Insiders' Guide to Adjustable Beds:
Part 1 - Choose the mattress surface first, before you investigate an adjustable bed base

This may sound obvious, but many people get caught up in the technical wizardry of the technological features of an adjustable bed, and forget to spend time selecting the best sleep surface for you. Go to a few stores, and try a mattress or two on several adjustable beds. If air beds seem comfortable, try the Select Comfort or a good knock-off product. If memory foam is your preference, try a Tempur-Pedic. If you are comfortable with a coil or coil-foam combination, try them as well, but on an adjustable base if possible. Almost any adjustable base available in the U.S. market today will offer a two point articulation system, meaning that it folds in two places, dividing the mattress into 3 sections, the head section, the middle section, and the foot section. Each sleep surface, or mattress, will react differently when folded and bent on an adjustable base. If you are serious about an adjustable bed, then you should realize that few side sleepers will have a use for an adjustable bed in any other position than flat, so understand your sleeping habits and how they are affected by the use of a bed whose purpose is probably to elevate your head or legs.

Most conventional coil mattresses are not designed for use on an adjustable bed, and it is important to use a mattress, especially if you already have one or if you are intending to buy your adjustable base separate from your mattress, that is capable of being folded with minimal resistance and does not lose the original qualities for which you purchased it, when in an articulated (folded or upright) position. An air bed mattress, for example, that is not designed to be used on an adjustable base, may not fold or bend in a way that properly distributes air through the bladder system, thus resulting in deflation or overinflated areas. A foam bed that is constructed of high density foam that is rigid, may completely resist bending or folding at all.

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Part 2 - Choose an adjustable bed base from a reputable, established manufacturer with experience under their belts _______________________________________________