After sleeping on the dorm mattresses for a year or two, I’ve decided to invest in my own Twin XL mattress. I’m returning to the same room this year, so I already know that a plastic mattress which rests on a metallic, woven platform held in place by two wooden supports will be waiting for me.
If you’re not aware of what it looks like, the metallic bit that the mattress sits on looks something like this, minus the feet:
http://www.amazon.com/Handy-Living-32F-XL-TWIN-Extra-Spring/dp/B001GQ67I6/ref=sr_1_2?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1438813087&sr=1-2&keywords=Twin+XL+boxspring
And the dorm bed setup looks like this:
http://www.collegebedding.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/dormbed.jpg
My question is, can I safely place my new mattress on the existing metal platform without damaging it, or should I invest in a boxspring?
My guess is that you will be fine. You might find the bed on the softer side depending on the quality of the mattress and the stiffness of the metal base. If that is the case, a boxspring would help. I am surprised you just didn’t buy a high quality bed topper.
You’ll probably be fine, but as others have said, I’m not sure why you didn’t just buy a nicer mattress topper. Have you checked to make sure that your school allows you to switch out the mattresses? In my school they do not let us bring any furniture, and we cannot remove anything from the room. I bought a very fluffy fiber bed to top my mattress with and it’s been a dream. It was only $150, and when my younger sister or brother head off to college when I’m done they can take over it for their dorm room. It’s also much more portable then having to take a mattress home every year and then bringing it back a couple of months later. I would suggest if you can take back the mattress you bought I definitely would and use that money for a good quality topper that will make you feel like you’re sleeping on clouds.
I agree on the topper. Even if the college allows the mattress, they will undoubtedly make you reset the room to its original condition at the end of the year. Which means you would have to store their mattress during the academic year, and your mattress over the summer.
I also agree with the bed topper idea (much more cost- and space-effective) but if you do go with a nice mattress, you may want to buy some wooden slats or a correctly sized piece of plywood that you can place across the springs. I have found that the spring net makes the bed feel like a trampoline and also makes it incredibly squeaky. Making your own platform will also be way cheaper than also purchasing a box spring. My father and I converted a 1920s iron bed into a platform bed this way and it is just as comfy as a box spring, and I don’t have to jump four feet in the air to get into bed (another box spring contingency if you originally have only a mattress)
My DS is big- 6’4 and 200+ lbs, and the thin mattress provided by the college did not supply nearly enough cushion and support. A mattress topper did not solve the problem. A new mattress that we paid for did.
Students who are not “petite” may find that you cant get a good nights sleep on a crappy, thin mattress.
YMMV.
