As a homeowner and the only person/people sleeping on your mattress, you may not be as concerned about mattress protection as an innkeeper or hotel manager. Although it is important to use the same care as described in this article for saving your mattress investment, an innkeeper will find it even more important for their guests.
As an innkeeper or hotel owner, you cannot be too careful about protecting your mattresses from human contamination, bedbugs, dust mites, etc. So we, at InnStyle, always recommend good mattress hygiene by protecting your mattresses from bodily fluids, including blood, urine, perspiration and what cannot always be easily seen on the mattress.
All mattresses should have protection. It will give you optimal return on your mattress investment plus insure your mattress warranty. Your guests will appreciate the cleanliness and protection of a cover when using the bed. It is important to have a zippered waterproof encasement for your mattresses and box springs for protection from bedbugs, dust mites and protection against spills, etc. These covers should be zippered (which will not need removing unless an unfortunate accident has leaked through). You should always protect your mattress with a mattress pad over the mattress encasement for comfort (as they are padded) and extra protection. These can be washed and dried before dressing the bed for next use. It would be wise to have a few extra mattress pads for emergency situations.
Vacuuming is the only recommended cleaning method for a mattress. If covered with a waterproof mattress cover, you should not have any stains directly on the mattress. If there is liquid on the mattress, we recommend using a towel to blot the liquid. Apply gentle pressure to absorb the liquid. Do not press the liquid into the mattress. If you must clean a stain, use mild soap with cold water and apply lightly! Don’t ever soak a mattress or foundation and don’t use dry cleaning fluid of any type on your mattress — these chemicals could damage some of the comfort and upholstery materials.
For general care, always flip and rotate the mattress. A two-sided mattress should be flipped and rotated regularly. Mattresses can be flipped in summer & again in winter. You could then do the rotating of the mattress in spring & fall. Single-sided mattresses should also be rotated, although you do not flip, obviously. Again, you can choose time of year and schedule all flips and rotations on a calendar. You should also rotate your box spring once a year.
Always use a bed frame with a rigid center support that supports the head, foot, sides and center of the mattress and box spring. If using bed slats with a mattress and box spring, use at least three rigid, no-slag slats.
If you have any questions or concerns about protecting your inn or hotel mattresses, please contact us.
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