Used bed/mattress from trustworthy friend? Also: Disinfection?

Drez · March 2020

Hey so a friend is moving in with her fiancee and they have both offered me their bed. Usually, this would be a "thanks, but no" situation since I'm a little OCD and the ick factor of sleeping on someone else's mattress is...well, it just is.

I googled this question and the overwhelming majority of sites out there seem to suggest this is a bad idea, but they almost all seem to assume that the mattress is being bought from some rando reseller. This is from a friend who I know is clean and honest. She would never give me anything infested with bedbugs. And she said it was barely used, which I believe.

Thoughts?

Also, can a mattress be disinfected? And if so, what's the best way to do that? Right now, suppliers are limited, but I have Clorox wipes as well as some Mr. Clean spray bottle thing.

Enc · March 2020

You can't disinfect a mattress because you can't get into all the porous holes and places it has deep within. Sex oils and fluids aside, every night you sweat and all that sweat gets absorbed and dried into the mattress. Even if they don't have bugs, its not an ideal situation.

I know funds are different for everyone, but unless you are in abject pain currently I'd suggest waiting until you could order a new mattress from Caspar or the like.

Drez · March 2020

It's not that. I can more than afford my own bed. It was more they were doing me a favor because I've been using an airbed for years (for specific reasons) and I'm kind of doing them a favor by taking it off their hands.

I mean, I've slept on a used mattress before but it did kind of gross me out.

Shadowfire · March 2020

What about getting a waterproof cover for it and sleeping easily knowing that there's a barrier between you and whatever old fluids are there?

I guess bugs would make me shy away from a used mattress, but anything else is a big whatever if I know it's from a good home. You sit in worse on the subway.

bowen · March 2020

Do you need or want it really bad? Then take it.

If you don't need or want it really bad but it's just kind of "hey a free bed, it's maybe an upgrade?" Then probably just walk away.

Used beds are groddy

Drez · March 2020

Thanks for the advice, folks. I actually ended up declining. It wasn't just the above; it was also a twin-sized bed and, while I'm not corpulent, I'm large enough that twin isn't totally comfortable. I'd be going from queen to twin. And that's the excuse I used to get out of this.

I was legitimately gung ho about it at the beginning but I think this is for the best. I just felt awkward about saying "yes, absolutely, thanks!" on Saturday and then declining this morning (they were even talking about renting a truck and delivering it to me today). I think I got out of it without insulting anyone, though.

zepherin · March 2020

I know you declined, but I got this dope hand vacuum UV light that I use to clean my couch and bed from time to time. I looked and pretty much every place was sold out, but in a different time I’d use that.

mts · March 2020

our old mattress was a handme down from our friend. I don't see why it would be a problem if you knew they were clean.

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Used bed/mattress from trustworthy friend? Also: Disinfection?

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