Nate’s parents to get us through the last two weeks in our apartment and we bought a “normal” queen mattress for house.
This unconventional mattress worked great for a season in our lives. Have you ever slept long-term on an air mattress?
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I have never slept on an air mattress long term, but when my husband and I were first married we bought a trailer that had no oven just a hot plate, instead of purchasing one on credit we made due with a toaster oven and a crock pot for over a year while we saved up. I bought a muffin pan and a casserole dish to fit it and baked everything in it.
That was probably really energy efficient!!
Can’t say that I have…but I have slept on a mattress on the floor and later the mattress on a homemade platform before upgrading with a new mattress and “new to us” frame!
Eh. Bed frames are totally overrated. 😉
Lessons I learned after sleeping on an air mattress/bed:
1. Put a blanket or SOME type of material between the mattress and the bottom sheet. You’ll get cold no matter how hot natured you think you are.
2. Putting something on the floor under the mattress to avoid poking holes in it.
I’ve been sleeping on my new air mattress almost 2 weeks now. I put it on my bed frame, making sure anything that could poke a hole is covered. I put a fleece blanket and an egg crate on it and I’m sleeping pretty good. I have a bad back and bad hips, so I was surprised how well I’m sleeping.
Great tips. Thanks.
I have slept on air mattresses since 2002. Money was never an issue. I was going through medical problems, then compounded by back problems. I kept trying out mattresses, only to be in pain. I even considered buying a Hastens mattress [$$$$] but it was so heavy, realized I could never move it. I started out with inexpensive air mattresses from Target, that rarely held air long and I wound up replacing every 2 months. I purchased a high end non- memory foam topper. My back felt better and I felt cuddled at night…Firm but soft with the topper. I am short and small and there was good support in the small of my back where it was needed. In 2008, after much online research I purchased a Truck-Bedz Expedition mattress. The sku I bought was queen size, although made for a truck bed. I can hear your readers laughing . But it was a TPU urethane coated nylon cloth, no off-gassing and just wonderful. It has inner coils and did not have the upper and down hills of less expensive choices. It was about $200. I gashed it once and Truck-Bedz fixed it for free.
It is now 2018 -10 years old, and needing nightly air…so time to replace.
I have tried contacting Truck-Bedz and no one responds…so I think they are out of business. Other mattresses for trucks have side cut-out for wheels, and so will not work…I think I sleep like an angel on it. It is so comfortable with my topper. IBecause it is so light, I can move the bed easily. Any alternative suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I tried an Aerobed at a friend’s and it just doesn’t have the heft and firmness my Truck- bedz has.
I’m doing it right now – while I decide on the sort of bed I want. I love it!
I find it comfier than any bed I’ve had for a long time.
I’m going to stay with it and see how long the “love” lasts.
(will get a back-up one to keep on-hand just in case)
It really isn’t so bad, is it? 🙂
Sweet dreams!