Mattress sleep trials – everything you need to know
Nowadays most decent quality mattresses across almost all brands come with a risk free sleep trial, especially for those that you buy online. This might range from 30 nights to over 100 nights and are designed to allow the consumer to get a good feel of their mattress before making any firm commitment. Whether you’re shopping for a new memory foam mattress, a hybrid or a pocket sprung mattresses with thousands of coils, it can feel like a big investment to make and customers are often wary of jumping before trying.
Sleep trials have become a big selling point for mattress companies and it is certainly one aspect you should consider carefully when making a purchase. Trial periods come free of charge and are generally considered risk free, although there will almost certainly be fees if the mattress is damaged during your free trial – so take good care of it!
But before you run our to find a wonderful hybrid mattress with an attractive 100 night trial period, here a few frequently asked questions regarding mattress sleep trials.
What is a sleep trial?
If you’re shopping for a mattress online it’s almost impossible to not come across sleep trials. Every major manufacturer and seller now includes these trials in your purchase. Some of the most expensive brands offer long, attractive sleep trials.
In short, it gives you a certain amount of time to decide if the mattress is for you or not. If you decide that the mattress just isn’t for you, then return it free of charge and continue the search.
Why do I need a sleep trial?
That first night you crawl into a new bed comes with excitement and anticipation. You manage to convince yourself that the upcoming night just might be the greatest night sleep ever. But as you lay back down on the new mattress, an unexpected thought pops into your mind along with some slightly irritating body aches. The mattress feels a little, well, uncomfortable. You toss and turn for half an hour but something just isn’t right. Then you start to get angry because you have just spent all of this money on a horrible mattress.
But take a few deep breaths. This is perfectly normal.
The problem is that it’s rare that a mattress feels particularly comfortable right away – it needs to be broken in a little. Your body has become accustomed to a certain mattress, which probably had a nice convenient you-shaped sag in the middle, and what it is now laying on is completely different. This is exactly why mattress companies offer a trial period.
How long does it take to break in a mattress?
Most companies have a minimum of a 30 days sleep trial and many won’t allow a return ticket to be started until you have tested the mattress for at least one month. Roughly speaking this is the time it takes to get a good idea of whether this mattress is for you or not. If you have a 100 night sleep trial, you may well decide that the mattress just isn’t for you long before the three plus months are up, and that’s fine, as long as you have passed the minimum period.
Why do sleep trial lengths vary so much?
The difference between a 100 night trial and a 30 night trial is quite a big step and you’re probably wondering what’s the difference between the two.
100 nights is more than adequate to decide whether a certain brand of mattress is for you – in fact, you probably don’t need more than 30 days.
A long trial might be offered for a number of reasons. If you’re a sensitive sleep you might need more time, but in reality it comes down to a selling point. 100 is a far bigger number than 30 and so no doubt looks better in the mind of the consumer before making the purchase.
What kind of problems might I have with a new mattress?
As mentioned above, your new mattress is probably very different than your old one, and after the first few nights you might be crying out for that old, beaten down mattress that you used to lovingly crawl into.
But don’t despair. Good things come to those who wait and this can be particularly true if you are switching between mattress styles from a traditional pocket sprung mattress to a memory foam mattress, or vice versa. Memory foam is hugely popular at the moment, but the body needs time to adjust to a new mattress.
During the first week of sleeping on a new mattress, you might experience a few new aches and pains. Now, while doesn’t exactly sound appealing these pains might actually be quite good as your body begins to adjust to sleeping in a better way. The important thing to focus on is whether these aches slowly go away. Or do they get worse? Teething problems are perfectly normal, but if after a few weeks you almost can’t face going to bed, you might have made the wrong choice and should probably think about a return or an exchange.
What’s that funny smell?
Another aspect that will take some time to get used to is the smell. Yes, like new cars, even some new clothes, a new mattress, especially one that comes in a box, will come with its own brand-new smell and some brands have a stronger waft than others.
This could be down to the foam, glue or even the packaging that it came in. Some mattresses need to go through a period – with the rather unfortunate name – “off-gassing” – which is when mattress expels Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Memory foam mattresses can be the worst offenders here and if you aren’t aware it’s coming, that 100 night trial can suddenly seem long an eternity.
This is a little bit of a funky smell from new mattresses but should disappear within a few days. If you can air out the bedroom as much as possible while you aren’t in the room, and keep the windows open for some fresh air while sleeping. It takes some getting used to but should disappear very quickly.
Are there any catches in a sleep trial?
Firstly it’s important to read the terms and conditions of your sleep trial policy before purchasing and starting a sleep trial. Most companies are very good with honouring sleep trials and usually, the mattress can be exchanged free of charge or simply returned with a full refund. However, there are some cases of customers being charged for a delivery fee, so make sure you pour over that policy before making the purchase.
Can anything invalidate a sleep trial?
Yes. Considering that the short period that sleep trials normally are, there shouldn’t be any significant damage to the bed. If there is this may invalidate both the sleep trial and the warranty on the bed. Meaning you will be left with a mattress that you don’t feel comfortable sleeping on.
When you buy a mattress look at their policy carefully to see what actions might constitute an invalidation. Unfortunately this probably means no pillow fights for the time being, at least until you’re sure than this brank brand-spanking new hybrid mattress that you’ve forked out for is the perfect mattress for you.
OK, it’s been two months and I hate the mattress, what should I do?
Sadly, not all stories have a happy ending. Sometimes after a while, a mattress just doesn’t feel right. This could be down to a whole host of problems, too firm or too soft, too hot or just too damn uncomfortable. The dream mattress has turned into a bit of a nightmare and not you want a full refund.
But luckily you are still within your sleep trial and you’ve kept the mattress is perfect condition. Contact the company you purchased it from and they will most likely ask you to open up a return ticket in which you will need to fill in some information and probably state what the issue is with the bed. Just be honest here, there’s not need to try and make up something, it’s perfectly acceptable for you just say that this memory foam mattress just isn’t for you.
Make sure you check the terms and conditions before making contact with the company so you know where you stand with your rights.
At this point, the company should reach out to you to try and find a solution. There are occasions when companies will send ‘comfort packs’ instead of immediately replacing it. This might come in the form of extra padding to try and add an extra layer of comfort. This can seem a little cheeky but again is often included in the terms and conditions – yet another reason to give that a careful read through buying anything.
If you want to try this option just make sure you don’t go over the end of your sleep trial.
Checklist
For those of you with minds like sieves and who are already fantasying about that new memory foam mattress and your 100 night free trial, here’s our quick checklist to go over before starting a mattress trial.
- Go over the terms and conditions carefully
- How long is your free trial and does it come with a minimum period for the mattress trial?
- Do they ask you to keep the original box?
- What is the return and refund policy if after the free trial you decide the mattress isn’t for you? And do you need to pay for its return (you really shouldn’t but some brands hide this away in the policy)
- What can invalidate the free trail?
- What is the delivery system and how does it work?
Conclusion
The old days of walking into a showroom and spending some time sitting down on a mattress now seem fairly archaic. Today we do so much of our shopping online, and with mattresses it shouldn’t be any different. A trial period is your right as a consumer and as long as you are within the period and haven’t completely destroyed the mattress, you’re perfectly within your right to return it.
Finding the right mattress for you is incredibly important – as we always stress here on Mattress Monk – and if you need to go through a few 100 night trails before you find the perfect mattress, then so be it.
