| Hello, I'm starting a new thread to attract those that use waterbeds and all their wisdom.... the only time i had a waterbed was one with softsides and TUBES, i would love to have this kind of bed, but i found that my backside slid between the tubes of water!! now this was over 20 years ago, and i wonder if they have changed the design of these tubed waterbed so that this doesn't happen anymore? does anybody have experience with this? also, i would like to hear about waveless waterbeds and back pain... how are people finding waterbeds for the pain? i can't seem to sleep on anything for more than 5 hours without having to get up and let the pain go away... would a waterbed help? and REALLY how much of a risk is there of flooding your home?? should i put a drain under my bed? lol thanks! elaine |
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sleepswithcats wrote: I have a softsider water bed.... until my new latex mattress is delivered. I've moved it a couple of times; it's a pain and you cannot get all of the water out of the tubes. The tubes were still on the heavy side when moving because there was still water left in them. The outer covers of the egg crate foam top got all torn (with use) and I replaced it with an inexpensive memory foam topper, which was not a great choice. The outer soft side seems to still be in good condition as does the outer cover, which has NO padding in it. As far as comfort goes, it was fine when I first got it. After about 7 years, if two people slept in it, there was a tendency to sag to the middle. With one person, it wasn't as noticable. I have not added any water to the tubes in years. In fact I have not added any water bed tablets either :-) It's difficult for me to remember what the bed was like 5 years ago. While the individual components seem to still be in good shape, it's not as comfortable as it was when new. I'm guessing it has about a 10 year life. Mine has never flooded or leaked. But lf you exploded one tube, you should still be able to vacuum it up with a wet dry vac without too much damage. It would be a mess, though. You should be able to find out how much water each tube holds. It might be a problem if your bedroom is on an upper floor. Mine is on the first floor so it's not an issue. When I went mattress shopping, the salesman laughed when I told him I had a waterbed. They have largely gone the way of disco. In the 80s there wasn't much choice for mattresses. Today there are lots of choices including combinations of materials that are affordable. I don't regret the choice I made in 1996. But today I would pass on the water bed. As for your pain, that's not something I can comment on.
Thanks, Sleepswithcats! I appreciate the benefit of your expereince. As to goin' the way of disco, well, it sounds better to me now than it did thirty years ago! I don't think they had softsides back then, did they, though? So progress marches on, such as it is! |
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weewillywinky wrote:
Give Dave or Terry a call at George street waterbeds! They're really helpfull, they could probably convert your old bed into a waterbed, they offer a moving service too, they will drain and move the bed for you, the cost depends on your location so give them a call on 01633 211448 or email info@georgestreetwaterbeds.com or visit the website and fill out the form at http://www.georgestreetwaterbeds.com/ the moving service is the last button on the menu. |
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We loved our softside water bed for many years (15?). No problem slipping between the tubes, as the zip cover was heavily padded. Advantages were: Looked like a regular mattress when zipped, the comfort, and that we could use regular size sheets. Disadvantages - hard to move the bed and the padding in the cover was cheap foam that over the years deteriorated until the mattress was sagging. We had only one leaky tube in 15 years. The cover is far too thick for the cat's claws to go through. Our new mattress is latex and we are happy with it. |
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weewillywinky wrote:
In the winter it is nice and warm and in the summer I turn down the heater and it is nice and cool. I find the maintenance very easy and wish I had discovered these years ago. |
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Floats wrote: In the winter it is nice and warm and in the summer I turn down the heater and it is nice and cool. I find the maintenance very easy and wish I had discovered these years ago. I have a couple more questions or comments about waterbeds. I have read that the electricity required for warming the water is significant. As a "green" I'm concerned about electricity consumption due to the environmental costs and consequences of electricity production. So my question is: if you don't heat the water, are waterbeds with foam or other toppers between you and the water mattress "cold"? I've read some comments saying they tend to feel on the cool side. This might be all right in the summer, but what about winter? Has anyone succesfully overcome this with the use of toppers (latex, wool, other) or going with a particular manufacturer's covering? Another question: how heavy are filled waterbeds? What kind of platform or foundation is required to support the weight? Another question: with the softsided mattresses, does the foam structure surrounding them tend to break down over time? How durable are they? Thanks again! |
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weewillywinky wrote:
I have a couple more questions or comments about waterbeds. I have read that the electricity required for warming the water is significant. As a "green" I'm concerned about electricity consumption due to the environmental costs and consequences of electricity production. So my question is: if you don't heat the water, are waterbeds with foam or other toppers between you and the water mattress "cold"? I've read some comments saying they tend to feel on the cool side. This might be all right in the summer, but what about winter? Has anyone succesfully overcome this with the use of toppers (latex, wool, other) or going with a particular manufacturer's covering? Another question: how heavy are filled waterbeds? What kind of platform or foundation is required to support the weight? Another question: with the softsided mattresses, does the foam structure surrounding them tend to break down over time? How durable are they? Thanks again! I set my waterbed heater between 87 -90 degrees. I keep the blankets pulled up to help hold in the heat and insulate the waterbed. I think it costs me around 14 to 20 dollars a month but it also allows me to keep my thermostat turned down in my bedroom, so my heating bill is lower.
No doubt a waterbed is heavy when filled but when it is drained it is lighter then a conventional mattress. A hardside mattress requires a special frame that holds the bladder.
Newer hybrid waterbeds(softside) have largely done away with the need for a heating system and the decision of whether or not to have a heater is strictly one of a personal preference and comfort. |
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I live in California where this is no winter. But I leave my house on 60 in the winter. I don't find the softsider bed any colder/warmer than spring mattress. The bed with tubes had instructions to DO NOT USE A HEATER. I wouldn't waste the electricity on a heated waterbed. I suppose electric blankets should not be used with a waterbed either. The foam along the edge of my bed has not broken down. The edge of the bed seems firm. It sags in the middle. Water weighs approximately 1 lbs per gallon. According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterbed">wikipedia</a> waterbed of size 160 x 200 x 020 cm weighs about 1400 lbs/640 kg. YMMV. Given the number of choices on the market today, I would not recommend purchasing a waterbed. Unless you have special needs that only a waterbed can satisfy, buy something else.
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Thanks, Floats and Sleepswithcats! I appreciate the information! It's good to see the pros and cons. Sleepswithcats, do you think the sagging in the middle is due to the breakdown of the baffles (fibers) that make it a waveless bed? I read about the various systems and it seems to be a potential problem since there are not some really good solutions out there, or so it seems to me. Waves are a problem, too, of course, when you're tossing and turning, trying to get some sleep, or filling it to the point you get a very hard surface so as to avoid the problem of waves. Again, many thanks! Better to know what you're dealing with in thoughts and words before you have to deal with the actual thing itself, particularly when they are so big and expensive. |
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weewillywinky wrote:
Things I liked about our old softside waterbed:
Things I didn't like about our old softside:
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| weewillywinky, I don't know why the bed sagged. It does not have a bladder; it has tubes. When the bed was new, it was great. It had no motion; it felt just as good as any new mattress. I didn't realize how bad it had gotten with only one person sleeping in it. But with two, it was noticable. |