What to put on a mattress to make it softer?
How comfortably you sleep depends directly on how firm your mattress is. If you wake up tired and worn out, with muscles aching as though you had spent the night unloading freight cars, it may be that orthopedic mattresses are simply too firm for you.
What to put on a mattress for softness: the protector as the budget option
An ordinary mattress protector does not just keep the mattress clean and shield it from physical damage — it can also adjust the firmness.
Protectors are made from a wide range of materials:
- natural — cotton, bamboo, silk — comfortable to sleep on;
- synthetic — microfiber or polyester — hard-wearing and inexpensive, but not very breathable;
- blended — combines natural and synthetic materials.
Mattress protectors can soften a mattress a little, but not for long. An overlay like this, laid on the bed for softness, has no orthopedic properties.
A bed overlay for softness: the topper as the best option
A topper does a far better job of adding softness, and it is exactly what specialists recommend when asked what to put on a mattress for softness.
A topper is an extra thin mattress, from 2 to 10 cm thick, that softens a bed or, the other way round, improves it. With a topper you can create an even, soft surface for comfortable sleep.
How soft it feels comes down to the filling.
- Latex — a natural material made from rubber. It adapts easily to the shape of the body and feels soft and pleasant to the touch. On the downside, it does not tolerate sharp temperature swings, but a mattress store can offer an alternative: synthetic latex.
- Polyurethane foam (PU foam) — cheap and soft, but not suited to everyday use.
- Ormafoam — similar to latex, holds its shape well and softens the mattress.
- Memorix — adapts to the body immediately. Warm and soft, though in summer it gets too hot to sleep on.
- Hollow fiber — a synthetic material. It provides softness, holds warmth through the night and springs back to its original shape.
Toppers are held in place by elastic straps or by snaps at the corners.
The best move is to buy the topper or protector from the same store where you decided to buy your mattress. The specialists there will pick the ideal material for your mattress and answer every question, for example what the soft overlay for a mattress is actually called, as well as finding a topper in the right size.