Does my Helix mattress require a support system?
So you’re ready to invest in a new mattress and improve your sleep once and for all. You’ve taken the sleep quiz, you know which Helix model is the perfect fit for you, and you’re all set to place your order.
But what kind of support do you have prepared for your mattress? Can you just keep using your old box spring once your Helix mattress arrives?
Unlike a traditional innerspring mattress that includes a more rigid internal design, Helix mattresses are made primarily with various layers of foam. Beneath the foam layers are hundreds (in some sizes, more than a thousand) of individually wrapped steel coils. This hybrid mattress design, as it’s known, requires sturdy support to avoid dipping or sagging in the surface of the mattress.
This sturdy support is so important, in fact, that it’s required in order to maintain the warranty on your Helix mattress.
So, let’s take a look at the types of bases and foundations that are required in order to properly support, and maintain the durability, of your new Helix mattress.
Helix Foundation
Perhaps our most versatile support base, the Foundation is designed to look and function just like a traditional box spring — except with sturdier support for the foam layers in your new Helix mattress.
The Helix Foundation is 7.5 inches tall and is designed with flat spruce wood slats and has just under 5 inches of space between each slat. This small amount of space between each slat is essential to maintaining the feel and durability of your mattress.
The Helix warranty recommends using flat, thick slats beneath your mattress and requires any support system you use to have no more than 5.5 inches of space between each support slat. The Helix Foundation can be used with any standard metal bed frame and is the perfect option for anyone looking to replace their box spring.
Helix Bed Frame
Speaking of Bed Frames! The Helix Bed Frame is made with hardened steel and is designed to provide additional height to your sleeping setup. It will sit at the bottom of your setup and support your Foundation, adding 7.5 inches to your overall bed height.
Please note, though, that the Helix Bed Frame has gaps of space larger than 5 inches between each support rail and cannot be used alone with your Helix mattress.
Helix Adjustable Base
Enter the Adjustable Base.
The Helix Adjustable Base provides optimal support for your mattress with a sturdy steel frame and no gaps of space directly beneath the surface of the mattress. On top of incredible support, the Adjustable Base is remote-powered and allows you to find the perfect angle of your head and foot positioning.
Madison Bed Frame
Last but not lease, let’s take a look at the Madison Bed Frame, which offers all the functionality of the Helix Foundation with a touch of the minimalist aesthetic that can complete any bedroom decor.
The Madison Bed Frame, like the Foundation, uses sturdy wood slats with just under 5 inches of space between each slat to properly support each layer of your mattress.
The Bed Frame is 13 inches tall and has a tool-free assembly, plus two beautiful wood finish options.
Traditional box springs have accompanied mattresses for decades. But as mattress designs have changed, swapping memory foam comfort layers for interwoven foam, fabric, and steel springs, it’s time to leave the box spring behind.
Box springs are typically designed with a wood body and layers of interwoven springs to compliment the bounce of your old innerspring mattress. What they don’t provide, though, is the flat, sturdy support that foam comfort layers require.
Using a box spring with your Helix mattress can quickly result in dipping or sagging in the surface of the mattress. And unfortunately, that box spring can void your mattress warranty, preventing our team from being able to provide a solution should you run into any issues with your mattress down the road.
Support bases with thin crosswires often meet the requirements of having less than 5 inches between each support slat. But without any thick, flat slats to support your mattress, you’re likely to see a breakdown in materials and a softer feel in the surface of the mattress than intended.
And just like the boxspring, grid-style metal bed frames can void your mattress warranty and leave our team without a solution to offer should you run into issues.
Bunkie Boards work by essentially filling the gaps of support that box springs do not provide. Bunkie Boards have no gaps in space and will provide the necessary support for the foam layers in your mattress.