Perhaps the most difficult mattress to maintain is the innerspring mattress. It does not have anti-bacterial or anti-allergenic features newer foam mattresses have. The older models of innerspring beds are still prone to molds and mildew formation.
That being said, they require more care and attention from their owners. Cleaning and disinfecting your innerspring mattress can keep it in top shape. This will also prevent health threats such as chemical off-gassing. Apparently, off-gassing can mess up with the serotonin-producing functions of the brain.
Here are some of the steps you should use when taking care of your innerspring bed:
1. Take your mattress in an area where you can clean it and dry it completely. It should be a well-ventilated area so your mattress can dry up properly. Excess moisture inside might cause the appearance of molds and mildew.
2. Prepare your cleaning materials. You need a soft-bristled brush, distilled white vinegar, baking soda, spray bottle, a bucket full of water and towels. You also need a hand-held vacuum cleaner or a shop vac.
3. Vacuum all sides of the mattress first. Carefully remove dirt particles and dust mites. Linger on the surface of the mattress as this is the area usually loaded with dead cells or dirt.
4. Mix your cleaning solution. Mix one part distilled white vinegar with two parts water. Place the solution in a spray bottle. Spray it all over the mattress. This cleaning solution will help disinfect the mattress. Moreover, it will also help dissolve molds and mildew or any stains your mattress might have acquired. Let it stay there for an hour.
5. Soak a towel in warm water. Wring out the excess. After an hour of letting the vinegar solution disinfect and freshen up the bed, wipe the cleaning solution using the damp towel.
6. Sprinkle baking soda all over the bed. This will help remove any lingering smell from your mattress. It will also help get rid of stains and discolorations. Use the soft-bristled brush to brush the baking soda on the stained areas. Let it stay there for another hour. Baking soda can also absorb excess moisture inside the mattress.
7. After an hour, vacuum the mattress again. Make sure you remove all dirt particles.
8. Let it dry completely. Do not use the mattress unless it has dried up completely.
You should use these steps in cleaning your innerspring mattress. It is ideal to clean your mattress at least twice a year to ward off bacteria, molds, and germs.
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Understanding Coil Technology in Modern Mattresses
Innerspring technology has evolved considerably from the simple Bonnell coil designs that dominated the mattress industry for decades. Modern innerspring mattresses use various coil configurations, each offering different performance characteristics. Pocketed coils (individually wrapped coils) are considered the premium standard, with each coil operating independently to conform to body contours and minimize motion transfer between sleep partners — high-quality pocketed coil systems may contain 800-2,000 individual coils in a Queen-size mattress, with higher coil counts generally providing more precise contouring. Bonnell coils, the traditional hourglass-shaped springs connected by a wire frame, provide good support at a lower cost but transfer more motion across the mattress surface. Continuous wire coils use a single wire formed into a series of S-shaped coils, offering excellent durability and support but with motion transfer characteristics similar to Bonnell systems.
Zoned Support and Advanced Coil Design
Advanced innerspring and hybrid mattresses increasingly feature zoned coil systems that provide different levels of support across different areas of the mattress surface. These designs typically use firmer, thicker-gauge coils in the center third of the mattress (under the hips and lower back, where the body is heaviest) and softer, thinner-gauge coils under the shoulders and legs where more give is needed for proper alignment. This zoning approach better accommodates the body’s varying support needs across different regions, helping maintain neutral spinal alignment without the compromise of a single-firmness design. Some premium hybrid designs combine pocketed coils with foam or latex in a zoned configuration, where different foam densities are layered above different coil firmness zones, creating a sophisticated support system that targets comfort and alignment simultaneously throughout the sleep surface.
